The Atlanta Falcons have lost defensive back Kevin Mathis for the remainder of the season to a season-ending neck injury. He will be placed on the injured reserve soon, but should not require surgery. Further details were not available on his neck injury. He is expected to make a full recovery, but it's unclear on whether or not he'd return to the NFL after this injury.

Mathis suffered the injury after leading with his helmet into Detroit Lions kick returner Eddie Drummond. Mathis was on the field for several minutes.

"We're just being safe," said Falcons head Jim Mora. "You don't want to mess around with those things. It's too serious. You don't need to be brave, you don't need to be tough, you don't need to be a hero. You need to be smart. That's how the NFL treats it and that's certainly how our staff treats it."

Mora is upset with the loss of Mathis, who provided tremendous leadership for his team.

"Obviously, losing Kevin is a tough blow for our football team because of the kind of person he is on and off the field," Mora said. "We will miss his tenacious play and his leadership, but I am certain that we have the right guys on our team who will step up and keep on rolling as we head into the second part of the season."

Mathis recorded 22 tackles and one sack this season. He will be replaced by Allan Rossum on Sunday, but he may not be the guy taking his place when the Falcons take on the Cleveland Browns this week.