Dan Quinn had some excellent news for the Falcons faithful on Tuesday: rookie first-round pick Kaleb McGary is expected to play in Thursday’s preseason finale against the Jaguars.
Quinn says he’s planning on Kaleb McGary playing on Thursday night. #Falcons
— Kelsey Conway (@FalconsKelsey) August 27, 2019
McGary underwent a non-invasive heart procedure a few weeks ago, and it looked unlikely he would be ready for week one of the regular season. He participated in walkthroughs last week, and the plan was to ease him into individual and team drills over the next couple of weeks. However, things have moved much quicker than expected.
McGary has already begun participating in team drills, and while the decision remains up in the air, they are hopeful he will be on the field Thursday night. The right tackle position is currently the Falcons biggest question mark heading into the season. Ty Sambrailo, who has been #1 on the depth chart the entire preseason, has looked like a potato. Because of that, UDFA Matt Gono could be starting come week one. Obviously, Kaleb McGary now enters the conversation as well, but given that he has yet to play a preseason down in his career, it might be at least a few weeks before he claims the #1 spot on the depth chart.