First-round draft pick Jalon Walker returns to Falcons practice
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez
FLOWERY BRANCH — Falcons first-round NFL draft pick Jalon Walker, who missed the past four practices with a minor hamstring injury, returned to practice Monday.
The Falcons plan to be cautious with Walker’s return as the team practiced in helmets and shorts. The Falcons are set to open the exhibition season against the Lions at 7 p.m. Friday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“Walker will be back this week,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said before practice. “(We’ll) get him back out there in individual and get a couple team periods. Then we’ll kind of ease him back in. Probably the next day after that, we’ll kind of pull him back a little bit and unleash him a little bit towards that high practice to get him ready to the off day (Thursday) and get to what we call our (exhibition) season games.”
Rookie safety Xavier Watts, who missed practice Friday because of an undisclosed injury, also returned to practice.
“He’ll be back out there as well, getting into some team things as well, getting into individual stuff,” Morris said. “He ran on the sideline last week. Obviously, that was preventative maintenance for him. It’ll be fun to get him back and get all those guys back out there.”
Things went well for Walker, who plays edge.
“It was great,” Walker said. “I feel really good. I was excited to be out there.”
Walker, who played at Georgia, was the 15th player taken in the draft. He was drafted to help the Falcons improve their dormant pass rush.
Walker wanted to return sooner.
“They know what’s best for the team, and they know what’s best for me,” Walker said. “(They were) being very cautious, and I appreciate it.”
The team had to slow Walker.
“I get after it,” Walker said. “I know my limits, but I do know that I work really hard and push myself to the maximum.”
Walker participated in the first practice July 24 and the second July 26.
Outside linebacker coach Jacquies Smith was concerned about Walker missing key practice time and possibly falling behind.
“It’s not about falling behind,” Morris said. “It’s about you wanting to get him out there. That’s what he was trying to say.”
The Falcons are pleased with Walker’s work thus far.
“For Jalon … we know this guy really well from a preparation standpoint,” Morris said. “We know who he is. We also know our performance side really well and … what you need to do to get this guy ready. But, ultimately, what is the most important goal and dates? That’s obviously the first game of the season.”
The Falcons open the season against the Buccaneers on Sept. 7 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The Falcons didn’t want Walker’s minor hamstring injury to turn into something major.
“But getting him back out there so you don’t waste time by losing him a little longer because of the mindset of my coach and or my player having the same type of mindset,” Morris said. “I get it. That’s my job to get him there and to make sure we’re ready to do all those things to get him ready.”
The Falcons have big plans for Walker. They plan to start him out as an edge rusher and then move him around the defense like a chess piece.
“As he gets more comfortable playing (outside), you have to move him around a little bit more because that’s a big part of his strengths and what he did at Georgia,” Morris said. “Right now, we’ve been really focused on him being a rusher on the edge.”
The Falcons plan to move Walker around this season.
“It means it’s pretty quickly, you know what I’m saying?” Morris said. “As he gets more comfortable out there, moving around the system, the talk, the communication, all those things. He’s already starting to pick some of those things up.
“They’re cross-training him with some of those different things already. He’s very smart. Very sharp. Very detailed guy.”
The Falcons believe Walker can handle many assignments.
“I just want to give him a chance to be comfortable doing something first,” Morris said. “See it happen. Come to life. Then now you start moving him around and do some different things.”
About the Author
Honored by the Pro Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his "long and distinguished reporting in the field of pro football," D. Orlando Ledbetter, Esq. has covered the NFL 28 seasons. A graduate of Howard University, he's a winner of Georgia Sportswriter of the Year and three Associated Press Sports Editor awards.
