Atlanta Falcons 2020 preview: Steven Means
Steven Means is ready to redeem himself.
The third-year Atlanta Falcons defensive end enters 2020 coming back from an Achilles injury that kept him out the entirety of the 2019 season. He suffered the non-contact injury in a May 2019 OTA practice. The injury happened three months after signing a one-year, $895,000 extension.
In 2018, Means racked up 14 tackles, seven solo, three tackles for a loss, one quarterback hit and a sack in eight games played and four starts.
In his sole season on the field with the Falcons, the team used him as an inside rusher off the line.
Means' expected role is a backup d-lineman who runs on the field to give some of the starters a rest. The franchise bringing him back after missing last season shows how much it liked what it saw in the 2018 year.
The Buffalo, New York native signed with Atlanta after being waived by the Philadelphia Eagles in September 2018. He won a championship with Philadelphia in 2017.
In 14 games with the Eagles, the 29-year-old totalled six tackles, five solo, two tackles for a loss, two sacks and two quarterback hits.
Means is one of the more active players on the roster in terms of social justice. He is a member of the team's social justice committee.
After George Floyd's death, he penned a letter on racial injustice. With the Eagles in 2016, Means protested the national anthem by standing and throwing his fist in the air as the song played.
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