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The Atlanta Falcons were down two key players in practice on Wednesday, September 22, as they prepared to take on the New York Giants on Sunday.
Starting cornerback AJ Terrell is still in concussion protocol while wide receiver Russell Gage is nursing an ankle injury. Both suffered their injuries in the loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last weekend.
“We’ll know more by the end of the week,” Falcons head coach Arthur Smith said via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Those things are tricky. … He’ll be very limited, but there is always a chance. We’ll know more Friday.”
As for Terrell, he’ll need to pass concussion protocol if he wants to suit up on Sunday. If he doesn’t, then we could see TJ Green get his first start since 2017 or Isaiah Oliver slide over. Either way, both might be major downgrades from the second-year corner.
“It’s no different than Russell. You have to be able to adapt and have contingency plans. That’s what we’ll do,” Smith said of Terrell possibly being ruled out.
If Russell misses Sunday’s game then his duties will be handed over to Olamide Zaccheaus, Tajae Sharpe and Christian Blake.
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Smith Shares Promising Update on Veteran LG
Starting left guard Josh Andrews, who is dealing with a broken hand, has yet to suit up for the 2021 season.
When asked about his progress on Wednesday, Smith said he was “hopefully close” to a return from the injured reserve, according to Falcons insider Tori McElhaney.
Until then, Smith is giving the rookie left guard a chance to continue proving himself.
Jalen Mayfield was a huge disappointment in Week 1, allowing two of the three sacks on Matt Ryan. The Falcons gave Mayfield another start at left guard in Week 2 against a stingy Tampa offense.
“You look at [Jalen] Mayfield, the same plan that we had to bring him along got expedited,” Smith said Monday, via the Falcholic. “We had injuries, and he went in there and played much better. That’s why I said last week, you don’t jerk the wheel with guys like that, you gotta give them a chance to improve, so he’s not all the time looking over his shoulder at one mistake. At some point during the season or during a game, if things are going really wrong, then maybe you gotta shake things up. But I want to give guys the chance to bounce back and play through mistakes, as a rookie in their first game.”
Falcons Depth Chart vs. Giants
The Falcons depth chart heading into Week 3 isn’t too far off of Week 2’s. Another young player getting a chance to rebound is 26-year-old punter Cameron Nizialek.
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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