The Falcons claimed 6’3″, 337 pound DT Anthony Bryant off of waivers from the Lions.  He played in 4 games for the Lions last season and he made 8 tackles and recovered a fumble.  Look for him to fit into the DT rotation for the Falcons this season as long as he can stay healthy.

Elling has been signed to compete for the starting job on the Falcons this season.  He last kicked in 2005 for the Baltimore Ravens as he didn’t play last season.  He has kicked in 33 games in his NFL career and he’s hit 19 of 28 field goals (67.9%) and he’s made all 50 of his extra point attempts.  Chances are that the Falcons will bring in someone that can beat Elling out for the job.

The Falcons have re-signed fullback Corey McIntyre and G/C Ben Claxton.  McIntyre played in 4 games last season for the Falcons and he caught 1 pass for 10 yards.  Claxton didn’t play a down last season for the Falcons and he only played in 2 games in 2005.  Both of these signings were for depth.

The Falcons have re-signed Michael Koenen to be their punter this season.  Koenen punted the ball 76 times for 3,199 yards (42.1 avg) with a 35.9 net average.  He also placed 25 of his punts inside the opposing 20 yard line, which is pretty good.  The Falcons gave Koenen a chance to be their placekicker too at the start of last season and he failed miserably as he only hit 3 of 9 field goals and all 4 extra points.  Look for Koenen to concentrate on his punting this season.

This is a Bobby Petrino special as Redman played his college ball at Louisville.  Redman last played in the NFL in 2003 for the Baltimore Ravens so he could be a tad rusty.  He played in 11 games between 2000-2003 and he completed 106 of 198 passes (53.5%) for 1,111 yards with 7 TD passes and 5 interceptions.  He also carried the ball 13 times for 12 yards (0.9 ypc).  He has the look of a #3 QB at best so look for the Falcons to either sign another QB or draft one in April.

The Falcons were going to trade Matt Schaub to the highest bidder and that turned out to be the Houston Texans.  The Falcons traded the #10 pick in this year’s draft and Matt Schaub to the Texans for the #8 pick in this year’s draft, plus 2nd round picks in both this year and 2008′s draft.  This trade makes it clear that Michael Vick is the present and future QB of the Atlanta Falcons.  Vick won’t have to look over his shoulder anymore and the Falcons pick up high draft picks to help them big time in the coming years.  A fantastic trade for the Falcons.

Coach Petrino wants to have a power running game and that’s why they signed guard Toniu Fonoti to a 1-year contract.  He played in 6 games for the Miami Dolphins last season but he didn’t make a start for them.  Over his 5-year career Fonoti has played in 40 games (33 starts).  The 6’4″, 350 pound Fonoti should fit right in to what Petrino wants to do with the offense as long as he can stay healthy.

The Falcons have also signed WR Derrick Hamilton.  Hamilton has yet to catch an NFL pass in three seasons and he’s only played in 2 games so don’t expect him to provide much for the Falcons this season.

The Falcons have signed Joe Horn to be their likely #1 WR.  Horn only played in 10 games last season (9 starts) and he caught 37 passes for 679 yards (18.4 avg) with 4 TD catches for the New Orleans Saints.  If Horn is healthy look for him to put up decent numbers as he will be the best receiver that Michael Vick has ever played with.

The Falcons have signed cornerback Lewis Sanders.  He played in 9 games last season for the Houston Texans and he made 42 tackles and defensed 6 passes.  Sanders has been injury prone over his NFL career, but when healthy he’s a decent player.  He likely will be the Falcons’ nickel corner.

The Falcons have released Matt Lehr because he doesn’t fit into Bobby Petrino’s power style offense.  He started 11 games last season for the Falcons and started 26 games in his two seasons with Atlanta.