Alford to have surgery, out for the season

Falcons cornerback Robert Alford, who suffered a broken wrist against the Panthers on Nov 16, will have surgery and be placed on injured reserved, Falcons coach Mike Smith said.

“He had a follow up, which we anticipated after a couple of weeks to see how it was healing,” Smith said. “They determined now that he needs to have surgery. They are doing the surgery today.”

He will miss the final two games of the seasons.

Originally, Alford, a second round draft pick in 2013, was expected to miss two to four weeks with a fractured wrist. It was thought that injury wasn’t long-term, but further test revealed that he needed surgery.

With Alford out, veteran Robert McClain has been starting opposite Desmond Trufant. Josh Wilson has been playing more nickel back.

Alford played at Southeast Louisiana. He eventually replaced Asante Samuel in the starting lineup for four games that season as the Falcons focused on playing several young players down the stretch.

Alford had 28 tackles, 11 pass breakups and leads the team with three interceptions.

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