The Atlanta Falcons have released veteran quarterback Marcus Mariota, the team announced on Tuesday.
The roster move opens up additional cap room for a team that was already projected to the have the second most salary cap space in
Marcus Mariota of the Atlanta Falcons attempts a pass against the Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on Nov. 10, 2022, in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
Shortly after he learned that he would no longer be starting, Mariota stepped away from the team. It was later announced that Mariota underwent a procedure on his knee and as a result he was placed on injured reserve.
At the time, Falcons head coach Arthur Smith said Mariota's absence wasn't ideal, but noted that the team was prepared to be without him.
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"Of course, you want all your guys to be here, but guys have to make decisions. It’s part of professional sports. You have to have contingency plans," Smith said in December.
Cutting the former Heisman Trophy winner will result in an estimated $2.5 million in dead-money being added to the Falcons cap for 2023, but it also saves the team approximately $12 million.
If Mariota remained on the Falcons roster on the fifth day of the NFL's new league year, he would have been owed a $3 million roster bonus.
"When we did his contract originally, it was structured in that way to where we would make a decision after the season and the way that the [salary cap] number was going to go up," Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot said Tuesday at the combine.
The Falcons signed Mariota shortly after 2016 league MVP Matt Ryan was traded to the Colts. Prior to coming to Atlanta, Mariota spent two seasons with the Raiders, serving as
