FLOWERY BRANCH — Falcons cornerback Kelvin Hayden has quickly recovered from a hamstring injury and returned to practice Thursday.
The Falcons (1-2) hope that Hayden will be available to play against the Seattle Seahawks (1-2) at 4:05 p.m. Sunday at CenturyLink Field.
“Kelvin did a real good job with our athletic performance department and the trainers to get back out here,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “We thought it might be a little bit longer than a couple of weeks. Hopefully, there won’t be a [setback] and [Friday] he can continue on his road to recovery.”
Hayden, the former Indianapolis Colts star, signed a one-year contract with the Falcons on Aug. 30. He was injured in the Philadelphia game after registering two tackles and making an interception. He felt a twinge in his hamstring while coming on a blitz from his nickel back spot.
Hayden was inactive last week against Tampa Bay. He was limited in practice.
“I didn’t feel like I had any setbacks,” Hayden said. “I’m ready to put it behind me and move forward.”
In six seasons with the Colts, Hayden had 298 tackles, 37 passes defensed, nine interceptions, four forced fumbles and three touchdowns.
Hayden is remembered in Colts’ lore for his 56-yard interception return for a touchdown against Chicago in Super Bowl XLI, which gave the Colts a 29-17 fourth-quarter lead, the game’s final margin.
“If he’s healthy enough to go, we’ll make that determination when we are putting together our 46-man roster,” Smith said. “It was encouraging to have him back out [Thursday.]”
Jerry's impact
While playing for the injured Jonathan Babineaux, defensive tackle Peria Jerry has turned in two strong games.
He forced a fumble against Philadelphia that Ray Edwards returned 64 yards, and he had four tackles, including two for losses, against Tampa Bay, according to the coaches’ film breakdown.
“He’s been doing a good job of penetrating into the backfield,” Smith said. “It’s great to see that.”
Jerry has earned some additional snaps even upon Babineaux’s return.
“It will be good to get Jonathan back, but Peria has done a real good job,” Smith said. “He will continue to be a guy that gets a lot of snaps in our rotation.”
Mularkey’s review
Seattle’s defense played the Falcons tough last season.
The Falcons used three third-quarter turnovers to score 17 consecutive points to blow the game open. The Falcons won 34-18 on Dec. 19.
“I looked back at our notes after we played them, and we talked about what a dogfight that it was, especially inside,” offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey said. “They were pretty stout up front. The score was not indicative of how much of a battle it was to move the ball on them.”
Lynch’s playoff run
The Falcons, who missed 17 tackles in the opener against Chicago, watched Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch’s electrifying 67-yard run against the Saints in the playoffs last season. Lynch ran through eight tackles on the play.
He’s off to a slow start this season with 117 yards on 38 carries.
“If you don’t wrap him up, he’ll keep those legs going,” linebacker Sean Weatherspoon said. “He’s a running back that won’t stop, as you saw on that play. We have to keep that to a minimum. We have to really make sure that we wrap up.”
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