The Falcons now have the steady veteran back well before the season, which is a massive relief.
Calais Campbell was one of the marquee signings of the offseason for the Falcons, not just because he’s still a terrific player, but because he chose this team despite being at the stage of his career where ring-chasing would be justified. Campbell saw something he liked with these Falcons, and given his stature that was pretty damn exciting.
That’s why news of his injury made me so nervous, even if many fans were not worried. After a brief stint on the non-football injury list, Campbell has been cleared and is good to go, meaning the Falcons will have a key piece of their defensive front and locker room leader back in action for Week 1.
While he’s off the NFI, we shouldn’t expect to see Campbell on the field any time soon. He may get some limited preseason reps, but the priority is getting Campbell set to go for the regular season, given the football under his belt and his age. As AtlantaFalcons.com writer Scott Bair notes, we’re unlikely to see him in joint practices this week:
It’s ultimately uncertain, though it seems unlikely, whether he’ll be part of joint practice sessions with the Miami Dolphins on Tuesday and Wednesday here in South Florida. The Falcons have those two practices leading up to a Friday preseason game.
Campbell, who is coming off a 5.5 sack season with the Ravens, figures to play multiple spots along a rebuilt defensive front. He’s easily the most established pass rusher the Falcons have added to the roster and offers size and physicality few can match, and if he’s not an every down or even every game player at this stage of his career, Campbell can still help out a lot. When the Falcons face the Panthers in Week 1, it looks like he’ll be available to wreak havoc, which is very good news for all of us.