Atlanta Falcons Place Edge Rusher on IR

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga – The Atlanta Falcons are not done with their roster moves and have officially designated second-year edge rusher Bralen Trice to the injured reserve (IR). This news was announced by the team in an official statement on Thursday morning. 

Since Trice cleared the initial 53-man roster on Tuesday, the IR designation does not mean that he is not set to miss the season like Kaleb McGary will. Instead, he will be available to return at some point this season, but he will need to miss a minimum of four games. 

According to official NFL rules, teams can designate up to eight players to return from IR during the season, and two of those have been used on offensive tackle Storm Norton and defensive tackle Ta’Quon Graham. Trice will be the third player the team will use under this rule. 

“Had a recurring injury to his knee,” head coach Raheem Morris said. “He’s out there working on that right now.”

Morris did not rule out the chance that Trice will need to undergo a second procedure on the injured knee. 

The second-year pass rusher missed the entirety of the 2024 season after picking up a knee injury during the Falcons’ first preseason game in Miami. Trice was an active participant throughout training camp this August and was active in the team’s rotation on the edge. 

He missed the first preseason game of the summer against the Detroit Lions, but played in the team’s second and third preseason games against the Tennessee Titans and Dallas Cowboys. 

In a corresponding move, the Falcons signed safety Jordan Fuller and activated him to their active roster. 

Fuller signed with the team in the spring and was a surprise cut on Tuesday. The veteran safety has experience with Morris dating back to their time together in Los Angeles with the Rams. He has 48 starts where he recorded 279 tackles, 17 passes defended, seven interceptions, and four forced fumbles. 

He competed with rookie Xavier Watts and third-year safety DeMarcco Hellams for the starting safety spot next to Jessie Bates. However, the rookie Watts was confirmed to be the Week 1 starter by Morris on Thursday. 

The Falcons are set to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, September 7, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.