Falcons’ Rondale Moore out for the season

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Falcons wide receiver Rondale Moore, who was carted off the field during a joint practice with the Dolphins on Wednesday, suffered a season-ending knee injury.

Moore was placed on injured reserve Thursday. The Falcons re-signed punter Ryan Sanborn.

Moore, who was listed as the No. 2 slot receiver on the team’s official depth chart, was acquired in a trade with the Cardinals for quarterback Desmond Ridder.

Moore, who’s listed at 5-foot-7 and 181 pounds, was having a strong training camp and a good practice against the Dolphins. He was in the middle a couple of the fights between the Falcons’ offense and the Dolphins’ defense before the injury occurred.

Moore, who turned 24 in June, was drafted in the second round (48th overall) out of Purdue in 2021. He played in 39 games for the Cardinals and made 21 starts. He has caught 135 of 182 targets for 1,201 yards and three touchdowns.

Moore ran the 40-yard dash in 4.28 seconds at the 2021 NFL Scouting Combine, but the speed has not translated into a lot of big plays in the NFL.

Moore’s injury and the fights put a damper on the practices.

The Falcons, using mostly their backups, are set to play the Dolphins at 7 p.m. Friday at Hard Rock Stadium in the team’s first exhibition game.

Moore was establishing a connection with rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. while working on the second-team offense.

Moore was listed as the No. 2 receiver behind Darnell Mooney. Casey Washington, Josh Ali and OJ Hiliare were listed behind Moore.

Washington, a rookie, was a sixth-round pick out of Illinois, has made some nice catches in practice.

Ali, who played at Kentucky, played in two games last season and spending most of the season on the practice squad.

Hiliare played five seasons in college at Alabama A&M (2019-21) and Bowling Green (2022-23). He played in 50 career games and caught 205 passes for 2,644 yards and 23 touchdowns.

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