The Falcons announced the addition of six players to their practice squad today and also claimed defensive tackle Jason Jefferson off waivers from the Buffalo Bills. To make room for Jefferson, they released Tim Anderson.

The team added seventh round pick Keith Zinger among the six practice squad additions. Also wide receiver Eric Weems, guard D’Anthony Batiste, cornerback Glenn Sharpe, safety Eric Brock, and defensive end Brandon Miller were signed by the team. All six players were with the team this summer. The Falcons have two remaining spots on their practice squad.

Jefferson was a sixth round pick of the New Orleans Saints in 2005. But was cut by the Saints during his first training camp, and spent time on the practice squads of the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles before being signed by the Bills in October 2005. He began the ’06 season on the Bills practice squad before being promoted to the team’s roster in October, but remained inactive for most of the season. His most extensive action coming in 2007, where he had 11 tackles in 11 games. For his career, he has recorded 13 tackles in 21 games.

Anderson, another former Bills castoff was signed by the Falcons in November 2007. He had 5 tackles in 5 games for the Falcons. He was re-signed this past off-season and was seemingly the winner in a competition for the reserve nose tackle position behind Grady Jackson.

ESPN reports that wide receiver Noriaki Kinoshita, a mini-celebrity at last summer’s Falcons training camp, has been assigned to the team’s practice squad as part of the NFL’s International Player Development program. Kinoshita was among 16 players from 7 different countries that were selected to join various NFL practice squads. Initially over 100 players competed in camps held in Europe and Asia over the past year for the opportunity. The 16 players will be assigned to to all the teams in the AFC North, AFC West, NFC South, and NFC West.

Kinoshita had quite a following from the Japanese press last summer with the Falcons. He had played three previous springs in NFL Europe, catching a total of 37 passes in that span. As part of the league’s international practice squad program, he will be eligible to compete for the Falcons in preseason games, but will not be so during the regular season.