OFFICIALLY DONE: Falcon Have Confirmed The Bockbuster Signing of AFC Top QB to 53-Men Squad.

The Atlanta Falcons have finally added a third quarterback. The organization had traded Taylor Heinicke and declined to re-sign undrafted free agent John Paddock, leaving only Kirk Cousins and Michael Penix on the active roster and no options on the practice squad. While this is wonderful news for Cousins and his health, there was no way the team would start the season without someone signing up.

We now know who that someone is: Nathan Peterman, a former Bills, Raiders, and Bears quarterback. To be as objective as possible about the addition, it is not exactly who I expected the Falcons to sign.

Peterman, 30, is best known for his early career success in Buffalo. Over his first two seasons, he appeared in eight games and started four of them, throwing three touchdowns and 12 interceptions during one of the worst streaks of spot starting in recent memory. Peterman has had few regular-season appearances since then, although in three games and one start in Chicago in 2022, he went 14/25 for 139 yards, a touchdown, and an interception run. Chances are he has improved, albeit marginally, since his shaky start to his career, which established his name synonymous with terrible quarterbacking.

 

With 15 games and five starts under his belt for various organizations, Peterman brings some experience to the table, and the Falcons may have liked what they saw from him during a decent preseason run with the Las Vegas Raiders. His NFL track record implies he’s not a high-caliber third quarterback, but if the organization values his experience and locker room fit, and believes he’s developed into a solid emergency option over the years, the signing should be OK. As is the case with almost any third quarterback on your roster, we’ll hope Peterman never has to play in a regular season game, both because I’m not sure what the team would receive from him and because it would be bad news for Cousins and Penix.

In a corresponding action, the Falcons cut depth tackle Julién Davenport, indicating that they are satisfied with their offensive line depth at the time. If the team absolutely needed tackle depth, Andrew Stueber or Elijah Wilkinson could be called up from the practice squad, and Storm Norton is the swing tackle on the active roster behind Jake Matthews and Kaleb McGary.