Running down in kickoff coverage was the last thing wide receiver Justin Hardy ever expected to do upon joining the Atlanta Falcons last season.
``I really didn’t even know how to tackle,’’ said Hardy, a fourth-round pick in 2015. ``I never had been taught how to tackle.
``Basically coming in, I really didn’t expect to play any defensive special teams. I could understand if I was doing a punt return or kick return because that’s what I was used to. But actually going down and covering punts and covering kicks, I never did that before.’’
Rather than pout about his unexpected duties, Hardy embraced his practice role on all four phases of special teams while being inactive the first seven games of last year.