Mike Johnson and Sean Weatherspoon Injuries

Jul 28, 2013; Flowery Branch, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons outside linebacker Sean Weatherspoon (56) watches practice on the field during training camp at the Falcons Training Complex. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Sean Weatherspoon left practice early yesterday with a dislocated finger.  When I heard that he had left practice with an injury I had a minor stroke.  Luckily it was a simple dislocated finger with no broken bones.  I’m sure it hurts a lot, but this is something that Spoon could work with on Thursday if it was a regular season game and should be 100% by the start of the season.

Mike Johnson, on the otherhand, left practice today with a dislocated ankle and a fractured fibula.  That’s a little bit more severe.  That’s not very good for Johnson who was trying to keep his starter job for himself.  However, this injury does not hurt the team very much.  My thoughts go out to Mike Johnson and I’m sure he will provide great depth when he returns later in the season, but it was looking more and more like Lamar Holmes would win the position anyway.  Not to say that that was my prediction as I would have picked Johnson to start, but Lamar is not a very big step down.  The offensive line won’t hurt in terms of strength from this injury.

Mike Smith likes to take care of his players.  Two weeks into practice, some players will start receiving days off so they can rest and stay healthy.  Even with something as minor as a dislocated finger, I doubt Smitty will let Weatherspoon practice for the next few days or perhaps even play on Thursday.  Julio Jones will also be sitting out the Thursday night game with a sore hamstring.  No need to put health on the line so early.  There is no word on how long Johnson will be out.

Other than this instance, it would appear that the Falcons are still saying relatively healthy.  That’s something a lot of other NFL teams can’t say.