Arthur Blank and Rich McKay
Atlanta Falcons

Falcons add depth to OL

The Atlanta Falcons continued their busy start to the week signing veteran offensive lineman Josh Andrews to a 1-year contract. His agent, Brett Tessler, tweeted the news Monday afternoon.

Andrews went undrafted in 2014, but he has spent seven seasons in the NFL and earned a Super Bowl ring four years ago. He has also played in at least three games during five of the last six seasons. That includes four starts in 2020.

After going unselected in 2014, the Philadelphia Eagles signed Andrews and although he didn’t make the team during training camp, the Eagles signed him to their practice squad. In three seasons with the Eagles, he appeared in 16 games, including 13 during 2015. Andrews was not active at all during the 2017 season but was part of the Eagles practice squad.

He spent a majority of the next two seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, where he played in nine games during 2018 and 2019. With the New York Jets in 2020, Andrews played in a career-high 15 games and started four of them. He played in more than 60 percent of the team’s offensive snaps in Weeks 13-16. Andrews ended the year on injured reserve and did not play in Week 17.

Andrews also spent a portion of the 2018 season on the Minnesota Vikings practice squad.

Assuming he makes the roster, Andrews will supply some much-needed depth for the interior of the Falcons offensive line. The Falcons have depth on the edges at tackle, but since the release of Alex Mack, they do not have any backup centers or guards on the roster according to Ourlads. Andrews brings starter experience but is also very well suited for a backup role.

This news came hours after the Falcons restructured Deion Jones’ contract to save more than $4 million towards the 2021 salary cap. Jones joined the group of Falcons players that includes Matt Ryan and Jake Matthews that reworked their deal this offseason.

Andrews is the sixth player the Falcons have signed this offseason. He is just the second offensive player the Falcons (running bak Mike Davis being the other) and first offensive lineman have acquired this spring.