Atlanta Falcons Announcement

ATLANTA – Former Slippery Rock University offensive lineman Brandon Fusco signed a three-year contract to play for the Atlanta Falcons when NFL free agency opened Wednesday afternoon.
 
Fusco will join his third team in the NFL after previous stints as a starter for the Minnesota Vikings and most recently for the San Francisco 49ers, where he started all 16 games last season. He has started 80 games in the NFL and appeared in 83 games since his rookie season in 2011 when he was drafted in the sixth round by the Vikings. Fusco has started every game he has played in since the beginning of the 2012 season and has played 4,731 career snaps in seven seasons.
 
His three-year deal is reportedly worth $12.75 million with around half of that in guaranteed money. It marks the second multi-year contract Fusco has earned in his NFL career after previously earning a five-year, $25 million deal with the Vikings after his rookie contract expired.

Fusco had his Slippery Rock jersey retired in 2016 (No. 74) and has been active in donating to the program and appearing at football events since his graduation.
 
"We're thrilled for Brandon to get this deal in Atlanta," said SRU head coach Shawn Lutz. "He has been a model representative of our program and continues to be supportive of what we're doing here at The Rock. We couldn't be happier for him."
 
Fusco was a consensus first team All-American his senior year at SRU in 2010 and was named the Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the Year. He was invited to the Senior Bowl and the NFL Combine, becoming the first player in program history to pick up those invitations.
 
His NFL career began in 2011 when he made the Vikings roster as a rookie and got off to a thrilling start when he blocked for the second-best rushing season in NFL history when Adrian Peterson rushed for more than 2,000 yards. Fusco, who is graded as one of the top run blocking guards in the league, blocked for two of Peterson's NFL rushing titles in Minnesota.
 

To stay up to date with all that happens at The Rock, follow our official athletic communication accounts on Twitter (@Rock_Athletics), Facebook (RockAthletics), Instagram (RockAthletics) and Snapchat (@RockAthletics).