BILLINGS — Making his first career NFL start on Sunday, Atlanta Falcons inside linebacker and former Montana State standout Troy Andersen showed his mettle.
Andersen finished with a game-high 13 tackles (seven solo) as the Falcons beat the San Francisco 49ers 28-14 in Atlanta. The rookie from Dillon was starting in place of the injured Mykal Walker and helped the Falcons hold the 49ers to 50 rushing yards, which is Atlanta's best performance against the run in a game this season.
According to Falcons reporter Joe Patrick, Andersen was on the field for 69 plays on Sunday — all 60 on defense and nine more on special teams — and was Atlanta's most-used player along with teammate Richie Grant.
Troy Andersen played every single defensive snap yesterday (60), plus 9 on special teams making him the Falcons most-used player alongside Richie Grant with 69 snaps. https://t.co/wfXUlh3wVB
— Joe Patrick (@japatrick200) October 17, 2022
On one special teams play, Andersen chased down 49ers punt returner Ray Ray McCloud to prevent a touchdown. Andersen was also involved in a forced fumble that resulted in a TD.
After a career that saw him star as a running back, quarterback and linebacker at Montana State, Andersen was a second-round pick of the Falcons (58th overall) during the NFL Draft in April. He made his presence known earlier in the season when he blocked a punt in a game against the Rams that resulted in a touchdown by teammate Lorenzo Carter. It was the Falcons' first blocked punt TD since 1990.
