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Michael Rothstein, ESPN Staff Writer
For the third straight year, defensive lineman Eddie Goldman and the Atlanta Falcons are going to try to make something work.
The Falcons signed Goldman on Wednesday, a day after releasing him from the reserve/left squad list.
It’s been a long journey for Goldman and the Falcons despite the 30-year-old being with the team in some fashion for the past three seasons while not playing a snap or participating in a training camp practice.
Atlanta initially signed Goldman on July 6, 2022. Thirteen days later, before training camp even began, Goldman retired and the Falcons placed him on the reserve/retired list.
Last March, Goldman approached the Falcons about playing again and was reinstated and even reported to training camp last July. But he never participated in a practice before leaving the team on July 29.
“With Eddie, last year, retired and then we put him on that and then he actually reached out to us,” former Falcons coach Arthur Smith said last July right before Goldman’s second retirement. “When somebody does that, you say, ‘All right, why not. See how it goes.’ To his credit, he looked phenomenal when he showed up the other day.
“But like I said, you just never know what somebody’s going through and you’re mindful, we’ll do everything to help our players.”
The Falcons released Goldman from the left team list on Tuesday and then officially signed him Wednesday as Goldman is trying to come back again — this time under a new coaching staff. Smith was fired in January and replaced by Raheem Morris.
One of Morris’ hires was defensive line coach Jay Rodgers, who was Goldman’s defensive line coach with the Chicago Bears during Goldman’s first five seasons with the team before Goldman opted out of the 2020 season.
Now Goldman and Rodgers will presumably work together again. A second-round pick of the Bears in 2015, Goldman played in 81 games for Chicago with 73 starts from 2015-19 and then in 2021, making 175 tackles and 13 sacks.
Goldman joins a defensive line room led by veterans Grady Jarrett and David Onyemata.