Vince Manuwai’s experience appeared to give him an edge at a muddled right guard situation with the Falcons.
Appearances can be deceiving. The Falcons announced that Manuwai was released on Saturday, leaving the likes of Garrett Reynolds, Peter Konz and Mike Johnson to fight for the starting job during training camp. Manuwai’s departure means that he and Lofa Tatupu, two of the three veteran free agents new to the team this offseason, have already fallen by the wayside. In related news, Chris Hope has stopped buying green bananas.
In comments via the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, coach Mike Smith suggested that Manuwai’s absence from the game in 2011 left him short of the necessary skills for the job.
“It was a football decision,” Smith said. “Vincent was out last year, completely out and in terms of the competition at the offensive line positions, we wanted to not muddy the waters.”
Konz is destined to play center eventually, but the Falcons will likely keep Todd McClure in the spot for one more season. If so, playing Konz at right guard could be a way to start getting a return on the investment made on the team’s first draft pick this April.