HOUSTON — Falcons center Alex Mack, who is reportedly playing with a fractured leg, is active for Super Bowl LI, as is banged-up Patriots defensive tackle Vincent Valentine.
Super Bowl 2017: What Giants fans should watch for
Falcons wide receiver Nick Williams, a Windsor, N.J., native, is inactive.
Mack has a slight fracture in his fibula, but he was expected to play. He did not have an injury designation on the Falcons’ final injury report this week. Valentine (back) was questionable. The rookie has been a valuable run stuffer for the Patriots.
FALCONS INACTIVES: WR Nick Williams, RB Terron Ward, CB Blidi Wreh-Wilson, S Dashon Goldman, LB Josh Keyes, OL Wes Schweitzer, TE D.J. Tialavea
PATRIOTS INACTIVES: QB Jacoby Brissett, WR Michael Floyd, CB Justin Coleman, CB Cyrus Jones, RB D.J. Foster, S Jordan Richards, T LaAdrian Waddle.
Williams, a former Hun School star, may be inactive for the game, but he has earned the respect of the Falcons coaching staff.
“Every week for him is a fight,” Falcons wide receivers coach Raheem Morris, an Irvington native, said. “Whether he’s going to be active, whether he’s going to be on the roster, whether he’s going to be a productive player, whether he’s going to be the third-down specialist.”
Falcons head coach Dan Quinn, a Morristown native, and general manager Thomas Dimitroff utilize what they call CT grades, grading every Falcon on competitiveness and toughness throughout the season.
“Those two things, it may not show up in a production sheet, but there’s a real standard of how you want to play,” Quinn said. “Each player in each game is given a CT grade, and then the players in their meeting rooms also give themselves one and their unit one to see how we competed as a unit, what our toughness was as a unit. It’s been a good guideline for us.”
Morris thinks one player represents the system best.
“Nick has a great, unique talent and he is an unbelievable competitor. That’s his niche. That’s his edge,” Morris said. “That’s what he does really well. Nick kind of defines what our team is about.”
James Kratch may be reached at jkratch@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JamesKratch. Find our Giants coverage on Facebook.
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