ERST LESEN! » Falcons fans received some sad news today when it wa

s announced that Atlanta would be moving on from legendary kicker Matt Bryant. It’s a move that had been foreshadowed for awhile Vic Beasley Jr Jersey 2019 , but it was still difficult to swallow considering that Bryant had been a stalwart on the team for an entire decade. Bryant will be dearly missed, but the show must go on for the Falcons. That leads us to the question of who will be taking over for Bryant in 2019, and that player is more than likely already on the roster.Atlanta signed ex-Raiders kicker Giorgio Tavecchio in Week 7 of the 2018 season to fill in for an injured Matt Bryant. Tavecchio acquitted himself well in limited action, going 5/5 in FG attempts and hitting all eight of his XP attempts over three games with the Falcons. Perhaps most famously, Tavecchio hit a 56-yard FG on Monday Night Football against the Giants that gave the Falcons an 11-point lead. Atlanta ended up winning that game 23-20.Tavecchio was born in Milan, Italy, making him one of the only Italian football players in the NFL and earning him the nickname of “Italian Ice” among fans. He got his first NFL opportunity with the Oakland Raiders in 2017, where he started all 16 games. Unfortunately, Tavecchio had a rather uninspiring rookie season, finishing 16/21 in FG attempts (76.2%) and 33/34 in XPs (97.1%). That caused the Raiders to part ways with him once Jon Gruden arrived, and Tavecchio became a free agent just before the end of the 2018 preseason.The Falcons first signed Tavecchio for the fourth preseason game, but didn’t end up keeping him on the 53-man roster after Bryant recovered from his preseason injury. Bryant ended up aggravating that injury prior to Week 7 Black Alex Mack Jersey , which meant the Falcons needed to find a replacement kicker. Curiously, Atlanta ended up giving Tavecchio a 2-year contract at that time.That 2-year deal ended up being a harbinger of what was to come with Matt Bryant. Tavecchio kicked very well for the Falcons in limited action, and the team clearly felt confident enough in him to be able to move on from Bryant. Financially, the move makes some sense: the team saves $2.8M by cutting Bryant, and Tavecchio only costs $645K in 2019. The deal also gives the Falcons control of Tavecchio in 2020, where he will become an RFA.It’s always sad to see a franchise great depart, but hopefully this will be the beginning of a nice career for the next Falcons kicker. What are your thoughts on Giorgio Tavecchio taking over kicking duties in 2019? Are you reasonably confident in his abilities, or do you think the Falcons will be looking for other options in free agency and the draft?Dan Quinn: Damontae Kazee, Jordan Richards will start at safety for now The Atlanta Falcons have endured a nightmarish doomsday scenario at the safety spot in 2018, with FS Ricardo Allen and SS Keanu Neal both now on IR. The once-excellent depth will now be thrust into the starting spotlight, if Dan Quinn’s Monday presser holds true. So, the plan now is for FS Damontae Kazee and SS Jordan Richards to man the safety spots Alex Mack Jersey 2019 , and for newly-acquired SS Keith Tandy and former safety-turned-linebacker Kemal Ishmael to slot in behind Richards. You’d figure slot corner Brian Poole will also factor in for a few looks here, particularly as rookie CB Isaiah Oliver gets more comfortable. Actually, that might work out nicely. Oliver’s growth could be a huge boost to help cover the injuries here, as it would give the team some flexibility in the slot to let, perhaps, Robert Alford fall back there and let Oliver man the outside. That’d let Poole play more safety, where he’d be a natural fit with his tackling ability. As for any new faces at the position, well, it’s a different story. So, those dreams of the team trading for star FS Earl Thomas or signing a free agent like Eric Reid don’t appear to be coming true, at least for now. The team is notoriously cagey when it comes to personnel, though the plan ahead makes sense for what Atlanta typically does under Quinn. If Kazee or Richards falters Black Ricardo Allen Jersey , that may of course change in the coming weeks. The Falcons are darn lucky they had the depth to withstand losing their starting tandem, even from a roster standpoint. They have options now, though the plan in place now doesn’t exactly inspire a lot of confidence. Richards is a smart player who has made some costly errors while in Atlanta, though he could settle over time. Kazee has electrifying potential, but is still learning learning how to play with the proper level of physicality and tackle within the bounds of what the NFL allows in 2018. It’s not perfect, but how can it be when two starters go down at the same position? For now, this is what the team has to work with internally. We’ll see if it works, and if they’re wise to ignore adding an outside option.