FLOWERY BRANCH -- Winning in the NFC became tougher with the trade of wide receiver Randy Moss to the Minnesota Vikings on Wednesday.
The Vikings reached the NFC championship game last season and are considered Super Bowl contenders again. The Falcons, who are tied for first place in the NFC South, hope to return to the playoffs, where they could face the Vikings.
"He's a good player," Falcons coach Mike Smith said. "When you add a good player, you've probably helped your football team. I would have much rather seen him stay in the AFC, I can assure you of that."
Moss was in the AFC with the New England Patriots.
"I think adding a player like that makes any team better," quarterback Matt Ryan said. "I'm sure that he'll add some productive stuff to their offense."
Tight end Tony Gonzalez said, "He immediately makes them better. That over-the-top threat, that's rare. He's one of a handful of receivers that command that type of attention. You can't really leave him one-on-one over the top. If you do, he'll burn you."
Injury updates
The Falcons had all 53 players participate in practice, but starting middle linebacker Curtis Lofton, the team's leading tackler, was limited with a knee injury.
Wide receiver Michael Jenkins (shoulder) and linebackers Sean Weatherspoon (ankle) also were limited.
Bryant honored
Kicker Matt Bryant, who made his 11th career game-winning field goal against San Francisco on Sunday, was named the NFC's special-teams player of the week.
He kicked a 43-yarder with two seconds left to help the Falcons defeat the 49ers 16-14 and improve to 3-1.
In the previous game, Bryant kicked a 46-yard field goal to give the Falcons a 27-24 overtime victory over the New Orleans Saints.
No explosions
The Falcons' defense has been trying to stop teams from hitting them with the big play. They gave up touchdowns of 50, 80 and 80 yards in their first three games.
Against San Francisco, their longest play from scrimmage was a 19-yard pass. Over the first three games, the Falcons have given up 12 plays that went for 20 yards or more.
"It felt good for our guys to come in and not have to talk about an explosive play," Smith said.
Smith attributes some of the problem to the young players getting more comfortable with the scheme.
Etc ...
The Falcons signed linebacker Robert James to the practice squad Wednesday and released running back Shawnbrey McNeal. ... Weatherspoon and safety William Moore were recruited to Missouri by Matt Eberflus, who is Cleveland's linebackers coach ... Wide receivers coach Terry Robiskie will get to see his son, Brian, play in person. Brian has two catches for 18 yards on the season for the Browns. ... Former Georgia standout Ben Watson leads the Browns in receptions with 18 for 185 yards and a touchdown. ... Long-snapper Joe Zelenka, a native of Cleveland, will have more than 30 family members and friends at the game.
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