Chris Redman understands why so many Falcons fans are rooting for hometown quarterback D.J. Shockley to beat him out as the No. 2 behind Joey Harrington.

Curtis Compton/AJC (ENLARGE)

Quarterback Chris Redman says he played his best football under Falcons coach Bobby Petrino, who was his offensive coordinator when he played at Louisville.

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"D.J. is a great guy. He's hard not to root for," Redman said after Monday's practice.

But personal affection aside, Redman isn't conceding the job any time soon. Redman, who hasn't played in a regular-season game since 2003, is finally feeling healthy and is pleased with his play so far in training camp.

He spent five seasons with the Ravens, but shoulder and back surgery has kept him out of action until this year. Last year, he was selling insurance.

His familiarity with Bobby Petrino, who was his offensive coordinator at Louisville, and Petrino's offense, has helped in the quarterback battle.

"I think it's the best offense in the league," Redman said. "Coach Petrino doesn't just call plays off the cuff; he has reasons why he calls every play. That's the best I ever played when I played under him."

ArenaBowl champ joins team

If his Arena Football League teammates had a party to celebrate their ArenaBowl title, Ben Nelson missed it. The 6-foot-3, 188-pound wide receiver signed with the Falcons on Monday, filling the roster spot created by the release of Fred Gibson.

Nelson spent Sunday helping the San Jose SaberCats win ArenaBowl XXI, scoring a second-half touchdown. After the game, it was off to his hotel room because he had a 6 a.m. flight to Atlanta to join the Falcons.

Working on two hours sleep, he had his first practice on Monday. He said he's looking forward to a good night's sleep to get his legs refreshed for action.

"We'd like to see what he can do," Petrino said. "He's tall and fast, catches the ball well. It'll be fun to see how he does out here."

Coleman ahead of schedule

Defensive tackle Rod Coleman, who is recovering from thigh surgery, is "ahead of schedule" for his return, according to Petrino. No timetable was given as to when Coleman could return, but initial projections had him coming back between the season-opener and Game 4.

"He's walking good and running fairly well," Petrino said.

In other injury news, outside linebacker Demorrio Williams (torn pectorals) could be cleared for full contact in roughly 10 days, Petrino said. Williams worked with the first unit, ahead of rookie Stephen Nicholas, in some non-contact drills Monday.

Guard Toniu Fonoti (foot), who has not participated in training camp, is expected to take the field within the next few days.

Koenen takes over as punter

Michael Koenen, who entered last season handling all three kicking duties, is punting. Billy Cundiff and Aaron Elling are competing for the kickoff and placekicking job.

"I like what Michael Koenen's doing," Petrino said. "He's punted as well as he has since I've been here. He's punting it nice and high, and his location has been very good."

— Steve Wyche contributed to this report.