The Atlanta Falcons released linebacker Justin Durant and safety William Moore on Monday.
Durant had signed a three-year deal with the Falcons prior to the 2015 season. The Falcons avoid his base salary of $1.75 million for 2016 and the team will take a salary cap charge of $833,000.
Moore, the team’s second-round pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, had two years left on his contract. The Falcons avoid his base salary of $4.5 million and save $3.35 million in cap space.
“We want to thank both of these guys for their commitment and work ethic,” head coach Dan Quinn said in a statement. “They battled through injuries to give everything they had for their teammates this season and I will always be appreciative of that.”
The 6-foot-1, 230-pound Durant was originally selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the second round in 2007 out of Hampton. He was signed by the Falcons as a free agent during the 2015 offseason after playing with the Jaguars, Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys.
Durant played in 13 games with 12 starts last season and totaled 82 tackles with three tackles for loss, one forced fumble and three passes defensed.
The 6-0, 221-pound Moore spent seven seasons in Atlanta, playing in 76 games (72 starts) and earned a Pro Bowl selection in 2012. Moore amassed 481 tackles with 16 interceptions, 3.5 sacks, 10 forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and 38 passes defensed.
