Mike Peterson, Atlanta Falcons get back together

Lofa Tatupu's pectoral injury left the Atlanta Falcons short-handed at linebacker. So they called up a familiar name.

The Falcons announced Monday that they signed middle linebacker Mike Peterson, a 14-year NFL veteran who started five games for Atlanta last season. The Falcons were hoping to get younger at the position, but Peterson will provide a steady presence for the team.

The severity of Tatupu's injury has yet to be announced, but we suspect he won't be playing for a while. Otherwise, why make the move to sign Peterson so quickly?

We never quite bought the offseason hype about Tatupu taking over as a starter for for the Falcons anyhow. He wasn't in the NFL last season, and it's rare a player returns from that sort of absence at a high level. The Falcons will count on second-year pro Akeem Dent to start. They don't really have a choice now.