Falcons Announce Team Captains: Who Leads Atlanta?
In light of Sunday's season-opening game against the New Orleans Saints, the Atlanta Falcons have announced their team captains.
The five players given the nod are left tackle Jake Matthews, quarterback Marcus Mariota, kicker Younghoe Koo, defensive tackle Grady Jarrett and cornerback A.J. Terrell.
Matthews and Jarrett are repeat nominees from a year ago, while Koo and Terrell are first-time captains. Mariota was a five-year captain as the starting signal caller for the Tennessee Titans upon entering the league.
Quarterback Matt Ryan, receiver Calvin Ridley and linebacker Deion Jones joined Matthews and Terrell last season, but with Ryan off to the Indianapolis Colts, Ridley suspended and Jones' status up in the air, none were potential candidates.
Since being drafted No. 6 overall in 2014, Matthews has started 128 of a possible 129 regular season games. The 6-5, 309-pounder has held down the blindside for eight years and proved to be the lone consistent face on Atlanta's offensive line as the unit went through plenty of ups and downs. With a new three-year contract extension secure, he's poised to do the same for seasons to come, starting this year with Mariota.
Mariota, 28, joined the Falcons from the Las Vegas Raiders this offseason. He has experience working with Falcons head coach Arthur Smith, and offers a consistent, veteran voice in an offense full of new faces.
Koo has been one of the best kickers in the NFL since joining the Falcons during the 2019 season, converting 87 field goals on 94 attempts (92.5 percent). Atlanta made Koo the second-highest paid kicker in the NFL in March, keeping him with the team for the next five years. Now the longest-tenured specialist on Atlanta's team, Koo is a face of stability.
Like Matthews, Jarrett has been as consistently good as can be since entering the league in 2015, making the lives of interior offensive lineman and quarterbacks alike difficult. He was also rewarded with a three-year contract extension, signyfing the team's intent on keeping his veteran presence in the building for the forseeable future.
Terrell, 23, was a second-team All-Pro a season ago in year two as a professional, and has firmly established himself as one of the premiere cornerbacks in the league. Being appointed a captain only serves as proof that he's as impressive off the field as he on it.
Atlanta will have one additional captain awarded on a game-by-basis throughout the season. These five, though, will don the captain logo on their jerseys during all 17 games, starting with Sunday's matchup with the Saints.
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