Long Snapper Void Refilled

The Falcons ended the 2009 season with a long snapper on injured reserve and a long snapper on the active roster. Thursday afternoon one of those players, Mike Schneck, announced his retirement. The other, in-season replacement Joe Zelenka, became an unrestricted free agent early Friday morning. That left Atlanta with a void to fill at a low-profile but very important position. Monday the team re-signed Zelenka, an 11-year veteran who has played in 161 career games, including five with the Falcons. Zelenka (6-foot-3, 260 lbs.) attended Wake Forest and has spent time with the 49ers, Redskins and Jaguars in his NFL career. His longest stop was in Jacksonville, where he played from 2001 to the start of 2009. He set a team record with 128 consecutive games played. In 2006, Jaguars kicker Josh Scobee had one of his best seasons, converting 26 of 32 field goals and all 41 extra point attempts. Atlanta’s struggles in the kicking game came to a head after Schneck was placed on injured...