Falcons add kicker after Younghoe Koo’s big miss vs. Buccaneers

The Atlanta Falcons have brought in some competition for Younghoe Koo after his brutal miss vs the Buccaneers.

On Sunday, the Atlanta Falcons dropped to 0-1 on the young 2025 season with a brutal home loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. While quarterback Michael Penix Jr. played well in this one, Atlanta's running game could not get going behind a brutal offensive line performance, and the defense did not get stops when they were necessary.

Still, the Falcons had a chance to tie things up late, but that went by the wayside when kicker Younghoe Koo missed a 44-yarder, solidifying the loss for Atlanta.

Koo was among the worst kickers in the NFL last year and has quickly fallen out of favor with the Falcons' fanbase, and on Tuesday, the team brought in some competition for him at practice this week.

“The #Falcons are signing kicker Parker Romo to the practice squad, per source,” reported Ian Rapoport of The NFL Network on X, formerly Twitter. “After Younghoe Koo’s critical miss Sunday, Raheem Morris said they’d bring in competition. It’ll be Romo, who was 11-for-12 on field goals in four games last season with Minnesota.”

The Falcons indeed could use some help in the field goal department after struggling in that area for the last two seasons.

Still, Atlanta's problems do not end there, as the team's pass rush, which they worked so hard to improve this offseason through the NFL Draft, was once again non-existent for the most part on Sunday against Tampa Bay.

Meanwhile, despite having one of the league's best running backs in Bijan Robinson, the Falcons were unable to establish any kind of ground game in the loss against Tampa Bay, and Penix Jr. didn't have many opportunities to show off his deep ball due to the little amount of time he had in the pocket.

In any case, the Falcons will next hit the field next Sunday evening for a road game against the Minnesota Vikings.

Dodgers Predicted to Sign Top MLB Free Agent After 2025 Season

Los Angeles Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman

The Los Angeles Dodgers have notoriously been one of the top spenders in MLB for several years now. They showed that at the beginning of 2025, they signed many top free agents to improve their roster.

However, that has not led them to become the juggernaut team many analysts and executives thought they would be. Los Angeles is 79-64 and will likely not reach the 90-win mark with just 20 games left this regular season.

Whatever the Dodgers do in the postseason, one MLB Insider believes they will sign the top free agent after 2025.

Dodgers Predicted to Sign Kyle Tucker

The Chicago Cubs’ slugger is having a rough last two months of the season, but is still considered the top free agent.

USA Today’s Bob Nightengale believes it will be to the Los Angeles Dodgers:

“Rival executives still believe he’ll be the highest-paid player in free agency,” Bob Nightengale reported Monday. “Their prediction where he’ll land? The Dodgers, who badly could use outfield help.”

The Dodgers could use outfield help, but signing Tucker to say, $400 million would put them far over the luxury tax. But it would address a much-needed positional issue. Los Angeles signed Michael Conforto to a one-year, $17 million deal before the season, and he has looked like a massive bust the entire season.

Conforto still isn’t above the .200 average mark, despite playing in 124 games. His OPS is 77, well below league average. The Dodgers also traded for left fielder Alex Call back in July, and he hasn’t had much production either. Signing Kyle Tucker in free agency is right up the Dodgers’ wheelhouse.

Although Tucker has struggled for the past few months, he’s still had a solid season. Kyle Tucker still has 22 home runs and an OPS+ of 140.

Kyle Tucker Has So Many Accolades As a Player

Bleacher Report recently came out with a prediction piece about Kyle Tucker’s free agency, and it showed how tenured he is as a player:

“After all, Tucker’s resume includes a World Series title, four All-Star selections, a Silver Slugger and a Gold Glove. He led the league in RBI in 2023 when he was with the Houston Astros and has hit more than 20 home runs in each of the last five seasons. While he hasn’t been himself since the All-Star break with a .242 batting average, five home runs and 17 RBI, some of that can be explained by injury concerns. And he still has solid overall numbers this season with a .270/.381/.472 slash line, 22 home runs and 73 RBI. Tucker is also just 28 years old, which is another reason he will surely command a significant deal this offseason.”

The next question is how much the Dodgers would pay him, and that will be up to Tucker’s agent.

Fans of other MLB teams would not be happy with the Dodgers making a big-money signing like this, but it would put a lot of pressure on the Cubs to attempt to dish out a higher AAV contract. Tucker’s free agency will be one of the highest-anticipated events this offseason.

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