FLOWERY BRANCH – Falcons center Mike Person appears on schedule to return from an ankle injury and play against the Tennessee Titans at 1 p.m. Sunday at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.
He returned to practice Wednesday and completed the entire session.
“No set backs at all for Mike,” Falcons coach Dan Quinn said on Thursday. “He went through the whole practice. There are no limitations at all for him today.”
The Falcons are being more cautious with linebacker Justin Durant, who returned from an elbow injury.
“He’s a factor for sure for us,” Quinn said. “We were encouraged by the first day. We want to take it through (Thursday) and (Friday). If we’re able to go through and make the necessary steps that we want to make, we’ll anticipate having him back. If we have a setback … then we’d hold him back. …He’s a real factor for us and we’re anxious to get him back out there.”
The Falcons have linebacker Philip Wheeler, who was signed on Tuesday, on the fast-track to the lineup.
“We are trying to pull him up fast,” Quinn said. “The first two days, he’s been impressive in terms of his football knowledge. A lot of people play three-deep. A lot of people play man-to-man, now it’s just a matter of getting him our terminology. We are really encouraged by the first couple of days.”
Person suffered his injury during the game against Washington in Week 5 and didn’t play against the Saints.
Durant has missed the past two games. He was the starter at weak-side linebacker for the first four games and was leading the team in tackles. Joplo Bartu has started in Durant’s place and Nate Stupar took his position in the nickel defense.
“I can’t really say what’s going to happen about the game, but it feels good to get back out there playing with the guys,” Durant said. “After all the sweating and meetings that you go through, you want to be out there with them, help out and contribute in any way possible. It’s just hard to watch.”
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