Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta Falcons

Falcons to highlight TAPS program in second round of NFL draft

Then-Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan leads the team through an agility drill during Military Day in August 2017 at the team's football practice facility in Flowery Branch. (Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

Credit: Curtis Compton

Credit: Curtis Compton

Then-Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan leads the team through an agility drill during Military Day in August 2017 at the team's football practice facility in Flowery Branch. (Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)
By
April 26, 2022

FLOWERY BRANCH — In the second round of the NFL draft Friday, the Falcons will help the league honor the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) as part of the league’s Salute to Service initiative.

The Gadsden family, lifelong Falcons fans from Fort Walton Beach, Fla., will join Commissioner Roger Goodell on stage in the second round to help make the Falcons’ pick.

ExploreMore AJC coverage of the Falcons

The night of the pick, April 29, is the same date that 2nd Lt. Clifford Gadsden Jr. was killed in Iraq. Through the TAPS partnership the NFL seeks to offer care to people grieving the loss of a military loved one.

The family was honored by the Falcons during their annual TAPS weekend in 2017 and again in 2020.

The Bow Tie Chronicles

About the Author

Honored by the Pro Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his "long and distinguished reporting in the field of pro football," D. Orlando Ledbetter, Esq. has covered the NFL 28 seasons. A graduate of Howard University, he's a winner of Georgia Sportswriter of the Year and three Associated Press Sports Editor awards.

Follow D. Orlando Ledbetter on facebookFollow D. Orlando Ledbetter on twitter
More Stories

Keep Reading

Quarterback Easton Stick, formerly of the Chargers, signed with the Falcons on April 21. He guided the team for most of the exhibition season. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Easton Stick is one play away from Falcons’ QB throne

Kirk Cousins will start when the Falcons play the Saints on Sunday. If something happens to Cousins, Easton Stick would be the proverbial “next man up.”

OPINION

Weekend Predictions: Falcons, Saints to decide which team is worse

Plus, will Georgia Tech beat Pitt and insufferable coach Pat Narduzzi, and can Georgia cover a spread of more than 40 points vs. Charlotte?

Dirty Birds Dispatch: Can Kirk Cousins save the season?

With the season-ending injury to Michael Penix Jr., Kirk Cousins is back in control. Can he save the season?

The Latest

Quarterback Easton Stick, formerly of the Chargers, signed with the Falcons on April 21. He guided the team for most of the exhibition season. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Easton Stick is one play away from Falcons’ QB throne

Cousins or what? A look at the Falcons’ QB options for 2026.

Dirty Birds Dispatch: Can Kirk Cousins save the season?

Featured

Amber Hicks and Cherokee County firefighter Justin Hicks were found dead from gunshot wounds inside their home in November 2021. (Cobb County Fire and Emergency Services)

Credit: Cobb County Fire and Emergency Services

Man convicted of murdering Cherokee firefighter, wife as they watched TV

The deaths of Amber and Justin Hicks shocked their family and community. On Thursday, Matthew Lanz was convicted on all 13 charges he faced.

Report: Georgia unauthorized immigrant population reaches nearly 500,000

Georgia now has the nation’s sixth largest population of unauthorized immigrants, according to the Migration Policy Institute.

Atlanta airport’s troubled Concourse C food court gets new management

OHM Concession Group will take over the Atlanta airport's Concourse C food court, as well as restaurants in Concourses B and F.