Next man up: Injuries give rookie chance to…

The Falcons didn’t just let one escape them on Sunday against the Saints, but they also saw several critical pieces go down with injuries.

Mike Hughes, who has been a complete revelation opposite of A.J. Terrell, left the game with a neck injury. While he played valiantly, there was a clear drop-off when Clark Phillips replaced him. Thankfully, Raheem Morris revealed on Monday that Hughes avoided a serious injury and has already been cleared to return.

That’s where the good news stops, though. In addition to the news on Hughes, Morris also updated the Atlanta media on injuries to Troy Andersen, Ta’Quon Graham, and James Smith-Williams.

Andersen reaggravated the same injury that sidelined him for more than a month. Ironically, the former second-round pick injured his knee in a breakout performance against the Saints and did so again in New Orleans. Andersen has struggled to stay healthy since coming to Atlanta in the 2022 NFL draft.

That’s not even the worst of it. Raheem Morris described the injuries to Graham and Smith-Williams as “not so good” on Monday. Jimmy Lake has started to be more liberal in his defensive line rotations, with Graham and Smith-Williams taking on significant roles.

However, in the wake of those defensive line injuries, a path has now been paved for the highly anticipated regular season debut of Falcons rookie Brandon Dorlus.

The Falcons’ rookie class hasn’t contributed at all this season. Granted, Michael Penix was never going to play meaningful snaps, and Bralen Trice tore his ACL before Week 1, but the rest of the class has been non-existent.

Ruke Orhorhoro finally got into the rotation and did some good things against the run before suffering an injury. JD Bertrand has started games in the place of injured linebackers Nate Landman and Troy Andersen, but it was mostly forgettable. The rest of the rookie class hasn’t appeared in a game, including Dorlus, who was a highly touted interior pass rusher coming out of Oregon.

The Falcons haven’t updated us on how serious the injuries to Ta’Quon Graham and James Smith-Williams are, but Graham’s absence should open a void for Brandon Dorlus to fill along the interior.