Veteran defensive lineman Paul Soliai played only sparingly for the Atlanta Falcons last season, a team transitioning to new leadership and a new defensive scheme under Dan Quinn. Unfortunately, Soliai's time under Quinn will last only that one season as the Falcons are set to release Soliai next month after just two seasons in Atlanta. Soliai's reps at DEC Management tweeted Saturday night that Soliai will be jettisoned at the outset of the new league year on March 9.
After multiple conversations w Falcons we were unable to come to terms on a pay cut. They will release Paul Soliai at start of league year
— DEC Management (@davidcanter) February 21, 2016
Soliai made $3 million in 2015 and was set to count $5 million against the Falcons cap next year. Instead, if he's designated a post-June 1 cut as Jason Cole of Bleacher Report suggests he will be, he'll cost the team $1.2 million in 2016 and the final year of his five-year, $32 million deal, signed with Atlanta when Mike Smith was still the head coach and the 4-3 was still the preferred alignment, will cost the team $2.8 million, per NBC Sports.
Soliai, 32, collected just 22 tackles in 14 games of work last season as his snap count dwindled. Really, it's not Soliai's fault that he was signed to play as a three-down nose tackle in a 3-4, but wound up in a 4-3 scheme wherein he's a liability on passing downs. But Soliai simply isn't worth the weight of his contract to the Falcons at this point.
And while the Falcons were apparently interested enough in keeping Soliai around to approach him about a restructure, it sounds like he'll instead wind up playing elsewhere in 2016.
