Falcons Starting LB Ruled OUT vs. Buccaneers on Thursday Night Football

The Atlanta Falcons will be without their leading tackler against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as linebacker Troy Andersen is inactive due to a knee injury.

Atlanta Falcons linebacker Troy Andersen won't play Thursday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers due to an injury. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Falcons' already thin linebacker room is officially without another key piece Thursday night against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Falcons linebacker Troy Andersen will not play in the primetime matchup due to a knee injury suffered on a special teams tackle late in the fourth quarter of Sunday's 26-24 win over the New Orleans Saints.

After departing, Andersen was officially ruled questionable to return but did not play on Atlanta’s final defensive drive. He was still in the team’s medical examination room 45 minutes after the game’s conclusion.

Falcons head coach Raheem Morris told reporters Monday morning that Andersen is day-to-day, but he was "hurting pretty good" in the immediate aftermath of Sunday's game.

Andersen had a career-high 17 tackles against the Saints to go along with an interception, which he returned 47 yards for a touchdown, the first of his NFL career. He was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week on Wednesday.

Falcons defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake said Andersen, who leads the team with 41 tackles, is playing at a high level.

"He studies his tail off," Lake said Tuesday. "He puts the work in behind the scenes that nobody sees. He's obviously extremely talented. He's got big, physical traits. He's fast, but really, really smart. We're able to do a lot of different things with him.

"That game-changing play he made is going to be one of many that he's going to make here."

Andersen entered the season in a rotation with linebacker Nate Landman, who started Week 1 and played 37 snaps to Andersen's 31. But the Falcons placed Landman on injured reserve due to quad and calf ailments before Week 2, thrusting Andersen into a starting role.

Now down both Landman and Andersen, the Falcons will turn to fifth-round rookie J.D. Bertrand alongside veteran starter Kaden Elliss. Bertrand played eight defensive snaps against the Buccaneers after playing just one in the previous three games.

The Falcons (2-2) and Buccaneers (3-1) will kick off at 8:15 p.m. Thursday inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium.