FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons received a tough bit of injury news Wednesday morning, as it was officially announced outside linebacker Jalon Walker would miss the 2026 season after tearing his ACL during Tuesday's practice.

It's an injury that will cost the Falcons one of their most versatile pieces. Walker was a player whose role could expand in Year 2 to incorporate more of his abilities.

"The beauty in how we built the room was finding guys who could do a lot of different things," Falcons outside linebackers coach John Timu said. "Obviously, him being off the ball was kind of the value he had to the defense for us to have multiplicity in how we want to play."

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Wednesday provided the first opportunity to see what Atlanta's defense would look like without No. 11 in the lineup, and there was a heavy amount of rotation off the edge. That's not atypical for the Falcons, who like to sub frequently on the defensive line to keep guys fresh, but the line changes got a bit of extra scrutiny after Walker's injury.

Cameron Thomas, Brandon Dorlus, Bralen Trice and Keshawn Banks were the primary players rotating in Walker's main spot off the left side. Part of the Falcons' multiple design on defense means switching between four-man fronts and five-man fronts, often using different skill sets in those looks.

For example, in the four-man looks on Wednesday, bigger bodies like Thomas and Dorlus were on the field with the top units. Thomas and Trice got run in the five-man fronts as well, and those typically include players skilled in rushing the passer. James Pearce Jr. and Samson Ebukam are also in that pass-rush mix but have mostly been working off the right side of the line opposite Walker.

The Falcons have worked on cross-training players at multiple positions in training camp, which is one other wrinkle in this and why it's far too early to get a clear sense of how Atlanta's defense moves forward without their second-year linebacker.

"Cross-training as much guys as you can," Timu said. "Really the vision for all of those guys is the more you can do, the more you get to do. In training camp, we can actually train to see and push guys to see what they can do from a holistic point and see how that fits our game."

One interesting aspect of that cross-training involves rookie linebackers Kendal Daniels and Harold Perkins Jr. The two have begun to work in alongside Divine Deablo in a rotation that also includes Christian Harris, who has mostly been running with the starters. However, on Wednesday, Daniels and Perkins lined up off the left side in Walker's spot on the edge.

Perkins showed his pass-rush chops early in his college career with 13 sacks in his first two seasons, so he has a background to fall back on if the Falcons do place him on the edge at all this season. Daniels, a former college safety, is a highly versatile player who lined up all over the Oklahoma Sooners' defense last year.

"We want to cross-train as much people as we think we can so that we can give the offense a lot of different looks," Timu said. "Want to make sure they can operate post-snap, especially at quarterback. Never want to give them a clear picture. Always want to make sure that at the snap of the ball that's when they start their thinking, and not pre-snap."

Notes and observations from practice

Long 11-on-11 period to wrap practice: With the pads back on Wednesday, the intensity was ratcheted back up, and the practice went a full two hours with plenty of action. That was especially true for the end of practice, which featured a lengthy scrimmage-type period with the offense trying to drive the field on the defense.

Tua Tagovailoa took the starting reps at quarterback for that period, a good sign as he continues to recover from some minor back tightness that limited him at the beginning of camp, and Michael Jerrell was once again with the first team at right tackle. Defensively, A.J. Woods began the series at nickel while Cameron Thomas was on the edge and DeMarcco Hellams was at safety with Jessie Bates III not participating.

Perhaps the biggest highlight of the scrimmage period was a long touchdown run by Tyler Goodson, who is putting together a nice camp. Typically, it's difficult to determine whether a run play is successful or not in training camp, but there was no question about this one and much of that had to do with the blocking. It was a toss to the left with Charlie Woerner operating as a lead blocker. Woerner only had to make a final seal block, however, because Jake Matthews and Matthew Bergeron created a massive hole for Goodson to fly through. He took it to the distance, and that likely would have been the case on Sunday.

Offensively, there were a number of designed screens, which looks like it will be a component of this offense, and a healthy amount of play-action rollouts. Some of the other offensive players who stood out in the period were wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus, center James Brockermeyer and guard Kam Dewberry.

Defensively, the entire unit did a good job of suffocating the offensive screens and sticking to the receivers on extended plays. Defensive tackle Marlon Tuipulotu, who signed with the team on Tuesday, batted a pass from Cooper Rush on his first day of practice. Clark Phillips III forced a fumble against Zachariah Branch after a screen and Josh Woods also had a nice read on a play-action pass to stop the play.

The period, and the practice, ended on a tight-window throw from Jack Strand to wide receiver Vinny Anthony II over the middle that beat closing coverage from linebacker Channing Tindall and cornerback A.J. Woods.

Avieon Terrell gets first interception: Early in the practice, rookie cornerback Avieon Terrell secured his first interception of training camp. Tagovailoa's pass on the play was intended for wide receiver Jahan Dotson, but Sydney Brown had great coverage that limited Dotson from reaching the football. This gave Terrell the chance to make a diving play on the ball, and he showcased the same playmaking skills that made him a star at Clemson.

Tagovailoa responded a few plays later, however, with a sublime layer throw to Drake London that was perfectly placed over the linebackers.

Passing looked crisp: The quarterbacks and receivers looked sharp for much of practice, which was a good sign in the second week of camp. The routes-versus-air portion of practice featured passes that hit receivers consistently in stride at eye level. On one of the few slightly higher passes during the drill, Olamide Zaccheaus made an excellent leaping one-handed catch with his right hand on an out route to the left sideline.

During 1-on-1 drills between the receivers and defensive backs, Michael Penix Jr. connected with Antwane Wells Jr. on a deep ball down the left sideline. The pass was right on point, but it was a smooth stutter route by Wells against Cobee Bryant that created the cushion for the throw.

During a 7-on-7 period later in practice, Penix made a great throw to Jahan Dotson against Mike Hughes that highlighted the timing developing between quarterback and receiver. He followed that up with another completion to London, but it was Penix's ability to quickly work through his reads and find the open receiver that was the true highlight of the play.

Penix did have an interception during the drill, but it came on a true downfield jump ball that Sydney Brown was able to wrestle away from receiver Keelan Marion. The interception wasn't as notable, though, as what happened before the ball was released. Penix felt the simulated pressure on the play, stepped up into the pocket and then rolled out a bit to his left to buy time for the receivers. It was a small simulation of a scramble drill, but an important one for Penix as he continues to work back.

Off day on Thursday: The next camp report will come after Friday's on-field session, as the Falcons will not hold a training camp practice on Thursday.