Jacob Tuioti-Mariner will not play in Week 4 for the first time this season, as the Falcons included the defensive tackle among their list of inactive players for Sunday’s contest against the Washington Football Team.
In addition to Tuioti-Mariner, receiver Russell Gage, cornerback Darren Hall, tight end Parker Hesse and defensive lineman Marlon Davidson are inactive.
But now, one quarter into Sunday’s game, the WFT has another pair of concerns: Atlanta is up 3-0 … and standout tight end Logan Thomas is being tended to on the sideline for his hamstring … and he is officially ruled out.
Tuioti-Mariner played well in Week 1, recording a sack, a tackle for loss, and three combined tackles, but over the last two weeks, his snap count has decreased. Tuioti-Mariner played 35% of Atlanta’s defensive snaps in Week 1 and then just 17% in Weeks 2 and 3.
Last week against the New York Giants, he did not record a stat.
READ MORE: How to Watch Washington at Atlanta
Gage and Davidson are inactive due to injuries. Both players were ruled out on Friday.
Without Tuioti-Mariner and Davison, the Falcons are thinner along the defensive line, but the good news is cornerback A.J. Terrell is active. He missed last week’s contest at New York due to a concussion.
Both backup quarterbacks Josh Rosen and Feleipe Franks are also active. Franks played in his first NFL game last week, lining up at tight end for three snaps. The expectation is he will continue to be used as a “gadget” player while Rosen will serve as the traditional backup quarterback behind Matt Ryan.
READ MORE: Is Feleipe Franks the Falcons’ Taysom Hill?
For Washington, receiver Dax Milne, cornerback Benjamin St-Juste, defensive end Shaka Toney, offensive lineman Saahdiq Charles and tight end Sammis Reyes are inactive. Running back Antonio Gibson, who was listed as questionable due to an injury suffered in practice during the week, is active.
Atlanta and Washington do not play each other often, but the Falcons have beaten the Washington football franchise six straight times. Washington’s last win against Atlanta came at the Georgia Dome in 2003.
The closest Washington came to beating Atlanta since then was in 2015. Washington led Atlanta 16-12 with less than three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, but Devonta Freeman rushed for a 6-yard touchdown with 24 seconds left to give the Falcons a 3-point lead.
Washington drove into field-goal range in the last seconds and tied the game to force overtime, but Robert Alford returned an interception 59 yards for a touchdown to clinch a 25-19 Atlanta victory.
The win moved the Falcons to 5-0 to begin the 2015 season, which was Dan Quinn’s first in Atlanta. The Falcons ended that year 8-8.
The Falcons and Washington last played in 2018. Matt Ryan threw for 350 yards and four touchdowns in a 38-14 rout, which improved the Falcons to 4-4. But Atlanta lost its next five games and ended that season 7-9.
Ryan is 5-0 in his career against Washington. In those five games, he has thrown for 1,294 yards with eight touchdowns and six interceptions. But Washington has sacked Ryan 12 times in those five contests.
CONTINUE READING: NFL QB Rankings: Falcons Rise while Matt Ryan Falls
