Atlanta Falcons

Falcons' Poe passes weigh-in, says he's 'where I need to be'

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 8:11 p.m. ET

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) Dontari Poe earned a $125,000 bonus on Tuesday when he passed his weigh-in before his first minicamp with the Atlanta Falcons.

He then kept the details to himself.

Poe, listed at 6-foot-3 and 346 pounds, needed to weigh no more than 340 to collect the bonus.

Poe wouldn't disclose his weight.

''I'm what they need me to be at this point,'' Poe said. ''We'll just keep it right there.''

Asked if he was buying dinner, a reference to his bonus, Poe said with a smile ''I've got dinner for me. A slim dinner, yes.''

Coach Dan Quinn confirmed Poe met the weight and said he was happy with the defensive tackle ''weight-wise, workout-wise.''

Poe, a two-time Pro Bowl selection with the Kansas City Chiefs, signed a one-year, $8 million deal with weight-incentive clauses. He was Atlanta's top free-agent addition of the offseason.

He said he wasn't stressed about the weigh-in.

''It's all good,'' he said. ''I've been focused on it so we could have weighed in at any point in time.''

The Falcons expect Poe, 26, to be a run-stopper in the middle of the defensive line while also adding an inside pass rush.

The team wants to keep a close watch on Poe's weight, even though he has a long history of performing well at more than 340 pounds.

He posted a combined 10 1/2 sacks in the 2013-14 seasons with the Chiefs, earning Pro Bowl honors each year.

Poe shot up the NFL draft board, becoming the No. 11 overall selection in 2012, after running the 40-yard dash in 4.98 seconds at the draft combine while weighing 346 pounds.

Last season he threw a touchdown pass out of the wildcat formation. He took the direct snap, took a couple steps forward and then stopped, leaped up and tossed the pass to tight end Demetrius Harris against the Broncos.

The Falcons already have seen that Poe's athleticism is unusual for his size.

''He's a big guy,'' cornerback Desmond Trufant said. ''You'd be surprised how athletic he is.''

Poe is expected to be a fixture in the team's base defense and he also may stay on the field for some passing downs.

''His presence is felt, definitely,'' Trufant said.

Poe also has made an impact in weight-room workouts. Quinn mentioned Poe and two more defensive tackles, Grady Jarrett and Ra'Shede Hageman, as players who had impressive workouts in offseason training.

''We've got some strong men and he's one of them,'' said Quinn of Poe. ''As we're going through some of the testing strength-wise, Dontari has been one who has impressed us that way. Ra'Shede has been one and Grady has been one. Those three are a handful.''

Poe was needed after the Falcons did not re-sign defensive tackles Tyson Jackson and Jonathan Babineaux.

The team added another prominent name to the defensive front by drafting UCLA defensive end Takkarist McKinley in the first round of this year's NFL draft. Quinn and general manager Thomas Dimitroff knew at the draft McKinley, completing his work this quarter at UCLA, would be with the team full-time following the three-day minicamp.

NOTES: WR Julio Jones (foot surgery) and WR Taylor Gabriel (lower leg strain) worked on the side and are expected to be cleared for training camp. Quinn said he was being ''extra cautious'' in holding out Gabriel. Trufant, returning from pectoral surgery, was limited to individual drills but was optimistic about his recovery. ''I felt good, felt strong, felt fast, felt explosive,'' Trufant said. ''Just still being smart.''

---

For more NFL coverage: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL