The Falcons first units got an extensive workout for the third preseason game against the Dolphins. And while the offense didn’t quite look like it was in midseason form, there were some good individual performances from a few players. The defense looked a little sharper, but there are still some questions going into the final exhibition contest. The team will make their first roster cut down by Tuesday in which they will have to release at least four players to get down to the limit of 75.

Stock Up

WR Harry Douglas – Douglas appears to be progressing nicely on his recovery from a season-ending knee injury last year. In the Dolphins game he flashed some of his trademark quickness and burst on his way to a 4-catch, 41-yard effort. He made a key grab to convert a 3rd & 11 on the Falcons initial scoring drive, which set up the touchdown pass to Roddy White on the very next play. And he had a nice 26-yard catch and run on the team’s scoring drive in the third quarter that put the team in the redzone, leading to a touchdown pass to Brian Finneran three plays later. If Michael Jenkins has an extended absence, Douglas is doing a nice job instilling some confidence that at least one of the team’s reserve receivers appears poised to step up and help.

TE Michael Palmer – Palmer has had a nice summer, showing good hands as he paves his way for a possible third tight end position. The incumbent is Keith Zinger, who was used almost exclusively as a blocker last year in goalline and short-yardage situations. It remains to be seen how impressed the team has been with Palmer’s run blocking, but he at least clearly is an upgrade as far as the passing game goes. He probably has shown enough that he merits a practice squad role at the least, but has a good shot at landing a spot on the 53-man roster.

LB Sean Weatherspoon – Weatherspoon made his second start on the strongside vs. the Dolphins, and from all indications appears that he will open up the season in that same position. Along with the team’s other linebackers, he certainly did his part to limit the Dolphins running attack to 46 total yards on 18 carries (2.6 avg) with a 4-tackle effort. Through three games and three starts, Weatherspoon has tallied 11 tackles, showing some of his trademark speed and range in run support.

Stock Down

K Matt Bryant – While a missed extra point in the Dolphins game may have had more to do with the dirt-laden field conditions of Land Shark Stadium, it still just underscores the fact that Bryant hasn’t instilled a ton of confidence with his kicking so far this summer. Given the inconsistency that the Falcons had last season in the kicking game with Jason Elam, Bryant may be facing a bit more pressure and extra scrutiny. The Falcons aren’t likely to make a change at this point in the summer, but the leash will be fairly tight and short once the regular season begins.

WR Brian Finneran – Although he made a nice grab on a scoring strike from Chris Redman vs. the Dolphins, he hasn’t really shown he’s in sync with starter Matt Ryan. Ryan showed an overwhelming tendency to target Roddy White in the Dolphin game, with 12 of his 26 passes going to No. 84. Finneran on the other hand only had one pass go his way from Ryan. As the Falcons look for a viable stopgap option in the absence of Michael Jenkins on the outside, Finneran hasn’t inspired a ton of confidence with his preseason performances.

CB Dunta Robinson – While it’s hard to blame the Falcons for playing it safe and keeping Robinson sidelined for fear of him aggravating a hamstring injury, it certainly hasn’t eased any doubts over whether the Falcons made the smart decision to sign Robinson to a big money contract this past spring.  Hamstrings are notorious for taking some time to heal, and the Falcons maybe being extra cautious given the issues safety William Moore had a year ago. The Falcons can’t really afford to have Robinson get off to a slow start in the regular season, as the secondary will draw tough assignments against explosive receivers like Mike Wallace, Larry Fitzgerald, and Robert Meachem and physical ones like Hines Ward and Marques Colston early in the season. Last summer, Robinson missed the entire training camp due to a contract holdout, and it was proabbly no coincidence that the Texans secondary gave up 272 passing yards to a mediocre Jets passing attack in Week 1. The Falcons cannot afford a repeat of that this year.

The Falcons essentially ended their kicking competition today by the release of Steven Hauschka. That leaves Matt Bryant as the sole kicker on the roster and the de facto winner of the roster battle. In other roster moves, the team also cut tight end Colin Peek and re-signed defensive back Gabe Derricks.

Both Hauschka and Bryant each hit one of their two field goal attempts on Friday night’s preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs. However, the team seemingly has opted to go with the more experienced Bryant rather than the younger Hauschka.

Peek was an undrafted rookie signed this past April, but was injured during the first day of training camp practices. Derricks was cut a day later to free up a roster spot for Peek’s replacement, tight end Robbie Agnone. Derricks should add depth at the cornerback position, given that Dunta Robinson and Brian Williams both missed this past week’s preseason contest. He too was originally an undrafted rookie free agent signed this past April.

The Falcons will have an open competition at the kicker position. Matt Bryant is expected to be the frontrunner, but he will be pushed by Steven Hauschka.

Bryant has the experience which likely gives him the edge since the Falcons would like to avoid any inconsistency at the position. But Hauschka has the bigger leg and longer range. The problem is that he has not been particularly effective in clutch kicking situations and showed a tendency to miss some fairly easy kicks last year in Baltimore, leading to his release. But Hauschka also has the added advantage of being 10 years younger than Bryant.

The Falcons will have options, and will likely go with the more consistent of the two. More than likely, the team will alternate them in preseason games to maximize their opportunities.

At punter, Michael Koenen’s job is safe. And while Hauschka was an effective kickoff guy for two years in Baltimore, he doesn’t like he’ll be a serious challenge to Koenen even if he wins the job over Bryant. Joe Zelenka’s job as long snapper appears safe after a good last month of the season in 2009.

The return situation will also feature some heavy competition. Eric Weems is the incumbent returner, and while he may lack explosive speed to really get a lot of big plays, he is fairly consistent with his ability to give the team good field position. Jerious Norwood has more explosive speed on kickoffs, but the team may feel his value on offense makes Weems more desirable there. As a punt returner in 2008, Harry Douglas was fairly good. But he didn’t show the most reliable set of hands and coming off an ACL injury it doesn’t seem like he’ll have that same explosive burst. Dominique Franks will get an opportunity as well. He doesn’t have great speed, but if he can show he can be a reliable set of hands and show some big play potential there, he has a shot to unseat Weems.

According to a report by Herb Zurkowsky the Montreal Gazette, the Falcons were impressed during a recent workout with CFL kicker Damon Duval. Duval reportedly worked out for the team yesterday along with two other CFL kickers: Sandro DeAngelis and Justin Medlock. Duval made all of his kicks during the Falcons workout and the team was impressed enough to offer him a contract. According to the report, Duval could sign with the team dependent on the signing bonus offered.

Zurkowsky reports that Duval in an option year with the Montreal Alouettes could earn as much as $150,000 in Canada. However, the NFL’s minimum salary for a player of Duval’s experience would earn at least $325,000 this season. It was first reported by the Vancouver Sun more than two weeks ago that the Falcons were interested in Duval.

As for the other two kickers, this is not Medlock’s first stint in the NFL. He was a fifth round draft choice of the Kansas City Chiefs in 2007, and played in 7 games that year with the Chiefs. He only made one of his two field goal attempts. He made 40 of 46 field goals while playing with the Toronto Argonauts this past year, his first in Canada. He also handled punting duties, averaging 42.3 yards on 120 punts. DeAngelis, a Canadian native, has spent the past five seasons kicking for the Calgary Stampeders, making 83.8% of his 218 total field goals.

The Falcons interest in these kickers indicates that the team may not be satisfied with their current kicking situation. Matt Bryant handled the duties for the team after Thanksgiving, but due to a later injury the team was forced to add Steven Hauschka to the roster. Both Bryant and Hauschka are signed through this upcoming season. It is rare for NFL teams to carry three kickers into training camp, although more common for two. If the Falcons were to sign Duval, presumably one of the kickers currently on the roster would be cut at some point this off-season.

Steven Hauschka

The team announced several roster moves including signing kicker Steven Hauschka. The team also placed guard Harvey Dahl and cornerback Chris Houston on injured reserve. The team filled their remaining roster position by promoting linebacker Robert James from the practice squad.

in 9 games with the Ravens this season, Hauschka connected on 9 of 13 field goals. He was cut by the Ravens after missing a 36-yard field and having an extra point blocked in a Week 10 victory over the Cleveland Browns.

The Falcons need for a kicker became apparent when both kicker Matt Bryant and punter Michael Koenen were injured on Sunday versus the Bills. Bryant hurt his hamstring, and Koenen, the team’s kickoff specialist, suffered an injury to the head. Hauschka also handled kickoff duties for the Ravens this season prior to his release.

According to Scout.com, the Falcons worked out both Hauschka and Nick Folk, formerly of the Cowboys, on Monday. Hauschka worked out for the team back in November when they were seeking to replace Jason Elam. They ultimately replaced Elam with Bryan the following week.

Dahl has missed the past four games with an ankle injury. Houston has been absent from three games with a hamstring injury.

James was a fifth round pick drafted by the Falcons in 2008. Of the nine members of the 11-man draft class that remain with the team, James is the only one who has yet to suit up for a game. He spent all of last season on injured reserve, and has spent the entire season to date this year on the practice squad.

Matt Bryant

The Falcons announced several roster moves today involving special teams. The team released kicker Jason Elam and long snapper Bryan Pittman today, and replaced them with kicker Matt Bryant and long snapper Joe Zelenka.

Elam was in the midst of the worst season ever in his fifteen seasons in the NFL. He hit on 12 of 19 field goals this year (69.2%). Elam missed a field goal in each of the last three games. The team signed Pittman earlier this month as an injury replacement for snapper Mike Schneck.

Bryant’s last NFL experience with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season where he made a career-high 32 of 38 field goals. Bryant played with the Buccaneers since 2005. He lost his job to Mike Nugent this past summer and signed with the Florida Tuskers in the upstart UFL. He made 11 of 14 field goals and all 23 of his extra points. For his career, Bryant had made 138 of 168 field goals (82.1%). He is famous for making a 62-yard game-winning kick vs. the Philadelphia Eagles in 2006, and connected on 3 field goals in a match vs. the Green Bay Packers in 2008 the day after his son’s funeral.

Zelenka played with the Jacksonville Jaguars last season, and had been a member of that team since 2001. He’s a nine-year veteran of this league