According to a report by The Athletics Jason Butt, the Atlanta Falcons plan on tendering kicker Younghoe Koo, who is set to become an exclusive-rights free agent at the start of the new league year.
Koo, 25, had a great first year with the Falcons after joining the team midway through the season. In eight games, Koo attempted 26 field goals and made 23 of them, including eight from 40-plus yards away. He was also 15-of-16 on extra-point attempts. Koo was twice named NFC Special Teams Player of the week, once after his debut in Week 10 against the New Orleans Saints and once in Week 14 against the Carolina Panthers.
Koo also showed a propensity to nail the onside kick. The Falcons successfully recovered four onside kicks during Koo's time with the team, but two of those recoveries were called off due to penalty.
Following the season, Falcons coach Dan Quinn and general manager Thomas Dimitroff said the team will still look to bring in a kicker to compete with Younghoe Koo this offseason. Butt's report does nothing the indicate those plans have changed.
"Best kicker is the main thing at all spots," Quinn said. "We want to make sure the competition is right in there, but I would say Younghoe did an excellent job. He wanted to come in and prove it and kicked off made tough kicks in some pressure. He wanted to make sure he represented himself in a way that he could throw his name into the competition, and I thought he did that."
