The Falcons are kicking off minicamp this week, and there’s palpable excitement around the club, given the vast upgrades to the roster. However, it’s not all rainbows and sunshine. Several key players will not be practicing this week.
Arthur Smith said there are four players who won’t be participating — Avery Williams, Kyle Pitts, Caleb Huntley and Eddie Goldman.
Avery Williams suffered a non-contact ACL injury and is expected to miss all of the 2023 campaign, which is a brutal blow to the special teams unit. The fifth-round pick had established himself among the best return men in football last year, leading the league in punt return average.
Caleb Huntley is still recovering from a torn Achilles he suffered last season. I don’t know how realistic it is to expect him to make it back and produce at the level we saw in 2023. Hopefully, he returns to form because he was quietly an extremely productive player.
Eddie Goldman returned to the club after retiring shortly following his free agent deal being announced. I actually wrote about why Goldman could be a surprise cut candidate. Getting back into football shape isn’t easy, especially for a 300+ pound man. Missing minicamp isn’t detrimental to his chances of making the roster, but it’s worth monitoring.
However, the biggest name included is Kyle Pitts. The superstar’s 2023 season ended prematurely due to a knee injury that wasn’t initially expected to be serious but ended up needing surgery to repair. The Falcons are rightfully taking things slow with the highest-drafted tight end, so I wouldn’t read into this too much.
I would expect Pitts to be fully healthy by the time the Panthers come to town for the Falcons season opener.
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Photographer: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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