Falcons Make Surprising Cut Ahead of Eagles Matchup

Getty Brandon Copeland, previously of the New York Jets, sacks Matt Ryan.

The Atlanta Falcons are just one sleep away from their home opener against the Philadelphia Eagles but that doesn’t mean they’re done perfecting their roster.

In a bit of a surprising move, the Falcons released linebacker Brandon Copeland and promoted linebacker James Vaughters to the active roster for Sunday’s game, according to NFL insider Adam Caplan.

#Falcons released LB Brandon Copeland, elevated LB James Vaughters from their practice squad.

â€" Adam Caplan (@caplannfl) September 11, 2021

The cut comes by surprise as Copeland was expected to play a key role on special teams.

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Vaughters Went Updrafted in 2015

The Falcons signed the outside linebacker to their practice squad just one week ago. His signing marked the 16th and final spot on the team’s practice roster.

Vaughters, 28, originally signed with the Green Bay Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2015 out of Standford. However, he was soon released following an injury settlement.

More recently, Vaughters spent the last two seasons with the Chicago Bears. While in the Windy City, he bounced back and forth between the practice squad and the active roster. In 2020 he saw action in 14 games where he had 22 tackles and 1.5 sacks.

Vaughters also had short stints with the New England Patriots, LA Chargers and
in the CFL with the Calgary Stampeders.

He’s not the only Georgia native the Falcons signed this week as the team inked Wayne Gallman just yesterday who played at Grayson High School.

Expect Atlanta to Re-Sign Copeland

As for Copeland, he entered the league in 2013 after signing with the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Pennsylvania.

The 30-year-old split his time on the practice squads of the Ravens and Tennessee Titans before landing with the Detroit Lions. He played in 32 games for Detroit in 2015 and 2016, mostly on special teams. From there, he was on injured reserve for the entire 2017 season after he suffered a torn pectoral muscle ahead of Week 1.

The Jets picked him up the following season and he started ten games and contributed 35 tackles (24 solo), plus five sacks, eight tackles for loss and 14 quarterback hits. He stayed in New York for a second season and saw action in 12 games (three starts).

He spent 2020 with the New England Patriots and appeared in six games (four starts) where he had 12 total tackles (six solo) with one tackle for loss.

The Falcons signed Copeland this offseason, but don’t be surprised if Atlanta re-signs Copeland to their practice squad.

HC Arthur Smith: ‘You’ll See A Lot of Roster Manipulation’

While the NFL’s 53-man roster deadline was set for 4 P.M. on Tuesday, it’s obvious that the Falcons are still perfecting theirs. And head coach Arthur Smith made it clear that the team will continue to do so up until next Sunday’s season opener against the Eagles.

“Well, the thing is, it’s the truth because of the way the schedule is now,” Smith told reporters. “You’ve got a whole week with all the different rules. You know, you get the 16-person practice squad, you get the 54 and 55th spot and there’s a lot of flexibility, and you have a whole week to kind of prepare. So, I think you’ll see a lot of roster manipulation the whole week from the league.”

“Everything’s fluid, nothing’s set in stone and we’ll monitor everything all week. Really nothing finalizes until we go into late next week before we get ready for Philly,” Smith added.

Stay tuned for what else Smith and company have up their sleeve when it comes to finalizing the Falcons’ roster.

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