Falcons Star James Pearce Jr. Finally Learns Suspension Fate

The suspension levied on the Atlanta Falcons linebacker is due to a domestic violence incident, in which he also fled from the police

The Atlanta Falcons linebacker is set to miss a chunk of time | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

After months of speculation, Atlanta Falcons star outside linebacker James Pearce Jr. now knows he will be sidelined for a portion of the NFL season.

On Friday, Aug. 14, the NFL handed the second-year star pass rusher an eight-game regular-season suspension without pay for violating the league’s personal conduct policy, per ESPN’s Ian Rapoport. The suspension is effective on Aug. 30, the same day NFL teams must trim their active rosters down to 53 players for the season opener.

This means Pearce is eligible to participate in all preseason activities, including tonight's game against the Denver Broncos. How the Falcons plan to use Pearce, knowing he'll be inelgible for the first half of the season will be a storyline to watch.

The Falcons signed edge rusher Cameron Sample earlier this week, and they may need to add at least one more body to camp with Bralen Trice being helpd out of practice all week. His status for the game against the Broncos is unknown, but it would be surprising if he played, considering he missed practice all week.

Pearce’s suspension stems from a February domestic violence incident with ex-girlfriend and WNBA star Rickea Jackson, where he hit her car with his vehicle and fled from police in Doral, Fla., which is located near Miami.

Miami-Dade County prosecutors filed felony charges against Pearce for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, fleeing the police, and resisting arrest, along with a misdemeanor stalking charge. In April, the court made a deal with Pearce: if he agreed to a six-month intervention and therapy program and completed it without issue, the charges would be dropped.

Pearce, 22, NFL suspension announcement came just hours before Atlanta hosts its preseason opener at Mercedes-Benz Stadium against the Denver Broncos at 7 p.m. 

Pearce is elgible for reinstatement on November 2nd, with the first game he could be eligible to play would be against the Cincinnati Bengals in Madrid, Spain.

The 2025 first-round draft pick who led the Falcons with 10.5 sacks as a rookie last year is eligible to play in all preseason games. The Falcons listed him as a third-string defensive end on its official depth chart, released on Tuesday, Aug. 12.

Falcons-Broncos will be broadcast on Fox 5 Atlanta, NFL+ and the ESPN App with an unlimited plan for out-of-market fans.

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