O’Brien Schofield‘s reunion with the Falcons didn’t last long, as Atlanta has cut the veteran linebacker to make room for new addition A.J. Hawk, the club announced today. The Falcons also officially placed linebacker Sean Weatherspoon on injured reserve after he suffered an Achilles injury on Sunday.
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The Falcons made Schofield an offer early on in the offseason, but he held out for more money. Schofield appears to have misjudged the market as the Falcons did not improve their offer and interest from other teams was mild to say the least. The Patriots met with Schofield in August and the Jets hosted him on a visit in September, but neither meeting led to a deal.
Schofield, 29, followed Dan Quinn from the Seahawks to the Falcons, signing a one-year, $1.7MM deal with Atlanta last year. He finished the year with 28 tackles, four tackles for losses, two sacks, 13 quarterback hits, and one forced fumble.
Because they signed Schofield after the start of the regular season, the Falcons won’t be on the hook for the rest of his minimum salary.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.