FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris expects wide receiver Drake London to play in Sunday's Week 2 prime-time road game against the Minnesota Vikings.
"That's not saying that he is," Morris said Wednesday. "But when you ask me, 'Do I expect him to play?' Of course. Drake is an ultimate tough guy, and when he says he's going to practice, that tells you a lot."
London injured his shoulder during the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 23-20 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The injury presumably happened on the third-and-4 play at the 2:32 mark when Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. threw a pass to London in the end zone. London landed on his right shoulder as Buccaneers cornerback Jamel Dean tackled him.
The initial call was an incomplete pass. Morris challenged it. But the ruling stood. The Falcons were down, 17-13, at the time. Two plays later, Penix scrambled the 4 yards needed to score a touchdown himself.
After that, the Falcons declared London questionable to return. He did not. London played 67 of a possible 76 offensive snaps for Atlanta, and he was not on the field for the team's final drive.
London was targeted a game-high 15 times. He caught eight of those passes for 55 yards. His longest reception was a 12-yarder.
Penix completed 27 of his 42 pass attempts for 298 yards, including a 50-yard touchdown to running back Bijan Robinson, who finished with a team-high 100 yards receiving.
The Falcons were without wide receiver Darnell Mooney as he continues to recover from a shoulder injury sustained during the first practice of training camp. Mooney was limited in all Week 1 practices and given a questionable game designation, but he was ultimately ruled out as an inactive prior to kickoff.
Mooney will participate in the Falcons' first practice of Week 2 preparations. How much remains to be seen. The injury report will come out by 4 p.m. ET Wednesday.
"We'll see as far as Mooney and playing and all those things," Morris said. "But we'll get him out at practice. That's always fun, putting him back into all the stuff that we've been doing. And we'll get a look and see toward the end of the week what he's got going on."
Wide receiver Casey Washington stepped up in Mooney's absent. Washington caught three of his six targets against the Buccaneers for 33 yards. His longest reception was a 19-yarder.
Morris also said Wednesday safety DeMarcco Hellams will return to practice. Hellams missed all last week with a hamstring injury and was inactive against the Buccaneers.
Offensive lineman Jack Nelson, who followed the same Week 1 path as Hellams but with a calf injury, is not ready to return to practice. Neither is wide receiver Jamal Agnew, who injured his groin in the third quarter last Sunday.
"Those two guys will be still on the shelf, still wait and see," Morris said.
The Falcons-Vikings game is scheduled for Sunday at 8:20 p.m. ET at U.S. Bank Stadium.
