FanHouse Chris Owens

The last thing the Atlanta Falcons wanted on Sunday night was to lose Brian Williams to a season-ending knee injury. But Williams landed funny in the fourth quarter of the Falcons 21-14 victory over Chicago and tore his ACL, forcing Williams to be placed on injured reserve, where he'll miss the rest of the season and require reconstructive surgery. Now, the 18th-ranked Atlanta pass defense must find a new cornerback somewhere on their roster.

"This will be an opportunity for Tye Hill, Chris Owens and Chevis Jackson", said head coach Mike Smith in a press conference Monday. Those three will compete for time in the secondary, playing alongside cornerbacks Brent Grimes and Chris Houston.

The Atlanta Falcons are in St. Louis tonight to take on the Rams in week two of the NFL's preseason. Friday night is going to be a pivotal game to begin answering many questions that the Falcons have about depth chart issues and final 53-man roster considerations.

Here are three scenarios to keep your eye on.

Who is going to end up being the third wide receiver?
When Harry Douglas went down with a season-ending ACL tear, the Falcons had immediate openings for a punt returner (see later comments) and a third wide receiver. The team signed veteran free agents Robert Ferguson and Marty Booker soon after the Douglas injury and they are now competing with Brian Finneran and Eric Weems for that No. 3 spot.

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- The Atlanta Falcons head to Detroit to play the Lions this Saturday, August 15 for their first preseason game. The team has released a preseason depth chart to show an early glimpse at where players stand. You need to remember that the Falcons are less than two weeks into camp and the start of the regular season is still more then a month away. There are many things that can and will change between now and then.

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- The Atlanta Falcons finished the 2008 season ranked 24th overall in team defense allowing 347.9 yards per game. In response to this lackluster performance, the Falcons used all but one of their 2009 draft choices on the defensive unit. That's brought a lot of youth and energy to training camp this week and it's created a different kind of atmosphere.

Third-year cornerback Chris Houston answered affirmatively as to whether or not the defense has a chip on their shoulder announcing they were, "hungrier than hungry".

Rookie cornerback Chris Owens spoke about linebacker Mike Peterson's monumental ability in the locker room to get the Falcons' defensive unit fired up before practices. Peterson, along with veterans Erik Coleman and Houston, has been, "getting in our ears, especially the rookies", Owens said.