Falcons to sign veteran DT as Eddie Goldman mulls retirement again

Justin Ellis will have a chance to play a 10th NFL season soon. After working out for the Falcons on Friday, the veteran defensive tackle will sign with the team, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport.

The Falcons have a bit of an issue at D-tackle, with Arthur Smith confirming Friday that the recently unretired Eddie Goldman is once again considering walking away, via via Falcons.com’s Scott Bair. A 2022 signing, Goldman retired soon after joining the Falcons but reconsidered earlier this year. The longtime Bears starter rejoined the team in March and, per Smith, looked “phenomenal” upon reporting to camp this week, via The Athletic’s Josh Kendall.

Atlanta has been active in D-line moves this offseason, signing Calais Campbell and David Onyemata. Campbell has a long history of playing as an inside defender, but the 16th-year veteran is expected to be used as more of an edge presence. The Falcons also drafted D-lineman Zach Harrison in the third round.

Goldman is a nose tackle by trade. He served in that capacity for the Bears for six seasons, with a 2020 opt-out interrupting a successful tenure. The Bears gave Goldman a four-year, $42M extension during the 2018 offseason, and he was part of a Vic Fangio-led defense that led the league while helping the team to a 12-4 record. Goldman, 29, has yet to play for the Falcons, but the team has given the veteran D-tackle multiple opportunities.

Ellis, 32, could be a contingency plan. The former Raiders draft choice has logged 117 career games, serving as a run-defending presence. After five seasons in Oakland, Ellis caught on with Baltimore during Don Martindale‘s time as DC. Ellis ended up following Martindale to New York last year, playing 17 Giants games and starting four. Pro Football Focus assigned him a career-worst grade, but the former fourth-round pick has remained on the NFL radar.

After the Raiders gave him a three-year, $13.5M deal in 2018, Ellis signed one-year deals from 2019-22. This agreement likely runs that streak of one-season pacts to five.