Falcons sacks king John Abraham has former coach Mike Smith return to lead ring of honor ceremony

ATLANTA (AP) — John Abraham was prepared for nerves and possibly tears when he was inducted into the Atlanta Falcons' ring of honor at halftime Sunday night against the Baltimore Ravens.

Abraham is the team's all-time leader with 53 1/2 sacks from 2006-12. He completed his career with Arizona but made Atlanta his home and had a large group of family members, including his four daughters, wearing No. 55 Falcons jerseys for the halftime ceremony.

“Man, more nervous than I’ve been when I played,” Abraham said before the game. “When I played, it was more like you had a helmet on so nobody could see you.”

The 48-year-old Abraham also said he kept his sunglasses on “just in case the water works come. Y’all ain’t going to put me on live TV.”

Former Falcons coach Mike Smith, who was with Abraham for five seasons, opened the ceremony and said Abraham was “one of the most feared pass rushers the game has ever seen.”

Abraham began his career with the New York Jets in 2000 and was a five-time Pro Bowl selection and two-time All-Pro — with the Jets in 2001 and Falcons in 2009.

“The best words that Arthur Blank ever told me four years ago, he was like, ‘John, welcome back,’” Abraham said during the ceremony, referring to the team owner.

Abraham was inducted into the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame in 2021 and is a nominee for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2026.

Despite a long list of injuries, Abraham makes a strong case for the pro football hall with his production. He had 133 1/2 sacks in 15 seasons with the Jets, Falcons and Arizona Cardinals.

His 48 career forced fumbles rank third all time. The only two players with more forced fumbles are Robert Mathis (52) and Julius Peppers (51), and each is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The Falcons' inaugural ring of honor class in 2004 included quarterback Steve Bartkowski, linebackers Tommy Nobis and Jessie Tuggle and running back William Andrews. In 2024, Blank and quarterback Matt Ryan , now the team's president of football operations, were inducted.

Other inductees include Todd McClure, Roddy White, Warrick Dunn, Gerald Riggs, Deion Sanders, Mike Kenn, Claude Humphrey and Jeff Van Note, who died at 80 on Oct. 2. There was a moment of silence observed for Van Note before the game.

Dunn and White presented Abraham with his red jacket.

Former offensive lineman Bill Fralic will be posthumously inducted into the rind of honor when Atlanta hosts Tampa Bay in Week 16. Fralic was 56 when he died in 2018.

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