Younghoe Koo has been one of the NFL's most unreliable kickers this season with an NFL-high nine missed kicks.
It looks like the Atlanta Falcons have officially had enough after placing Younghoe Koo on injured reserve after he "kind of hurt himself a little bit," according to Raheem Morris. While we don't want to speculate and he has dealt with minor injuries this year, it seems a little suspicious.
We have made the following roster moves:
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) December 18, 2024
- Placed Younghoe Koo on IR
- Signed Riley Patterson
- Released Tanner Brown from PS
It finally looks like poor play is being punished.
Younghoe Koo's future in serious doubt after landing on injured reserve
Younghoe Koo's regular season, and most likely his entire season, is finished after randomly landing on injured reserve. Riley Patterson takes his place hoping to find a sustained career in the city of Atlanta.
But it appears the Falcons are ending Koo's mostly-excellent career in Atlanta without officially ending it.
Is he dealing with an injury? Probably, but it doesn't change the fact that he had been able to play through it all season and now happens to land on injured reserve the day after the team made another massive move by benching Kirk Cousins. The Dirty Birds appear to have hit their limit in rolling with a player's track record rather than what they have done recently.
Koo is in the third year of a five-year, $24.3M extension signed in 2022. Releasing him in the offseason with a pre-June 1 designation would save $3M in cap space with a $2.5M dead cap in 2025. Post-June 1 would save $4.3M with a $1.3M dead cap in 2025 and 2026.
The Falcons could also blame injuries for his down year. It is definitely strange to see a kicker like him fall off so fast, but it does happen (ask Justin Tucker).
It will be interesting to see what the final move is. Massive decisions have to be made this offseason.