Instead of going with the old reliable Matt Bryant, the Falcons elected to bring in Blair Walsh, who's struggled with accuracy in the past and has been out of the NFL for a year.
Bryant, who turned 44 in May, was released by the team in February.
“Definitely had discussed Matt, for sure, but we didn’t bring him in for a workout (on Saturday),” Falcons coach Dan Quinn said.
In addition to Walsh, the Falcons had in kickers Younghoe Koo and Elliott Fry for the tryout.
Walsh will compete with Giorgio Tavecchio to replace Bryant, who was the team’s kicker for the past 10 seasons.
Tavecchio has missed 4-of-8 field goal kicks during the exhibition season.
“I think my number one responsibility is, to be honest with the guys,” Quinn said. “Sometimes, in the NFL, it can be difficult for a player walking around a subject or not being honest with where we’re at. When I can, I’d really like to be clear with a player and explain to them what we’re doing and why we’re doing it.”
Quinn explained the team’s approach to Tavecchio.
“Sometimes having those hard conversations face to face makes it a lot easier to understand where everybody’s at,” Quinn said. “He totally recognized that and understood so I was clear on what we’re going to do for this week."
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