Falcons 'Really Appreciate' Marcus Mariota Despite Release
The Atlanta Falcons are parting ways with Marcus Mariota this morning after just one season with the team.
Mariota started the first 13 games of the season for the Falcons but surprisingly left the team after he was benched and elected to have surgery for a knee injury that didn't appear to be prevalent in any injury report throughout the season.
Despite the mystery surrounding the end of his tenure with the team, Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot had nothing but nice things to say about Mariota.
"Yeah, we really appreciate Marcus and all the things he did while he was here," Fontenot said. "Personally, professionally, great man. We've had great communication with both he and his agent throughout the process. And so, we just believe we're doing what's best for the team at this time but got a lot of appreciation for him and what he did when he was here."
By cutting Mariota, the Falcons saved $12 million towards the cap space for this upcoming offseason and now hold about $78 million to go and sign other free agents. Among those will likely be a quarterback to give second-year pro Desmond Ridder some competition for the starting job throughout the offseason.
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