Rashaan Evans made 159 tackles for Atlanta in the 2022 season, but the Falcons did not try to retain the former Alabama All-American in free agency. Now Evans has returned to Atlanta, with the Falcons announcing on Tuesday the linebacker had been signed for the practice squad.
Starting inside linebacker Troy Andersen did not practice with Atlanta on Tuesday as the Falcons prepared for Thursday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The team’s leading tackler this season, Andersen was in the lineup because Nate Landman went on injured reserve after sustaining calf and quad injuries in the season-opening game.
If Andersen can’t play on Thursday, the Falcons would have only fifth-round rookie JD Bertrand left to start with Kaden Elliss at inside linebacker.
Practice-squad members do everything members of the active roster do except play in games. But each NFL team can elevate two practice-squad members to active status for each game.
Evans had been out of the NFL since Dec. 27, 2023, when the Dallas Cowboys waived him to clear a roster spot for offensive tackle Matt Waletzko, who was returning for injured reserve after a shoulder injury.
Evans played in nine games for Dallas in 2023, getting on the field for 71 defensive snaps and 79 special-teams plays.
In 2022, Evans played 1,104 defensive snaps as he recorded the seventh-most tackles in the NFL, for Atlanta. He became an unrestricted free agent when the league’s 2023 fiscal year started on March 15, and he remained unsigned until Sept. 12, 2023, when he joined the Philadelphia Eagles’ practice squad.
But Evans spent only four days there before being released.
The Cowboys signed Evans for their practice squad on Oct. 12, 2023, two days after linebacker Leighton Vander Esch sustained a neck injury. After Evans played in three games as a practice-squad elevation, Evans joined the 53-player active roster on Nov. 18 with Vander Esch going on injured reserve.
A 2018 first-round draft pick off Alabama’s 2017 CFP national-championship team, Evans played four seasons with the Tennessee Titans before signing with the Falcons in 2022.
Evans was the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s Class 6A Lineman of the Year at Auburn High School in 2013 and a first-team All-American selection by the American Football Coaches Association at Alabama in 2017.
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.