The Atlanta Falcons will be without one of their key wide receivers in the short term.
Darnell Mooney suffers a shoulder injury and will be out of action for several weeks, according to the team’s announcement on Friday night.
During the Falcons’ first preseason practice on Thursday, Mooney dove to catch a deep pass from Michael Penix Jr. down the right sideline. After the play, he remained on the ground for a few seconds before getting up. The fall was hard enough that Mooney walked off the field with a trainer, helmet in hand, and did not return.
Since he was signed by Atlanta in the 2024 offseason, coming from the Chicago Bears, Mooney has been the team’s number 2 wide receiver, behind Drake London. Mooney, 27 years old, achieved 106 receptions for 992 yards and a personal record of five touchdowns last year.
On Friday, the Falcons signed free agent wide receiver DJ Chark, who recently played with the Los Angeles Chargers. Chark, a 2018 second-round pick, brings a lot of speed and experience to Atlanta. He has 51 career starts and has previously played on four different teams.
Chark, 28, is likely to join London and Ray-Ray McCloud III as starters while Mooney is out, although KhaDarel Hodge and Casey Washington could also be in contention for minutes.
