Atlanta, GA

Former BC Lions Quarterback’s First Impression with Atlanta Falcons in 2024 Preseason

Published

1 year ago

August 10, 2024

Former BC Lions Quarterback’s First Impression with Atlanta Falcons in 2024 Preseason

Canadian football fans are watching the NFL’s preseason closely as they see their favorite native quarterback Nathan Rourke look to earn a spot on the Atlanta Falcons’ roster in 2024.

Rourke played his first game in the red and black uniforms, playing through the whole fourth quarter. The Falcons were not able to score any points in the final quarter, falling to the Miami Dolphins 20-13 on Friday night.

The BC Lions’ former starter completed three of his 13 passes for 37 yards and rushed twice for 24 yards on two carries. The stats are misconceiving as the wide receivers had at least three drops off of Rourke’s passes in the loss. He looked good in the game, and his athleticism showed on a big run play of 21 yards.

Heck of a run right there by Nathan Rourke pic.twitter.com/HZEkY1XEXu
— Matt Stewart (@MattStewartTV) August 10, 2024
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The bright side of his performance was that he outperformed fellow backup quarterback Taylor Heinicke, who threw for 11 yards on four completions. Atlanta’s first-round pick, Michael Penix Jr., got the start at quarterback with Kirk Cousins not playing in the game.

Rourke signed with the Falcons at the beginning of August after a short offseason with the New York Giants. During the 2023 NFL campaign, he also played for the New England Patriots and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Many CFL fans will remember Rourke’s short two-year stint in the league with the BC Lions after the team selected him in the second round of the CFL Draft. He won the CFL’s Most Outstanding Canadian Award in 2022 after scoring 32 total touchdowns in 10 games and leading the Lions to the postseason.

Rourke will have another shot at playing for the Falcons on Saturday, August 17, when Atlanta travels to Baltimore to face the Ravens.

You can follow Anthony Miller on X @ByAnthonyMiller.

Catch up with CFL on SI.com on Facebook and X.

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Atlanta, GA

Serious crashes block Atlanta’s Downtown Connector, Lawrenceville Highway early Friday

Published

1 hour ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

Serious crashes block Atlanta’s Downtown Connector, Lawrenceville Highway early Friday

ATLANTA – A major crash involving eight vehicles shut down all southbound lanes of the Downtown Connector early Friday morning, causing significant traffic delays near University Avenue.

What we know:

The crash was reported on Interstate 75/Interstate 85 just before University Avenue, with injuries confirmed at the scene. Traffic was being diverted off the connector at Interstate 20, Exit 247, while the entrance ramp from I-20 to the connector southbound was also closed. Drivers were advised to use Exit 56A to McDaniel Street or alternate routes including Metropolitan Parkway or Interstate 285. The scene was cleared and lanes began reopening around 6:30 a.m. FOX 5 Atlanta is waiting for a final report on what happened.

A separate serious injury crash was also reported in DeKalb County on Lawrenceville Highway westbound between Montreal Road and Interstate 285. All lanes were blocked, and authorities said the incident involved a pedestrian struck by a vehicle. Both investigations were ongoing. The scene was cleared and lanes reopened around 6:45 a.m., according to Georgia Department of Transportation.

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Atlanta, GA

Falcons deny Cowboys’ request to interview DC Jeff Ulbrich, per report

Published

13 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Falcons deny Cowboys’ request to interview DC Jeff Ulbrich, per report

The Atlanta Falcons are in the process of hiring a new head coach and general manager, but that doesn’t mean the team is completely cleaning house. Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich has done an incredible job with the Falcons defense since replacing Jimmy Lake in the offseason.

The Falcons would prefer to keep Ulbrich, as team owner Arthur Blank stated, but the new head coach will have the final say. According to a report from ESPN’s Todd Archer, Atlanta blocked the Dallas Cowboys’ request to interview Ulbrich on Thursday.

“The Cowboys were denied by Atlanta to talk with Jeff Ulbrich for DC job, according to sources,” wrote Archer. “He remains under contract [with] the Falcons despite their search for a head coach. A potential interview can be revisited later if they hire a [head coach], who has a different coordinator in mind.”

Blank discussed Ulbrich’s impact during his Thursday press conference and said he was impressed with the work he did with the team’s rookie draft class. James Pearce Jr. led all rookies in sacks with 10.5 this season, while third-round pick Xavier Watts racked up a rookie-high five interceptions as the team’s starting safety.

“You can’t dictate to the new head coach who their coordinators would be, but I’d certainly recommend to the new head coach to consider Ulbrich,” Blank said of the Falcons’ current defensive coordinator.

It sounds like the Falcons aren’t going to let Ulbrich out of their sights, and it’s hard to blame them. The Falcons defensive coordinator helped the team record a franchise-record 57 sacks this season, just one year after finishing 31st in the NFL with just 31 sacks.

Follow along with each request and interview with our Falcons head coach tracker.

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Atlanta, GA

What the $245M refinance of a Midtown office tower signals for Atlanta

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

What the 5M refinance of a Midtown office tower signals for Atlanta

Business

The tower at 1105 W. Peachtree St., which bears Google’s logo, recently secured a new loan at a time many landlords are struggling to do so.

1105 West Peachtree (Google Tower in Midtown) is shown Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, in Atlanta. The Google Tower is one of the developments done by Selig Enterprises. (Jason Getz/AJC)

It hasn’t been easy the past few years to be an office landlord.

Many tenants shrunk their workspaces coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, meaning buildings that lost rental revenue also lost value. Interest rates surged. Many banks got gun shy over having too much money lent to office tower owners, and a whole lot of loans have been coming due.

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The tower at 1105 W Peachtree St. in Midtown Atlanta is one of the city’s newest office buildings.

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Zachary Hansen, a Georgia native, covers economic development and commercial real estate for the AJC. He’s been with the newspaper since 2018 and enjoys diving into complex stories that affect people’s lives.

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