Atlanta Falcons to put Todd McClure in Ring of Honor

The Atlanta Falcons drafted center Todd McClure out of LSU in the seventh round of the 1999 NFL Draft, and their seventh-round pick was rewarded in a huge way. McClure would spend his entire 14-year career with the Atlanta Falcons and would go on to be a star for the team over the past decade and a regular fixture at center. A leader and a great person, McClure announced his retirement from the National Football League following the 2012 season.

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At his retirement press conference, Falcons owner Arthur Blank did the right thing and stated that Todd McClure will be inducted into the Falcons Ring of Honor. Blank said, “You deserve to be in that Ring of Honor, and we will get you there as soon as we can.”

McClure definitely deserves this honor from the Falcons, and it is fitting for such a solid, dependable leader who did his job well at the very heart of the Falcons offensive line. He was with the Falcons through some big highs (two NFC Championship appearances) and some frustrating lows, and he snapped passes for quarterbacks like Matt Ryan and Michael Vick. McClure played in 198 career games and started in 195 of them, and it’s incredible looking back and thinking that the former All-SEC selection was just a seventh-rounder. It’s a good thing the Falcons stuck with him even after he tore his ACL prior to his rookie year, and it’s a good thing they found a way to swap him into center.

I always love to hear solid players get honored for long, excellent careers with one NFL franchise; there is something special about that.

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