Atlanta Falcons kicker Younghoe Koo will miss the Falcons’ upcoming matchup against the Washington Commanders on Sunday night.
Why is he sidelined, when can he return, and who is kicking in the 2020 Pro Bowl kicker’s stead for the Dirty Birds in Week 17?
Why Is Younghoe Koo Not Playing in Week 17
According to Falcons beat writer D. Orlando Ledbetter, Koo aggravated a muscle in his right hip during the Falcons’ Week 15 victory against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Koo had made just 25 of 34 field goals this season (73.5%) after being 86% or higher every year since 2019 when he joined the Falcons. Koo has made all of his extra points this season, but the Falcons kicker hasn’t been as consistent as he had been in the past.
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And maybe his injury explains why. The Falcons placed Koo on injured reserve on Dec. 18. Head coach Raheem Morris talked about Koo’s injury and what’s next for the team:
“Our guys have always put ourselves in a position to get people in here,” Morris said. “We’ve had a couple kickers over the last couple of weeks since he was on the injury report a couple of weeks ago. So, we’ve always been pretty precautionary when it comes to Younghoe Koo, when it comes to those things.”
So if Koo cannot go, who will the Falcons turn to?
Who Is Riley Patterson?
Since Koo can’t go, the Falcons will turn to Riley Patterson.
This will be the third team Patterson will kick for this season. He has kicked for the New York Jets and Cleveland Browns this season before coming to Atlanta. Patterson is coming to Atlanta from the Browns practice squad. Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski indicated they were expecting another team to grab Patterson this week, and that team ended up being the Falcons.
Patterson has appeared in two games this season, once for the Jets and once for the Browns; he has yet to attempt a field goal but is 4-for-4 on extra point attempts.
Patterson had previously been signed to the Falcons’ practice squad on Nov. 29, elevated for the Week 13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, and then released on Dec. 3. Koo had been questionable to play against the Chargers but was ultimately active, so Patterson did not play. Koo made two of his three field goal attempts in that game, missing from 35 yards but hitting from 26 and 41 yards out.
Because the Falcons only have three regular season games remaining, and NFL rules state a player on injured reserve is required to miss at least four, Koo’s 2024 regular season is over. He can only return if the Falcons make the playoffs and advance to the Divisional Round.