Staff report
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Former Salisbury High and University of Georgia star Jalon Walker will be playing close to home this Sunday afternoon as the Atlanta Falcons (1-1) travel to face the Carolina Panthers (0-2) at Bank of America Stadium.
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. The NFC South divisional game will be regionally televised by FOX. There’s also a radio broadcast on WSAT.
Walker had three tackles in his pro debut — a loss to Tampa Bay — and registered his first NFL sack in the Week 2 win against Minnesota.
Walker’s Atlanta teammate and fellow rookie James Pearce Jr. also will be coming home. He played high school ball at Julius Chambers in Charlotte. Pearce played college ball at Tennessee and was grabbed by the Falcons, who had taken Walker at No. 15, with the 26th pick of the first round.
Pearce has been credited with a quarterback hit in both of Atlanta’s games and shared a sack in the win against Minnesota.
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Minnesota’s Javon Hargrave (North Rowan) has proven he’s healthy again and that he hasn’t lost anything at 32.
Hargrave has been in on 10 tackles and has two sacks in his first two games for the Vikings.
Minnesota takes on Cincinnati at 1 p.m. on Sunday. CBS will be televising that game on a regional basis.
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Miami rookie Zeek Biggers (West Rowan) played 11 snaps in the 33-27 Week 2 loss to New England.
Biggers, who was a standout at Georgia Tech, played six snaps on defense for the Dolphins (0-2) and five on special teams.
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Brandon Parker (A.L. Brown), was signed to the San Francisco 49ers practice squad on Tuesday.
A giant of an offensive lineman ( 6-8, 320), Parker, who played in college at North Carolina A&T and was a third-round draft choice, is 29 now. He’s played in 58 NFL games and made 33 starts in his days with the Raiders.
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Nick Leverett, a 28-year-old guard, is on the practice squad of the Arizona Cardinals.
Leverett (6-3, 310) has played in 22 NFL games for Tampa Bay, New England and Arizona, with 11 starts.
Leverett began his high school career at North Rowan and finished it at Concord. He played in college at NC Central and Rice.
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Bradley Pinion (NW Cabarrus) is still going strong as the punter for Atlanta, and he also has handled some kickoff duties this season.
Pinion, 31, played college ball at Clemson, and he’s been a quality punter for a long time with the San Francisco 49ers, Tampa Bay Bucs and Falcons. He came to the Falcons in 2022.
Pinion is notable for his size — 6-foot-5, 265 — and his consistency. He’s averaged 44.5 yards per punt in an 11-year career. Only one of his 692 career punts has been blocked.
James Pearce Jr. (6-5, 245) ran the 40-yard dash at 4.47 seconds to rank as the fastest defensive lineman at the NFL scouting combine.
Pearce graduated from Julius L. Chambers High School in Charlotte, North Carolina. During his high schoo
