Falcons rule out two players for Week 9 matchup vs. Bengals

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Falcons rule out two players for Week 9 matchup vs. Bengals

Falcons rule out two players for Week 9 matchup vs. Bengals

Matt Urben, Falcons Wire · Falcons Wire

Mon, November 2, 2026 at 6:57 PM UTC ·

2 min read

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The Atlanta Falcons are still dealing with the aftermath of their loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , but they need to quickly turn the page with another tough matchup coming up against the Cincinnati Bengals this Sunday in Madrid, Spain.

Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski met with the media on Monday and provided a few key injury updates. Stefanski said that both wide receiver Zachariah Branch and edge rusher Samson Ebukam would not be available in Week 9.

Branch suffered a hamstring injury against the Buccaneers and did not return. The rookie has yet to carve out a real role on offense, but he's handled the team's kick and punt return duties when healthy this season. Without Branch, the Falcons will look to veteran wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus to step up on special teams.

Ebukam has also been dealing with a hamstring injury, and despite playing against Tampa, he won't be making the trip to Madrid this weekend. The veteran pass rusher currently ranks seconds on the team with 2.5 sacks this season.

"That's going to keep them out of this game," Stefanski said of Ebukam and Branch . "Not sure, long term, how many games those types of injuries will be, but we'll obviously treat those and then see how it goes over the next couple of weeks."

The Falcons will look to Za'Darius Smith and Cameron Thomas to play bigger roles, and we could see the return of edge rusher James Pearce Jr . The Defensive Rookie of the Year finalist is eligible to return this week after serving his eight-game suspension.

Stay tuned to see if Pearce is activated this week, as he led the team with 10.5 sacks in 2025 (the most among all rookies last season). Peace may take some time to get up to speed, but they may need him to slow down Joe Burrow and the Bengals' explosive offense.

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Nov 1, 2026; Tampa, Florida, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (9) hands the ball to running back Bijan Robinson (7) against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first quarter at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

(Nathan Ray Seebeck, IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)