--Some of the concerns about left cornerback Brent Grimes are starting to dissipate. The third-year, undrafted free agent is a clear target of opponents because of his inexperience and stature (5-9, 180), but Grimes has held his own. For two straight weeks, the team's best athlete has made acrobatic plays to break up potential touchdowns against fade pattern passes in the corner of the end zone.

"They continue to go his way and Brent continues to make plays," coach Mike Smith said. "As Brent continues to develop I think he's going to have a chance to be successful."

--Veteran WR Joe Horn's push to be elsewhere continues. Last week he said that he has contemplated forsaking some of his guaranteed $2.5 million salary or restructuring his contract in order to be released or traded. There has been no interest on the trade market and Atlanta won't release Horn now, as a precaution in case one of their top four wide receivers gets hurt.

The Falcons also don't want to cut Horn because they would have to pay him.

Horn also said his supposed hamstring injury was minor and that he could have been practicing for most of training camp. Horn returned to practice in the middle of last week and dressed for the game, but he re-aggravated the hamstring injury running routes during pre-game warm-ups.

--Smith let it be known that he and his staff won't tolerate penalties - especially ones where class and decorum come into play.

"The other thing our staff is disappointed with is we had two unsportsmanlike penalties," Smith said after Saturday's loss to Indianapolis. "That's not the way we're going to do business. You can't give people free yards, especially when they're silly penalties."

Wide receiver Roddy White and cornerback Glenn Sharpe were flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct.

--Other than DE John Abraham, the Falcons have a relatively faceless defensive line. That's okay with Smith, who thinks his stable of worker bees can be effective. He is concerned about the inability to push the pocket against the pass and the lack of consistency by ends - other than Abraham - to sustain rushing lanes.

"When we went into free agency we added a number of guys," said Smith, referring to Kindal Moorehead, Rashad Moore, Grady Jackson and Simon Fraser. "I don't think there's any standout payers. They're very workmanlike. It's been a nice rotation.

--Center Todd McClure returned to action after missing a week with a strained lower back. McClure's return coincided with the loss of his backup, Alex Stepanovich, to a similar injury. The Falcons started cross-training tackle Quinn Ojinnaka at center for depth concerns. They also re-signed Doug Datish, whom they drafted last season and cut this summer.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"I hope he understands that a lot of people have caught 75, 80 balls for one year. It's the guys who consistently catch 75, 80 balls year in and year out. Those are the special guys. He's got to get that in his mind." -- Wide receivers coach Terry Robiskie on wide receiver Roddy White, who is coming off an 83-catch, 1,202-yards, six-touchdown season.

Copyright (C) 2008 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.