Atlanta Falcons 2020 Season Preview: Kurt Benkert

What role with Kurt Benkert play for the Atlanta Falcons in 2020?

Kurt Benkert has been in the Atlanta Falcons’ plans for the last two seasons. He served as the practice squad-quarterback in 2018.

Benkert looked promising before gingerly leaving the field in the Hall of Fame game. A toe injury sidelined Benkert for the entirety of the 2019 season.

Benkert was likely destined to be the third string quarterback behind Matt Ryan and Matt Schuab for 2019. The real loss was his opportunity to be on the practice fields everyday tuning with live repetitions.

Benkert is yet to throw a pass in the NFL

The Falcons see the ability in Benkert. They believe he could develop into something more than he’s been up to this point. Benkert was undrafted out of the University of Virginia.

His ability and size make him an intriguing player. Benkert stands 6 feet, 4 inches tall. This is the year where intrigue must turn into tangible evidence. Ryan and Schaub are both aging.

Ryan is 35-years-old. Schaub is 39-years-old. Ryan is still considered to be in one of the top two tiers at the position at his age.

Schaub showed last season that he can be serviceable in a pinch if Ryan gets injured. In his lone start in 2019 Schaub went 39-52 in the Falcons’ loss to the Seattle Seahawks in week seven.

At 39-years-old it is a bit of question mark if Schaub would be a viable option should Ryan miss long periods of time.

Enter Benkert. If Schaub enters retirement anytime soon the Falcons would likely want a reliable backup with an understanding of the offense.

Training camp will be huge for Benkert to make it clear that he is the backup quarterback of the future. If he’s able to turn heads the way he was prior to his injury, the Falcons could even consider moving the direction of the younger, cheaper option for the 2020 season.

Benkert’s role will likely be similar to the one he played in 2018. The future is now for him. What he does this season could determine where he’ll be placed on the Falcons’ priority list moving forward.

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