Atlanta Falcons DE Takk McKinley Ends Relationship With Popeyes Chicken

This is the last chance for defensive end Takk McKinley to show the Atlanta Falcons he should return to the team for at least a fifth season after this one.

After three shaky seasons for Atlanta Falcons defensive end Takk McKinley (OK, he has been a bust), he says he gets it now.

Yeah, well.

Nike.

Just do it, big guy.

Then again, during training camp this year, McKinley isn't as "big" as he once was. He has shoved aside his love affair with fast food, including Popeyes' fried chicken and biscuits. As a result, he has dropped something like 30 to 35 pounds from his 6-foot-2 frame to weigh around 238 pounds on most days.

That's good. So is McKinley's contention that he has recovered from spending January undergoing his third shoulder surgery in four years. He said he proceeded to have a splendid rehabilitation program in Laguna Hills, California. He talked of 7 a.m. workouts on weekdays and Saturdays.

According to Falcons coach Dan Quinn, McKinley "really looks rock solid," and to hear McKinley tell it, this all goes back to the Falcons saying after last season they wouldn't pick up the fifth-year option on his contract worth $10.3 million.

The Falcons wanted McKinely to prove his worth this season.

Or else.

"I still believe in myself," McKinley told reporters this week via Zoom after practice. "My coaches believe in me. My teammates believe in me. My family believes in me, and I believe in myself. At the end of the day, I know what I can do."

We're back to Nike.

The Falcons made McKinley the 26th pick overall during the 2017 NFL Draft since they were impressed with his pass rushing ways at UCLA.

You know the rest for the Falcons and for McKinley. 

What followed for both of them was mediocrity or worse, which led to the Falcons saying no to that fifth-year option.

"It was a wake-up call," McKinley said. "It was more motivation. It made me hungry. I'm not saying that I wasn't hungry in the past, but it just . . . 

"I just have to prove it."

Uh. Yep.

See this week's Saving The Falcons video for more.

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