The Atlanta Falcons already have some bad injury news on Monday.
It’s rare that a coach will openly rule out players for an upcoming game so early in the week, but that’s what Falcons coach Kevin Stefanski did on Monday in his first media appearance of Week 9, in which Atlanta will take on the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Falcons have ruled out two players and will spend the week figuring out how to replace them.
Falcons Make Injury Decisions
The Falcons have already determined that both Zachariah Branch and Samson Ebukam will not play against the Bengals.
Branch, a rookie wide receiver, and Ebukam, an edge rusher, have both played contributing roles so far this season for Atlanta.
Samson Ebukam and Zachariah Branch will miss the Bengals game due to hamstring injuries, and Kevin Stefanski indicated it could be multi-game injuries for either or both.
— Josh Kendall (@JoshTheAthletic) November 2, 2026
That last line from The Athletic’s beat reporter Josh Kendall is worrisome — that it could be multiple games missed for both players.
It also makes sense that that’s possible, though, given how early they were ruled out for the week ahead.
Zachariah Branch Injury Update
Branch appeared to be injured during a kickoff return on Sunday.
That’s where his absence would be felt the most. The Falcons trust him so much as a return man that even after a two-fumble game earlier this season, they stuck with Branch as their returner.
The rookie out of Georgia is small, but he’s quite explosive, and Atlanta doesn’t necessarily have a ready-made replacement for what Branch brings in the return game.
The small receiver isn’t as key on offense, although he could be used in gadget plays and in the screen game, elements that might go away without Branch for a few weeks.
Samson Ebukam Injury Update
Ebukam is out with a hamstring injury.
That’s one of those nagging problems that you never like to see, because it has a tendency to linger longer than anyone wants.
Ebukam has 2.5 sacks on the season so far. He’s not necessarily a game-changing pass rusher, but he is reliable, and the Falcons have gotten better contributions out of him this season than they may have expected.
Atlanta’s pass-rushing depth isn’t great to begin with, so moving forward without Ebukam for a little while is not an ideal setup for the Falcons.
Falcons Already Rule Out 2 Injured Players For Bengals Game