Drake London Expected to Play vs. Vikings amid Shoulder Injury, Falcons' Morris Says

Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris told reporters Wednesday that he expects wide receiver Drake London, who left his team's 23-20 home loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Sunday with a shoulder injury in the fourth quarter, to play this upcoming Sunday at the Minnesota Vikings.

"That's not saying that he is," Morris told reporters Wednesday, per Falcons digital team reporter Terrin Waack. "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."

Waack explained when the injury may have occurred.

"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," Waack wrote. "London landed on his right shoulder as Buccaneers cornerback Jamel Dean tackled him."

London was deemed questionable to return after that moment. The Falcons had one more drive, but London did not take the field.

Thankfully, London returned to practice Wednesday, per D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Last season, London enjoyed a breakout campaign, catching 100 passes for 1,271 yards and nine touchdowns in his third NFL season.

The former USC star, who was selected eighth overall in the 2022 NFL draft, is obviously an integral part of a team fighting to make its first postseason since 2017.

London started his season with eight catches for 55 yards on 15 targets. It's clear the Falcons want to feature him heavily in the pass game again, much like they did last year when he amassed 158 targets over 17 games.

Thankfully, it appears London is on track to play Sunday. The bigger question at wideout is the status of Darnell Mooney, who is dealing with a shoulder injury that kept him limited at practice last week before he was ruled questionable (and then out) for the Bucs game. Mooney suffered the injury during the team's first training camp practice on July 24, per Waack.

Thankfully, Morris provided some encouraging news.

"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."

Atlanta will visit Minnesota for a Sunday Night Football affair. Kickoff will be at 8:20 p.m. ET from U.S. Bank Stadium.