On Thursday afternoon, the Falcons announced they have re-signed a couple of pivotal depth pieces, KhaDarel Hodge and Storm Norton.
Nobody wants to talk about special teams until they end up costing the team a game or helping them win a game, but they are extremely important to success over the course of a 17 game season. Hodge has been the Falcons special teams ace for a few years now, so it’s fantastic to have him back for another season.
He’s also a more than capable fourth receiver, coming off a career-high 14 receptions for 232 yards. With Kirk Cousins under center and Zac Robinson calling the plays, the Falcons are going to be throwing the ball as much as any team in the league. All the pass catchers are going to eat, and Atlanta desperately needed some more wide receiver depth.
Storm Norton joined the Falcons last year and proved to be an incredibly valuable swing tackle. In his three starts, there wasn’t much of a drop-off in the performance of the offensive line. Injuries are inevitable every season. Norton will likely have to fill in at some point this year as well, and the Falcons clearly feel confident in his ability to step in at a moment’s notice for an injured Jake Matthews or Kaleb McGary.
More must-reads: