The Facts: Those of you who have been holding your breath, waiting patiently for Jackson to return can start to exhale this week as head coach Mike Smith announced Monday that the running back is expected to practice this week.

Diehards Line: How much or if he’ll be healthy enough to play Sunday against Arizona is still in question, but for Jackson, who has been sidelined with a hamstring injury since the first quarter of a Week 2 matchup against St. Louis, any progression at this point is good news. “This is all based on what the doctor will say in terms of how much he’ll participate in practice as we go through the week, but when we left out of here on Friday, everything was very good in terms of (Jackson’s) testing and the opportunity to return to play,” Smith said during his Monday press conference. “We are anticipating to get him in and see how he handles it. You’ve got to go in and take it one day at a time when you’re coming back from an injury.” Smith added that the Falcons won’t have Jackson participating in a full practice when the team gets preparations for Sunday’s game at Arizona underway Wednesday. Stay tuned. More in coming days.