FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. – The Falcons have agreed to trade a 2018 fifth-round pick to the Denver Broncos for tackle Ty Sambrailo. The transaction comes just before the official roster cutdown deadline to 53 players, which is 4 p.m. ET on Saturday.
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Sambrailo, a Denver's second-round pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, gives Atlanta depth at the tackle position. The 6-foot-5, 315-pound lineman appeared in 13 regular-season games with the Broncos. Sambrailo started four games at right tackle last season.
During a conference call Friday afternoon, Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff discussed the team's move to acquire Sambrailo.
"We've always said that we're looking to always keep our eye open on trying to improve our roster and build depth," he said. "We felt today's move with the acquisition of Ty Sambrailo from the Broncos for a fifth-round pick, we're very encouraged by that. We think he'll be a nice addition to us, and a significant increase in our talent along the offensive line."
Sambrailo should offer the Falcons some versatility up front. At Colarado State, he played all five positions along the offensive line.
On Aug. 19, the Falcons also signed offensive tackle Austin Pasztor, a 6-foot-7, 305-pound tackle who played three seasons with Jacksonville and two with Cleveland since coming out of the University of Virginia in 2012.
With the two additions along the offensive line, coach Dan Quinn feels like the Falcons have improved their situation up front.
"We felt like that was an important addition to solidify some of the tackle spots," Quinn said Friday. "We're pumped with where Austin is, he's making good progress ... and then to add the versatility of a guy like Ty into the group, it was really strong."
Dimitroff also provided some interesting insight into the relationships that go into making deals happen in the NFL.
"They are very high on (Sambrailo) in Denver for many reasons, and we were very fortunate to (acquire him)," Dimitroff said. "I had a good interaction with John Elway, quite honestly. I continue to come back to this: The reason you get trades done in this league a lot of time, I believe, is you have to have a very sound relationship with the people you're dealing with. He was very honest in our negotiations and our discussions about it.
"For us, again, Ty comes into - along with Austin - to help fortify this offensive line. And I think we have some youth along the offensive line, and we also have some experience. I think it's a really good mix."
