Injury update: Jones, Weatherspoon and Motta

By Michael Cunningham

FLOWERY BRANCH – Falcons coach Mike Smith said wide receiver Julio Jones and linebacker Sean Weatherspoon are unlikely to participate in any of the team's activities before the start of training camp.

Smith said neither Jones (foot) nor Weatherspoon (knee) would be “doing a whole lot” in the offseason conditioning program or the full-team minicamp scheduled to begin later this month.

“Our focus is strictly on getting them ready to go for training camp” in late July, Smith said.

Jones suffered an injury to his left foot in Week 5 last season and missed the rest of the season after undergoing surgery. Jones also had surgery in March 2011 to insert a screw in the foot to repair a stress fracture. After Jones had some outstanding workouts in spite of the injury, the Falcons traded five picks to move up and take Jones with the No. 6 overall pick.

Weatherspoon missed the final two games of 2013 because of the knee injury. About three weeks ago Weatherspoon said he was at “80 percent” health and wasn’t sure of his timetable to return to the field.

Safety Zeke Motta (neck) also isn’t expected to participate in offseason activities. Motta had surgery in December to repair a cervical fracture.

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