FLOWERY BRANCH -- Falcons cornerback Brent Grimes, who played only six snaps against Minnesota, might miss more time because of a knee injury.
With Grimes and Kelvin Hayden (dislocated toe) possibly not available for Houston, the Falcons will have Christopher Owens and Dominique Franks ready to play against the Texans on Sunday.
Owens and Franks received extensive game time against the Vikings.
"He's going to play a lot of football for us now," defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder said of Owens. "We are counting on him coming in here and working hard."
Franks was involved in the 39-yard touchdown pass that the Falcons gave up to Minnesota's Percy Harvin. Franks missed his jam at the line of scrimmage, which allowed Harvin to get down the field too fast for the defensive scheme to adjust.
“Hopefully, the experience that he got in that game will reduce those kinds of mistakes going into a second game where he’s going to play a lot of football,” VanGorder said.
Grimes, who went to the Pro Bowl last season as an alternate, was having a strong season before the injury. He's sixth on the team in tackles with 37. He also has 12 passes defensed, an interception, a forced fumble and three special teams tackles.
He was listed on the injury report and was limited in practice last week.
Winterswyk re-signed
Tight end Ryan Winterswyk was signed to the Falcons practice squad. Late in the exhibition season, he suffered a severe high right ankle sprain and reached an injury settlement with the team. The Falcons released tight end Tommy Gallarda, who was signed to the practice squad on Sept. 12, to make room for Winterswyk.
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