Falcons safety Keanu Neal is done until 2020.
Neal, who left today’s game with an Achilles injury, is believed to have torn the tendon, which will require surgery and several months of rehab, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
It was clear from the look on Neal’s face that he knew as soon as he went down that he was going to miss significant time. Neal threw his helmet in frustration, and the officials added insult to injury by flagging him for a personal foul for that.
The Falcons’ 2016 first-round draft pick, Neal has been a good player when healthy but missed 15 games with a torn ACL last year and will now miss the final 13 games of next year.
The 24-year-old Neal will head into the final year of his contract in 2020. One piece of good news: His $6.5 million base salary next year is guaranteed for injury, so if rehab takes longer than expected and he misses time into 2020, he’ll still get paid.