Getty QB Feleipe Franks #15 of the Atlanta Falcons.
Atlanta Falcons rookie third-string quarterback Feleipe Franks made his NFL debut on September 26th against the New York Giants–––as a tight end.
Yes, you read that right.
The Falcons first used Pitts as a blocking tight end for two snaps against the Giants.
At 6’6 and 235 pounds, Franks isn’t too far off in size from first-round draft pick Kyle Pitts, who measures 6’6 and 245 pounds.
And head coach Arthur Smith said we could see Franks on the active roster again this week or in the near future.
“There’s things that we think he may be able to add,” Smith said during Monday’s press conference. “He’s a good football player. There’s things that we may [do], something this week, or maybe in the future, it’s good to get his feet wet.”
After Franks played in the slot, he ran a read-option which ultimately failed when he handed it off to running back Corderelle Patterson. Smith credited the Giants defense for responding with enough pressure.
“We tried something, and they did a nice job playing it,” said Smith. “They brought pressure off the open side, and they got us on the [snap] count. They bubbled it back, and they made a play.”
Nonetheless, Smith was super pleased with Franks’ overall performance.
“He made a sound decision,” Smith said. “A lot of times you put the ball in their hands, and a guy pulls it when he doesn’t need to. Feleipe continues to improve. We like what he’s doing at quarterback, but we think athletically there may be something he can give us at other positions.”
Smith added, “We’re always going to look; if there’s somebody on the roster that can help us, we’ll try him.”
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Could Franks Be the Next Taysom Hill?
Smith throwing in a QB at tight end is nothing new as we have seen the New Orleans Saints do it with backup quarterback Taysom Hill. Can Franks be the next Hill? Only time will tell, according to Smith.
“Certainly it’s worth trying, you know,” said Smith. The opportunity, he played a couple snaps at different spots and we’ll see if it grows and we’ve got to evaluate that but yeah, he’s a hell of an athlete.”
There have been plenty of quarterbacks that have played multiple roles including Washington’s Logan Thomas and Jordan Reed, Bears’ Trey Burton and Chiefs’ Blake Bell. But Hill is the only one who has impressed Smith thus far.
“New Orleans kind of set the stage for everybody and everybody’s been looking for that type and you see some people trying, too. You know, situational football, they may got a running quarterback on the roster, they put them out there, but they’re all in that role. Taysom is the only guy that I’ve seen that truly can play multiple spots.”
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