The Atlanta Falcons had three of their key players, including two starters, return to practice today.
Top left guard Josh Andrews practiced for the first time since breaking his hand in August and cornerback Kendall Sheffield returned following an undisclosed injury that sent him the IR earlier this month.
Starting cornerback A.J. Terrell, who did not play in the Falcons win over the New York Giants on Sunday, Sept. 12 due to a concussion, also practiced for the first time in over a week.
According to Falcons’ insider Michael Rothstein, the team has 21 days to decide if they want to activate Andrews or Sheffield off of to the injured reserve.
Arthur Smith said Josh Andrews and Kendall Sheffield will practice today — have 21 days to decide to activate them.
A.J. Terrell should practice today but is still working through protocol.
Russell Gage & Frank Darby still day-to-day. #Falcons
As for No. 2 Russell Gage and rookie Frank Darby, they are both still considered day-to-day until further notice.
Here is the Falcons full Wednesday practice report:
FULL PARTICIPATION
CB A.J. Terrell (concussion)
LIMITED PARTICIPATION
S Erik Harris (back)
OL Colby Gossett (illness)
WR Frank Darby (calf)
NO PARTICIPATION
WR Russell Gage (ankle)
DL Marlon Davidson (ankle)
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What Happens to Jalen Mayfield?
The left guard position has been the biggest question mark in Atlanta for a long time.
The Falcons originally had re-signed Matt Gono for the starting left guard position but a next injury has kept him sidelined since the offseason. Next in line for the job was Andrews. But once he broke his hand, the Falcons had to settle for rookie guard Jalen Mayfield.
Mayfield may his NFL debut against a stingy Philadelphia Eagles defense which didn’t go over too well after he allowed two of the three sacks on Matt Ryan. Since then, however, he’s continued to improve and really held his own against the New York Giants on Sept. 26.
But with Andrews close to returning, what will happen to the Falcons’ 2021 fourth-round pick?
After all, Andrews has a lot more experience under his belt.
The Oregon State product began his NFL career after signing with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2014 and spent three seasons in Philly bouncing back and forth from the practice squad to the 53-man roster.
Following his stint with the Eagles, Andrews spent time with the Minnesota Vikings in 2018. He returned to Philly once again and had a short stint with the Indianapolis Colts’ practice squad before landing with the Jets in 2020.
In five seasons, Andrews has appeared in 40 games with four starts. He added veteran experience to a fairly young Falcons interior.
Smith has been big on giving chances to young players, so it will be interesting to see if he lets Andrews slide into his original role right away. The Falcons take on the Washington Football Team and Week 4 and although Andrews can be activated this week, its likely he’s not back to 100% just yet.
Falcons Week 4 Depth Chart vs. Washington
The Falcons released their Week 4 depth chart against Washington which is the same one that was used in Week 3 vs. New York.
Offense
QB: Matt Ryan, Josh Rosen, Feleipe Franks
RB: Mike Davis, Cordarrelle Patterson, Wayne Gallman
WR: Calvin Ridley, Tajae Sharpe or Christian Blake
WR: Russell Gage, Olamide Zaccheaus, Frank Darby
TE: Kyle Pitts, Lee Smith
TE: Hayden Hurst, Keith Smith, Parker Hesse
LT: Jake Matthews, Jason Spriggs
LG: Jalen Mayfield, Drew Dalman, Colby Gossett
C: Matt Hennessy, Drew Dalman
RG: Chris Lindstrom, Drew Dalman
RT: Kaleb McGary, Jason Spriggs
Defense
DL: Grady Jarrett, Marlon Davidson
DL: Tyeler Davison, Ta’Quon Graham
DL: Jonathan Bullard, John Cominsky
OLB: Steven Means, Brandon Copeland or Jacob Tuioti-Mariner
LB: Deion Jones, Mykal Walker
LB: Foyesade Oluokun, Dorian Etheridge
OLB: Dante Fowler Jr., Adetokunbo Ogundeji
CB: A.J. Terrell, T.J. Green, Darren Hall or Avery Williams
CB: Fabian Moreau, Isaiah Oliver
S: Erik Harris, Jaylinn Hawkins
S: Duron Harmon, Richie Grant
Special Teams
K: Younghoe Koo
P: Cameron Nizialek
LS: Josh Harris
H: Cameron Nizialek
PR: Avery Williams
KOR: Cordarrelle Patterson
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Falcons Injury Report: 3 Key Players Return to Practice