FLOWERY BRANCH – The Atlanta Falcons are readying for their Week 14 matchup with the Seattle Seahawks at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Ahead of this matchup, they made a flurry of roster moves that will have a lasting impact on the season.
First of all, the Falcons placed safety DeMarcco Hellams on injured reserve. The defender and special teams contributor will miss at least the next four games, if not the rest of the season. This is the second time in as many years that the third-year player has landed on the injured reserve.
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To fill his vacant spot on the roster, the Falcons opted to sign wide receiver Deven Thompkins to the active roster from the practice squad. Atlanta also used a standard practice squad elevation on cornerback C.J. Henderson for Sunday’s game.
Hellams had not been an active participant in any of the team’s practices this week due to a hamstring injury. He was active last Sunday for the team’s loss to the New York Jets. He did not record a stat in the game, but played 28 special teams snaps. For the season, he has appeared in 11 games, primarily on special teams, where he recorded 10 tackles and a fumble recovery.
Thompkins, who was elevated last Sunday from the practice squad, played in nine offensive snaps and five special teams snaps.
Falcons head coach Raheem Morris highlighted the “speed element” that the wideout brings to this receiving corps. Kirk Cousins was able to find him twice for 23 yards, with one coming for 19 yards.
The Falcons’ signal-caller had some high praise for the young receiver this week.
“I think he runs really well,” Cousins said Wednesday about Thompkins. I think he’s another guy that really wants to do it right. Today we’re doing a few jog-throughs, which had a little bit of a lower tempo in one of the periods, and some guys can, including me, can get tempted to kind of jog through it, but Deven was very disciplined on his footwork and his knee bend and where he was going. I love kind of seeing that body language from a guy because he tells me without saying a word that he wants to do it right. He cares about the details, and I felt that on Sunday, and I feel it in practice on a regular basis.”
Henderson, a former first-round pick in 2020, has yet to take the field for the Falcons this season. This is his first of three possible elevations.