Atlanta Falcons Place RB on Injured Reserve

The Atlanta Falcons have placed veteran running back Trey Sermon on injured reserve, the team announced Wednesday, though the nature of his injury remains unknown.

Sermon originally signed with the Falcons on Aug. 10, joining the team shortly before Atlanta traveled to Indianapolis for joint practices with the Colts. The Falcons are in Indianapolis this week as the Colts play host to joint practices before the two teams face off Saturday in Atlanta's second preseason game.

The move comes less than two weeks after Sermon joined the organization and will prevent him from continuing to compete for a roster spot during the preseason. The Falcons have not disclosed the nature or severity of Sermon's injury. He had one carry for three yards in Friday night's loss to the Denver Broncos.

Sermon entered the NFL in 2021 after the San Francisco 49ers selected him in the third round of the draft. He appeared in nine games as a rookie, making two starts while rushing for 167 yards on 41 carries. He also missed part of the season with an ankle injury that landed him on injured reserve.

Since his rookie season, Sermon has spent time with the Philadelphia Eagles, Indianapolis Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers. Across his NFL career, he has appeared in 33 games, including three starts, totaling 338 rushing yards on 93 carries.

Sermon was a standout at both Oklahoma and Ohio State in college. One of the highlights of his career came during the 2020 Big Ten Championship Game, when he rushed for 331 yards. The performance set the Ohio State record for rushing yards in a single game and remains the most rushing yards in an FBS championship game.

His brief stint with Atlanta also carried a local connection. Sermon is a graduate of Sprayberry High School in Marietta, Ga.

Atlanta still has five running backs on its roster, but Sermon's absence creates increased opportunities for some of the younger players competing for a place on the final roster.

Among those backs are Tyler Goodson, Nathan Carter and Cash Jones, who now have an even greater opportunity to make their case behind starter Bijan Robinson and No. 2 running back Brian Robinson Jr.

With Sermon no longer available, the Falcons will have additional snaps and carries to distribute during the remainder of the preseason, giving Goodson, Carter and Jones a chance to show what they can provide as potential depth pieces.

Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski has already indicated he won’t play any starters against the Colts on Saturday, giving the trio of backs ample opportunity to shine and try to lock down the third, and maybe fourth, running back spot on the 53-man roster.

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