FLOWERY BRANCH — The Falcons continued to shape their post-lockout roster by adding free agent defensive end Ray Edwards on Friday.
Edwards was expected to arrive at the facilities late Friday and sign a five-year contract, worth $30 million, with $11 million guaranteed. He agreed to terms early in the day.
“Ray is going to be a very nice addition,” Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said. “He’ll add speed and power to our pass rush and get consistent pressure up the field.”
Edwards can’t practice with the team until Thursday, or when the league’s business calendar starts.
One of the Falcons’ glaring deficiencies has been the pass rush. The Falcons hope that Edwards will balance the field and provide a pass rush opposite Pro Bowler John Abraham.
“That’s definitely going to be good for me,” Abraham said. “Ray has proven himself in this league, and the team went and got him. I asked the coaches when we finally got a chance to talk to them, if they were going to bring me in some help, and they did their job. Now, I have to do my job and make it worth my while.”
Even some of the players on offense applauded the move.
“That’s great,” running back Michael Turner said. “Those guys upstairs are going to bring the best players in here to help us win the championship.”
Abraham led the Falcons with 13 sacks and 17 quarterback hurries last season. Kroy Biermann started at left end and had three sacks and seven quarterback hurries.
“It helps a lot because if you have somebody that can get eight to 10 sacks a year,” Abraham said. “We needed to find somebody like that opposite of me. Hopefully, he can help me, and I can help him out also. Hopefully, we can raise each other’s games.”
Edwards, 6-foot-5, 268 pounds, was a fourth-round draft pick (127th overall) by the Vikings in 2006. The former Purdue standout amassed 29 sacks in five seasons. He had eight sacks last season and a career-high 8.5 in 2009.
The Falcons were interested in Edwards after the draft, but they later cooled on him and pursued Carolina’s Charles Johnson. The Falcons backed out of the bidding on Johnson after the Panthers made him a lucrative offer.
Entering free agency, Mel Kiper Jr. rated Johnson the top defensive end available, and he rated Edwards second. Kiper notes that Edwards had an uneven season last year, as he managed only 1.5 sacks in the Vikings’ first seven games.
In addition to Abraham, Edwards and Biermann, the Falcons also have Chauncey Davis, Lawrence Sidbury, Cliff Matthews, Emmanuel Stephens and Tom McCarthy on the roster.
Ironically, Edwards was obtained on the same day the Falcons released defensive end/tackle Jamaal Anderson.
The Falcons cleared $7.8 million under the salary cap by releasing Anderson and wide receiver Michael Jenkins in order to sign Edwards.
Anderson and Jenkins were recent first-round picks.
The Falcons took Anderson eighth overall in the 2007 drafted, but he never blossomed into the sackmaster that the Falcons envisioned when he was selected. The Falcons passed on future stars Patrick Willis and Darrelle Revis. Willis, a linebacker, went 11th to San Francisco and Revis, a cornerback, went to the Jets with the 14th pick.
Willis has been to four Pro Bowls and has been named All-Pro three times. Revis has been to three Pro Bowls and has been named All-Pro twice.
Anderson played in 60 games and made 47 starts, but had only 4.5 sacks.
While the Falcons were still negotiating with running back Jason Snelling and left guard Justin Blalock, they basically are finished with a whirlwind week of free agency.
“It’s been fast and furious with limited sleep,” Dimitroff said. “There’s been a lot of great zoom focus by a lot of people on the staff. A lot of them are still working at a somewhat frantic pace.”
Dimitroff reflected on the release of Anderson and Jenkins.
“They are both upstanding men and talented football players,” Dimitroff said. “We wish them all the best.”
