The Falcons have signed 28-year old CB Kelvin Hayden.  Hayden played in 11 games for the Colts last year and he had 61 tackles, 8 passes defensed, 2 interceptions (both returned for TDs), 1 forced fumble and 4 tackles for a loss.  Hayden has now played in 77 games in his first six years in the NFL and he has 298 tackles, 9 interceptions (3 returned for TDs), 37 passes defensed, 7 tackles for a loss, 4 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries.  The Falcons got another solid player by simply letting the free agent market play out.  This was a great move for the Falcons.

The Falcons have re-signed 31-year old center Brett Romberg.  Romberg didn’t play at all for the Falcons last year.  He played in 9 games (0 starts) for the Falcons in 2009.  Romberg has now played in 42 games (18 starts) in his first 7 years in the NFL.  The Falcons were lucky that Romberg was still available this late in free agency.  He will be needed while McClure is out of action.

The Falcons have signed 28-year old safety James Sanders.  Sanders played in 15 games for the Patriots last year and he had 58 tackles, 6 passes defensed, 3 interceptions (1 returned for a TD), 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery.  He has now played in 84 games in his first six years in the NFL and he has 301 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 19 passes defensed, 1 sack, 2 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries and 8 interceptions (2 returned for TDs).  This was a good signing for the Falcons as Sanders has been a playmaker so far in his NFL career.

34-year old starting center Todd McClure is out indefinately due to arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.  McClure played in 16 games (all starts) for the Falcons last year.  He has played in 169 games (166 starts) in his first 12 years with the Falcons.  22-year old Joe Hawley will replace McClure in the starting lineup.  He played in 15 games (0 starts) as a rookie last year for the Falcons.  The Falcons need Hawley to step up, because McClure is likely to miss a few weeks of the regular season.

The Atlanta Falcons controlled the ball last night but the Steelers had a lot of short fields to work with, and that turned them in.  Matt Ryan completed 22 of 42 passes for 220 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 24 yards (12.0 ypc) last night.  Chris Redman didn’t look too good as he completed 8 of 18 passes for 89 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT (Steelers’ CB Crezdon Butler returned it 95 yards for a TD).  Rookie RB Jacquizz Rodgers led the way in the running game for the Falcons last night with 38 yards rushing on 7 carries (5.4 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 12 yards (6.0 avg).  WRs Roddy White (8 rec, 101 yards, TD) and Julio Jones (5 rec, 59 yards) led the way for the Falcons in the passing game last night.  The Falcons finished up with 106 yards rushing on 25 carries (4.2 ypc) and they also completed 30 0f 60 passes (50%) for 299 yards last night as the had possession of the ball for 35:22.

Safety William Moore (6 tackles) and LB Stephen Nicolas (5 tackles) led the way for the Falcons’ D last night.  The Steelers rushed for 96 yards on 28 carries (3.4 ypc) and they also completed 13 of 21 passes (61.9%) for 224 yards last night.  The Falcons are now 0-3 on the preseason.

The Falcons didn’t look too good offensively last night and it hurt them in the end.  Matt Ryan was so-so as he completed 7 of 15 passes for 116 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  Chris Redman was better as he completed 10 of 14 passes for 76 yards.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 8 yards (4.0 ypc) in this game.  Rookie Jacquizz Rodgers led the way on the ground for the Falcons last night with 7 carries for 39 yards (5.6 ypc).  He also caught 1 pass for 2 yards.  Michael Turner could only muster 14 yards on 7 carries (2.0 ypc) last night and he also caught 1 pass for 3 yards.  WR Harry Douglas led the way in the passing game for the Falcons yesterday with 2 grabs for 87 yards (43.5 avg) with 1 TD grab (it went for 76 yards).  Rookie WR Julio Jones pitched in with 2 grabs for 30 yards (15.0 avg) in this game.  The Falcons rushed for 72 yards on 20 carries (3.6 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 29 passes (58.6%) for 192 yards last night.

The Falcons were solid against the run but not so much against the pass last night.  CB Dominique Franks (7 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 pass defensed and 1 QB hit) and safety Shann Schillinger (5 tackles) led the way for the Falcons’ D last night.  LB Sean Weatherspoon (fumble recovery) and CB Brent Grimes (interception that he returned 62 yards) both made huge plays last night.  The Jaguars finished up with 55 yards rushing on 26 carries (2.1 ypc) and they also completed 26 of 44 passes (59.1%) for 261 yards.  The Falcons are now 0-2 on the pre-season.

The Atlanta Falcons have released 32-year old TE Justin Peelle.  Peelle played in 13 games (8 starts) for the Falcons last year and he caught 10 passes for 96 yards (9.6 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He has now played in 44 games (27 starts) in his three years with the Falcons and he caught 37 passes for 370 yards (10.0 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  The recent signing of Reggie Kelly has essentially pushed Peelle out the door in Atlanta.

The Falcons have signed 34-year old TE Reggie Kelly.  Kelly played in 16 games (14 starts) for the Bengals last year and he caught 10 passes for 42 yards (4.2 avg).  He has now played in 168 games (147 starts) in his first 11 years in the NFL and he has caught 194 passes for 1,760 yards (9.1 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Kelly played for the Falcons in the first four years of his NFL career.  He played in 62 games (47 starts) in his four previous years with the Falcons and he caught 69 passes for 790 yards (11.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Kelly will be used as a run blocker way more than a pass catcher for the Falcons in 2011.

The Falcons were up 17-0 after the first quarter, so the starters looked good before the scrubs gave up the lead and the game.  Matt Ryan completed 6 of 10 passes for 90 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  Chris Redman made only a brief appearence as he threw one incomplete pass.  John Parker Wilson completed 12 of 19 passes for 111 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT.  He also carried the ball 3 times for 17 yards (5.7 ypc) last night.  Adam Froman finished up this game at QB by completing 6 of 13 passes for 45 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT.  Jason Snelling led the way on the ground for the Falcons in this game with 27 yards on 6 carries (4.5 ypc).  He also caught 1 pass for 8 yards in this game.  Michael Turner pitched in with 21 yards rushing on 4 carries (5.3 ypc) with 1 TD run in this game.  WRs Harry Douglas (3 rec, 47 yards, TD) and Julio Jones (2 rec, 43 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Falcons last night.  The Falcons finished up with 104 yards rushing on 26 carries (4.0 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 43 passes (55.8%) for 230 yards last night.

The defense played pretty well last night for the Falcons.  LB Bear Woods led the way for the Falcons on D with 5 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss.  DE Emmanuel Stephens (4 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit) and safety Rafael Bush (3 tackles, 2 passes defensed and 1 interception) also had solid games for the Falcons last night.  DE John Abraham and CB Brent Grimes each pitched in with 1 interception apiece in this game.  The Dolphins finished up with 63 yards rushing on 27 carries (2.3 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 28 passes (53.6%) for 198 yards in this game.

The Falcons had a great regular season but it ended with a thud when the Packers ripped them in the playoffs in the Georgia Dome.  The Falcons have gotten Ryan a big time deep threat in Julio Jones in the draft last April to help them stretch the field in the passing game to open up more lanes for Roddy White and Tony Gonzalez.  Ryan played in 16 games (all starts) last year for the Falcons and he completed 357 of 571 passes (62.5%) for 3,705 yards with 28 TD passes and 9 INTs (91.0 QB Rating).  Ryan also carried the ball 46 times for 122 yards (2.7 ypc) last year.  He just seems to get better every year and if he does so in 2011, he will be one of the very elite QBs in the whole NFL.  Ryan has now played in 46 games (all starts) in his first three years in the NFL and he has completed 885 of 1,456 passes (60.8%) for 10,061 yards with 66 TD passes and 34 INTs (86.9 QB Rating).  Ryan has also carried the ball 131 times for 275 yards (2.1 ypc) with 2 TD runs so far in his NFL career.  Ryan is now 33-13 (71.7%) during the regular season so far in his NFL career, so he’s a big time winner.

34-year old Chris Redman is a solid backup QB.  He played in 2 games (0 starts) for the Falcons last year and he completed 4 of 6 passes (66.7%) for 20 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 INTs (71.5 QB Rating).  Redman has now played in 25 games (12 starts) in his first 7 years in the NFL and he has completed 268 of 472 passes (56.8%) for 2,991 yards with 21 TD passes and 13 INTs (79.2 QB Rating).  Redman has also carried the ball 28 times for 31 yards (1.1 ypc) so far in his NFL career.  Redman is 4-8 (33.3%) as a starting QB during the regular season in the NFL.

25-year old John Parker Wilson will be holding a clipboard again this season as the Falcons’ #3 QB in 2011.  The only way he gets on the field is if Ryan and Redman both get injured.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE FALCONS QBS IN 2011:  A