CB Darqueze Dennard “close” to coming off IR, per Raheem Morris

The Falcons have had better results on defense in the last handful of weeks, but it’s fair to say the pass defense could still use improvement. Fortunately, that improvement could be on the way.

Per interim head coach Raheem Morris, Darqueze Dennard is on his way back, possibly as soon as next weekend against the Denver Broncos.

Dennard, you’ll recall, exited the Falcons-Bears game in Week 3 after playing very well and picking off a pass in the end zone. The team has certainly missed having a sure tackler and underrated cover cornerback back there, especially with both Isaiah Oliver and Kendall Sheffield struggling mightily at times for this team. He had a solid 66.4 grade from Pro Football Focus in his three games and Chicago appeared the game where he found the form that made him an appreciated player in Cincinnati.

Dennard’s return will cloud the picture at cornerback for everyone else, though the most likely player to be impacted is Isaiah Oliver, who has been taking more snaps in the slot in recent weeks. A.J. Terrell’s starting role is safe either way, but it’ll be interesting to see how the team divvies up snaps between Kendall Sheffield, Oliver and Dennard going forward. Blidi Wreh-Wilson will be around for reserve heroics as needed. Bringing him back will make this group stronger, and that’s welcome.

We’ll see if he’s ready to go against the Broncos, but if not, at least he should be in action for when the team’s schedule gets that much tougher the rest of the way. I’m positive Morris is thrilled about the thought.