Khalid Kareem was activated for each of the last two games for the Atlanta Falcons, which means the Falcons have no more practice squad elevations left for the veteran pass-rusher. And after an impressive fourth-down stop in the win over the Rams, he may have cemented his future in Atlanta.
In the 27-24 victory on Monday Night Football, Kareem logged just two tackles, but one of those came on fourth-and-short, where he stopped Kyren Williams two yards behind the line of scrimmage to leave the Rams scoreless despite driving deep into Atlanta territory early in the first quarter.
The Falcons also likely lost Brandon Dorlus due to injury, which means they need all of the defensive reinforcements they can get. And given Kareem has experience both as an EDGE rusher and an interior pass rusher, he will most likely be one of the players the team calls upon to replace Dorlus.
And luckily, that's exactly what happened to kickstart the New Year.
Transaction: The Falcons have placed CB Mike Hughes on injured reserve. In a corresponding move, they have signed EDGE Khalid Kareem to the 53-man roster. https://t.co/dLlgawMS7t
— Tori McElhaney (@tori_mcelhaney) January 1, 2026
Falcons are finally giving Khalid Kareem a shot on the active roster
The Dirty Birds' pass rush has been revitalized this season, and their practice squad pickup has still managed to shake up the pecking order. The 27-year-old played just 12 snaps in primetime, but was still far more productive than he was in double the snaps against the Panthers back in Week 11.
According to Pro Football Focus, Kareem's 86.8 PFF grade marked both a season and career-high, which is no small feat. His impressive game saw his PFF grade rank eighth among all pass-rushers, with elite players like Aidan Hutchinson, Khalil Mack, Brian Burns, or Will Anderson Jr. ahead of him.
The 2020 fifth-round pick has been a journeyman amid his six-year career, but he finally may have found a long-term home. He's been in Atlanta since the start of last season, spending the majority of his time on the practice squad before becoming a game-day promotion these last few weeks.
The Notre Dame product helped set the tone for a 21-0 Falcons lead they ultimately squandered, but that didn't matter in the final outcome. Atlanta's hot start helped them pull off a stunning upset, and if Kareem doesn't make that stop, there's a real possibility the Rams score a touchdown on that drive.
And if that happens, the final outcome of this game could be altered, and we wouldn't be talking about Raheem Morris as a coach who saved his job with an upset victory. So in large part due to a basically unknown practice squad call-up, the Falcons are victors in each of their last three games.