The Falcons opened training camp with Troy Andersen back on the active/PUP list, and that alone makes his situation in Atlanta feel awfully fragile.
Andersen was among four players placed on the list earlier this week, along with Jawaan Taylor, DeAngelo Malone and Billy Bowman Jr. He also hasn’t been on the field since the middle of 2024, which is a familiar and troubling place for a player whose future with the team already looked murky.
Last summer, Andersen opened camp on PUP and never got activated. That led to the final year of his rookie deal being tolled to this year. Now he’s starting this camp in the same spot, and that’s not a great sign for a fifth-year linebacker trying to carve out a role.
When he’s healthy, Andersen has flashed the kind of play that once made him look like a potential high-end contributor. But health has been the constant issue. After playing in all 17 games as a rookie, he has appeared in just nine games since then.
The timing makes this even tougher. Training camp was supposed to be a chance for the 27-year-old to show a new regime what he can do, but instead he’s still rehabbing the same knee injury that kept him out all of 2025. Missing all offseason work only adds to the sense that his spot with the Falcons is slipping away.
Atlanta’s linebacker room is open for business, and Andersen has no margin for error once he’s cleared. He’s competing with Christian Harris, JD Bertrand, Josh Woods, Channing Tindall, and rookies Kendal Daniels and Harold Perkins Jr. for snaps behind Divine Deablo, whose roster spot is secure.
Right now, Deablo, Harris and the two rookies look like the safest bets at linebacker. That leaves Andersen fighting for his place with Bertrand, Woods and Tindall over the next few weeks.
There’s another complication, too: Andersen wasn’t drafted by this regime or the one before it. Terry Fontenot was the GM when Arthur Smith was the head coach and Atlanta used the pick it acquired in the Julio Jones trade on Andersen. A lot of people have tried to unlock his potential, and it still hasn’t happened.
For a player with that kind of draft capital, the story is hard to ignore. If Andersen isn’t healthy by the roster cut deadline, it increasingly feels like his time in Atlanta could be over.
In Other News...
Falcons Padded Practice Exposed Two Early Roster Questions
Pads finally came on for the Falcons as they opened the second session of training camp, giving the staff a better look at where a few early roster battles really stand. Bijan Robinson was still working without a new contract and remained in shorts and tennis shoes, while Brian Robinson Jr. was out there as an active participant. Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich also returned after taking time away following a family loss, adding a little normalcy back to a camp that is still sorting itself out.
Right tackle is already becoming one of the more practical concerns, with injuries and absences forcing the team to lean on Michael Jerrell and Brandon Walton for significant work. Elsewhere, the quarterback group got its early reps in drills, with Tua Tagovailoa limited in 11-on-11 work and Desmond Ridder drawing attention for his play, while third-round pick Zachariah Branch kept turning heads in pads and the nickel spot stayed crowded with competition. [Read more 🡒]
Tua Tagovailoa Just Changed The Falcons Quarterback Mood
The Falcons quarterback picture got a little clearer this week when Tua Tagovailoa returned to full 11-on-11 work after recovering from a back injury. He was back with the first-team offense during Atlantas first padded practice of training camp, a notable step for a quarterback room that has been waiting for some stability.
Michael Penix Jr. is still sidelined, which leaves Tagovailoa in position to open the season as the likely Week 1 starter. For a team trying to settle its offense before the games start counting, getting that kind of signal in camp matters, even if the final decision is still waiting in the wings. [Read more 🡒]