Falcons add DL Abdullah Anderson to practice squad, place OL Tyler Vrabel on IR

Abdullah Anderson has had an interesting month or so. Added to the Falcons roster on August 7, Anderson made a big push for a roster spot but did not land on the initial 53 man roster, though he was added shortly thereafter. Anderson was then a surprise cut just one day before the season opener, and now he’s back on the practice squad. I doubt he’s actually gone anywhere in that span, but it’s a lot of transaction-based movement, at least.

With Anderson joining up, the team announced that offensive lineman Tyler Vrabel is moving to injured reserve. It’s unclear what his injury is, but he had been on the practice squad as a developmental tackle.

Anderson, 26, will provide depth for the Falcons and may well find himself flexed to the active roster in the coming weeks. He showed well as a run defender in August and the team may need help with that after playing the Rams next week, as they’re lining up against some run-heavy squads like Seattle and Cleveland soon enough. The Falcons showed they’re not going to be shy about getting reserves involved along the defensive line, as they turned to Timothy Horne and Matt Dickerson on Sunday against the Saints. Anderson looked good enough to get his time in the sun when injury or need arises, in short.

Vrabel will hopefully be healthy as soon as possible, as he’s hoping to put together a strong fall and make a push for a reserve role on the 53 man roster heading into 2023.