Falcons Sign D2 Running Back, Again

On Thursday, the Atlanta Falcons announced they have signed running back Craig Reynolds, once again, after releasing him a few weeks ago.

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If you’re from Philly, you know what Reynolds is capable of. A Philadelphia native himself, Reynolds spent the offseason working with a personal trainer to come back and compete for a spot on the roster.

He was cut at the end of week one of camp, but now he has a chance to redeem himself.

Noticed By Washington

Reynolds played at Kutztown University, a small Division II school in Pennsylvania. His impressive stats in college caught the attention of a Washington Redskins scout.

He finished his collegiate career at Kutztown as the school’s third all-time leading rusher with 2,650 yards and second in school history with 5,277 all-purpose yards.

Watching a small-school, Division II guy rise in the NFL has always been really cool. And if anything, it’s an indication that these are the type of athletes who will work hard every day at practice, or in any in-game action they get.

Small-School Guy With NFL Dreams

Reynolds grew up not only following NBA legend Russell Westbrook but also learning from him and reiterating Westbrook’s life motto throughout his own.

“The mentality of how he treats every day, he doesn’t take anything for granted out on the court,” Reynolds told Heavy earlier this year. “And then one of the big things he always said was, ‘Why not?’ and when I was growing up, coming through the back end of high school and going through college, I said, ‘Why not?’ Why can’t I be a kid from Kutztown and make it to the NFL?”

Reynolds made his NFL debut with a short stint in Washington last season.

He had played safety throughout high school but Kutztown scouted him as a running back. His versatility could match up well in Atlanta if the Falcons keep him around this time.

Qadree Ollison Missing Practice

Ollison had to sit out of practice on Wednesday due to an unknown injury. This re-signing of Reynolds could just be until Ollison is back and healthy again, but we’ll see.

According to Falcons’ team reporter Will McFadden, Ollison was “the most impressive (Falcons) running back” during Wednesday’s scrimmage last week. Todd Gurley did not participate in the first scrimmage.

Ollison didn’t just make a presence in the run game, but he also had some outstanding plays in the passing game.

This is a step up already from last season considering Ollison struggled with the passing game having just one catch in eight appearances. However, he did manage to do well in the red-zone. But Gurley is the real red-zone threat as his 12 carries inside the five-yard-line tied Ezekiel Elliott and Sony Michel for ninth-most in the NFL last season.

If Ollison wants some game day action this year, he’ll have to battle for an active spot against Ito Smith and Brian Hill since Gurley is in the picture.

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