FLOWERY BRANCH -- The Falcons haven't decided when Ray Edwards will make his preseason debut. The defensive end, who had offseason knee surgery before signing a five-year, $30 million contract, said he is ready to play Saturday night against the Steelers.
Edwards missed the first two exhibition games, but has steadily increased his practice participation. On Monday, coach Mike Smith estimated that Edwards took half the practice snaps.
“We’ve been ramping up Ray’s work each and every day,” Smith said. "We will continue to expose him to more reps, and, as we get closer to the end of the week, we’ll make a decision on if he will play in the game.”
Edwards said his knee feels good but the final decision on his playing status will be made by Smith.
“You have to ask coach about that,” he said. “It’s up to him. If I do [play], I’m ready to go. I’ve been ready, but it’s up to him. If he says I’m going, then I’m going.”
Edwards, 6-foot-5 and 268 pounds, was a fourth-round draft pick by the Vikings in 2006. He had 29 sacks in five seasons, including eight last season, before signing with the Falcons. The team is counting on Edwards to alleviate double-teams on end John Abraham and open pass-rush lanes for the defensive tackles.
Injury report
Defensive end Lawrence Sidbury did not practice Monday after suffering an ankle injury in Friday night's exhibition against the Jaguars.
“We are hoping we can get him out of the training room and out on the field working with our trainers,” Smith said.
Cornerback Dunta Robinson (hamstring) and linebackers Akeem Dent (knee) and Robert James (groin) worked out with the training staff Monday. Defensive tackle Corey Peters (knee) did not participate in practice.
More time for starters
Smith said the Falcons will likely play their starters a significant portion of Saturday night’s game against the Steelers.
“In terms of the amount of snaps that they are going to play, I don’t know that we’ve sat down and decided,” Smith said. “But we want to keep those [starting] units in there and get them as many exposures as possible.”
Smith said the team will do some game planning, including film work, as they switch from a training-camp to regular-season schedule this week. The coach said there was no game planning for the exhibitions against the Dolphins and Jaguars.
Touchback plan
During exhibition games, kicker/punter Matt Bosher has tried to kick the ball out of the end zone and get hang time on his kickoffs.
“It’s a mix of both,” Bosher said.
Bosher, attempting to replace Michael Koenen, had one touchback on nine kickoffs.
"It's a play that is called before we go out on the field," Bosher said. "It's up to [special teams] coach [Keith] Armstrong and coach Smith."
Hurricane troubles
Bosher, a sixth-round pick from the University of Miami, was instructed by the Falcons not to discuss the current scandal at the school.
“I love Miami, but I’m here to talk about the Falcons right now,” Bosher said. “If you have any more questions about that you can talk to [the communications staff.]”
The university and NCAA are conducting investigations following a report that a former booster, in prison for his role in a Ponzi Scheme, lavished more than 70 players and coaches with cash, jewelry, travel, parties and prostitutes.
When asked if he thought Miami should receive the NCAA’s death penalty, Bosher said, “I don’t have anything to say about that.”
Sylvester fitting in
Running back Philip Sylvester, an undrafted rookie free agent from Florida A&M, played in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, which has produced Falcons wide receiver Eric Weems (Bethune-Cookman) and safety Rafael Bush (South Carolina State).
“It’s been a big adjustment to get acclimated to the NFL speed,” said Sylvester, who also drew interest from the Dolphins and Titans. “The different play calls, checks, hot [reads] and learning all of the protections has been hard.”
Sylvester, who flashed his speed early in camp, is a long shot to make the roster, but may make the practice squad.
