Falcons Name Starting Right Tackle

After losing starter Kaleb McGary for the season and backup Storm Norton for six to eight weeks, the Atlanta Falcons are turning to a former starting guard at right tackle.

Elijah Wilkinson will step into the right tackle spot in place of the injured Kaleb McGary and Storm Norton. | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Falcons lost starting right tackle Kaleb McGary for the season to a lower leg injury just weeks after the veteran lineman signed a two-year, $30 million extension. With the loss of backup tackle Storm Norton for six to eight weeks with an ankle injury, the Falcons need someone to fill the new hole on the right side of their offensive line.

Head coach Raheem Morris confirmed that Elijah Wilkinson will fill the hole for the Falcons' Week 1 matchup against Tampa Bay.

“Wilkinson’s awesome,” Morris said. “You know Wilkinson has been here for a year, he's been here before that… So a lot of those things remain consistent, so I feel really good about Wilkinson going out there and being part of what we do and how we do it and really fitting in at a high level.

The Falcons previously traded for Seattle Seahawks tackle Michael Jerrell last Tuesday. They also signed Ryan Hayes and Carter Warren to compete for tackle depth following Tuesday’s deadline to trim rosters down to 53 players. There was also some talk about moving starting left guard Matthew Bergeron back to his college position of tackle.

Wilkinson, who was originally an undrafted free agent, spent the 2022 season with the Falcons as their starting left guard before spending the 2023 season with Arizona. The veteran offensive lineman has played every position on the offensive line aside from center, but he has not played tackle since 2021, when he was with the Chicago Bears.

Nonetheless, offensive line coach Dwane Ledford said that the coaching staff has seen a lot out of Wilkinson at the tackle position.

“When Elijah [Wilkinson] first got here, you know, he was mostly tackle," he said. "Like most of the stuff that we were seeing when he was at Chicago coming over as a tackle… I always knew that Elijah has that flex. He’s got the flex to where he could play any position along the offensive line.”

According to Pro Football Focus, one of Wilkinson’s highest graded seasons came when he lined up at right tackle with Chicago. Wilkinson played 96 snaps at right tackle for Chicago, earning a 65.0 PFF grade (the second-highest of his career) along with a 68.5 run block grade (the second-highest of his career). He started three games at right tackle that season and gave up just one sack and zero pressures in those games.

While it has been a few seasons since he last played the position, the veteran is ready for the challenge.

“Yeah, man. I mean, this is what I’ve been doing all my life, you know. So, it’s time to go,” Wilkinson said.

Atlanta's Week 1 matchup at home against Tampa Bay kicks off at 1 p.m. ET with television coverage on Fox.