The Falcons cut Sam Irwin-Hill the morning before the third day of the draft because they felt they could get the punter they coveted. It turns out that guy is Sterling Hofrichter out of Syracuse. He has a booming leg and gets a ton of hang time.
It’s a bit surprising Atlanta went with a punter over another position, but the team must feel confident in the roster competition that they have right now for those key roles. Since he’s a punter, he’ll likely also have to be the holder and will compete with Younghoe Koo for the kickoff specialist.
Why Sterling Hofrichter instead of RB Darius Anderson or WR Kalija Lipscomb?
This is the head scratching move for me. The Falcons had some need for depth at running back and wide receiver and decided to go with a punter. Darius Anderson could have been a good move for competition at running back while Kalija Lipscomb would have been a smart move for depth at wide receiver.
Maybe they are banking on getting talent at the same level of these two guys in undrafted free agency. But it’s always going to feel a bit odd to see a punter taken during the NFL draft—even in the 7th round.
