X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Join the Best Live Fantasy Chat Community!

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


LINEUP RESOURCES

Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Starts and Sit
Daily Fantasy
Who To Pickup
Fantasy Updates
24x7 News and Alerts

Falcons' Future: Assessing Redraft and Dynasty Value in Atlanta

The Atlanta Falcons’ downward spiral from Super Bowl LI in 2017 has continued and reached new lows this year. Last year’s 7-9 record seemed like a massive disappointment at the time, but with the team now sitting at 1-6 through seven games, the franchise is clearly in a position where it needs to start reassessing its future plans.

There are still some positive signs, at least from an offensive/fantasy standpoint. The team ranks second in the league in passing yards per game (299) and they’re tied for first in passing touchdowns per game (16). However, the team’s defense has been atrocious, and their rushing offense ranks among the bottom five in the league in yards per game.

Mohamed Sanu has been traded out of town, head coach Dan Quinn is on a flaming hot seat, Ito Smith (concussion) has been ruled out for Week 8 and star quarterback Matt Ryan (ankle) is looking doubtful for the team’s next game and could miss more time after that. So what do we do with the fantasy-relevant Falcons the rest of this year and in dynasty formats?

Featured Promo: Get any full-season NFL Premium Pass for 50% off and win big in 2022. Exclusive access to our Premium articles, 15 lineup tools, new Team Sync platform, Lineup Optimizer, Premium DFS tools and cheat sheets, and much more! Sign Up Now!

 

Julio Jones

After Week 3, it looked like Jones was on pace for his best fantasy season yet, which is really saying something for someone with a year of 1,871 receiving yards under his belt. Jones had 19 catches for 265 yards and four touchdowns through three weeks but has just 21 catches for 295 yards and no touchdowns in the four games since.

Jones has proven he can be a high-end WR1 even when the Falcons struggle to win games. His 1,871-yard season came in 2015 when the team won just eight games. The year before that, he had 1,593 yards and the team went 6-10. He’s still a clear high-end WR1 the rest of this year and should be valued highly in dynasty as well as there’s little to suggest he won’t be one of the first receivers off the board in 2020 drafts.

 

Matt Ryan

As of this writing, Ryan’s injury has been considered an ankle sprain and he is yet to be ruled out for Week 8, and there's now speculation he might play. The team has a bye week in Week 9, so if Ryan does sit out Week 8, he’d have a full three weeks off to nurse the injury.

While the ankle injury knocks him down a notch or two in the rankings, there have been so many quarterback injuries and struggling quarterbacks this year that Ryan still projects as a mid-tier QB1 for the rest of the year. As long as he takes the field, he’s going to be forced to throw a lot since the team can’t run and they’ll be chasing points regularly. Ryan will be 35 next year, but should still have at least a few years of QB1 production left, so don’t sell him for pennies in dynasty formats.

 

Devonta Freeman

Running back Devonta Freeman has struggled the most amongst the team’s primary offensive weapons this year. He’s averaging a career-low 3.5 yards per carry and would be one of the biggest busts in fantasy if it weren’t for his 209 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns.

No. 2 running back Ito Smith has already been ruled out for Week 8, which helps Freeman’s playing time, but getting opportunities hasn’t really been the obstacle. He’d been receiving around 20 touches per game before Week 7, when he was ejected in the third quarter. It's been a matter of effectiveness for Freeman, who hasn’t finished a year as an RB1 since 2016.

Advertising

Freeman needs to be owned in all fantasy formats just because his touch count is so high and his offense scores a lot of points. He’s a low-end RB2 going forward this year, but that could change if the team wants to give younger running backs more looks or if Ryan misses extended time and the offense suffers as a result. In dynasty formats, his outlook isn’t great going forward. It’s hard to imagine the team would feel comfortable with him getting around 20 touches per game in 2020 unless he really turns things around this year. He’s signed on with the team through 2022, but the Falcons have a potential out next year and could take a small cap hit if they decide to move on. For fantasy owners looking beyond 2019, don’t make Freeman a priority.

 

Calvin Ridley

Calvin Ridley is the biggest riser on the team after the Sanu trade. He and Sanu had been about even in targets this year – 44 for Ridley, 42 for Sanu. If Ryan is sidelined Ridley loses some of his upside potential, but he could still be effective with No. 2 quarterback Matt Schaub, who would be throwing plenty in Ryan’s absence.

In season-long fantasy, Ridley looks like a more secure WR2 with Sanu out of town. He also gets a bit of a bump in dynasty formats. He’s the youngest pivotal member of the team’s offense and the offense should feature Ridley as the unquestioned No. 2 behind Jones going forward.

 

Austin Hooper

The Falcons’ struggles as a team this year certainly haven’t had a negative effect on tight end Austin Hooper, who is in the midst of a dominant, breakout season. Hooper has a team-high 46 receptions through seven games and has tallied 526 receiving yards and four touchdowns.

Tight end is such a thin position that Hooper is an unquestionable must-start until further notice, even if Schaub is under center in their next game. In dynasty formats, the soon-to-be 25-year-old figures to be one of the top five or six assets at the position.

 

Ito Smith

Currently in the concussion protocol, it’s yet to be seen how much time Ito Smith will miss. Smith has shown some promising flashes in limited playing time so far this year. He’s averaged 4.8 yards per carry, which dwarfs Freeman’s 3.5 season average. He’s shown an ability in the passing game as well, catching 11 of his 14 targets for 87 yards.

Smith stands to gain from two things as soon as he’s able to rejoin the team: 1) Freeman’s struggles and 2) the team’s struggles overall. As the team is trending towards a lost season, they’re going to want to take a longer look at what they have in their young skill players and Smith should have every opportunity to earn a shot as a feature back. He needs to be owned in all leagues of 14 or more teams. Owners will need to be patient as they'll have to wait out his Week 8 absence and the team's Week 9 bye, but he could be a guy who really, really helps in the playoffs, when the Falcons might have seen enough of Freeman.

In dynasty terms, Smith is a great sleeper to target. Freeman might be on his way to playing himself out of a job next year and that would open up an opportunity for Smith to become an RB2 in 2020.

 

Advertising

The Others

The three skill players not yet mentioned who could work their way into the picture are Justin Hardy, Brian Hill, and Qadree Ollison.

Hill saw his first action this past week after Smith’s injury and Freeman’s ejection. He gained just 11 yards on five carries, unfortunately picking up right where Freeman left off. He also caught both of his targets for 14 yards. Hill should take over Smith’s role in Week 8, which means he should end up somewhere between five and 10 touches in the game. Hill is in the midst of his second stint with the Falcons. The fact that the team previously cut him is a strong indicator that they don’t see him as their future feature back, so don’t expect him to be run away with a starting job. However, he could still be a potential fill-in flex starter in deep leagues depending on the overall health of Atlanta's backfield.

Going forward, Hardy should soak up some of the targets Sanu was receiving. Granted, Sanu was a pretty unreliable WR3/flex option in deep PPR leagues this year so it’s hard to expect much better from Hardy. However, if Ridley or Jones were to go down, Hardy would become a must-add.

Ollison might be the most interesting of this group overall. The rookie was a fifth-round pick this year and has yet to make his NFL debut. Make sure to keep him on your radar. Smith figures to receive his opportunities before Ollison, but Ollison’s opportunity should certainly come before the end of the year. At 6’2” and 231 pounds, Ollison’s the biggest back the team has by a considerable margin. Smith and Freeman are both 5’9” and Smith is a slight 195 pounds.

Last but not least, Matt Schaub. If Ryan is out, Schaub is a great mid-tier QB2 option in two-quarterback leagues and he could also be a viable low-end QB1 in deep one-quarterback leagues. He stands to benefit from the same things Ryan has: the team’s dreadful defense, the lack of a running game and the dynamic offensive playmakers on the team.




LINEUP RESOURCES

Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Starts and Sit
Daily Fantasy
Who To Pickup
Fantasy Updates
24x7 News and Alerts

WIN MORE IN 2024

Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Starts and Sit
Daily Fantasy
Who To Pickup
Fantasy Updates
24x7 News and Alerts

ROTOBALLER PLAYER NEWS

RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

MORE RECENT ARTICLES

 
Alexis Diaz fantasy baseball closers rankings draft sleepers waiver wire pickups

MLB Closers and Saves: Fantasy Baseball Depth Charts

Saves are an important component for many fantasy baseball leagues. Closers are one of the most volatile positions in fantasy baseball, and one of the highest turnover positions in MLB. Each year, closers drop like flies and many MLB teams make in-season changes due to injuries or poor performance. In addition to closers and saves, relief... Read More


Do These Prospects Matter for Fantasy Baseball?

The 2023 fantasy baseball season has been highlighted by the promotion of nearly two-dozen top prospects to the major leagues to impact fantasy rosters. This week's edition features one player who was called up as the piece was being written. Will these strong performers join the ranks of those who have moved to the majors... Read More


clayton kershaw fantasy baseball rankings draft sleepers MLB injury news

articles report test

this is a test


Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups for Fantasy Baseball - Week 24

Welcome back! It's Week 24 of our fantasy baseball Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups series! There are just two precious weeks left, and every start is becoming more and more important as most of the fantasy baseball world is in playoff matchups. If you've made it this far, there's a good chance you don't really... Read More


Aaron Nola - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, MLB Injury News, DFS Lineup Picks

Starts & Sits for MLB Week 23 - All Starting Pitcher Matchups for Fantasy Baseball

Welcome back RotoBallers! Big week in fantasy leagues as we approach the end of the season and playoffs! As always, we are here with our starting pitcher starts and sits series to help you set those winning lineups for the week ahead! For those who are not familiar, RotoBaller puts out a weekly grid of... Read More


Gunnar Henderson - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, MLB Prospects, Draft Sleepers

Points League Hitters: Waiver Wire Pickups for Fantasy Baseball - Week 24

Welcome to Week 24 and our fantasy baseball waiver wire hitters. We'll be doing this roundup of points leagues every week here at RotoBaller, with waiver wire targets and streaming pitchers being evaluated in terms of the different scoring systems of ESPN, Yahoo!, CBS, and Fantrax. Player values can vary wildly from platform to platform,... Read More


Brayan Bello - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Draft Sleepers, Waiver Wire Pickups

Two-Start Pitcher Streamers for Fantasy Baseball - Week 24

Yo, it's Jon Anderson, continuing to run the show here in terms of late-summer fantasy baseball writing. There are just two weeks left of streaming pitchers, so let's make it count! This weekly fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups column aims to identify starting pitchers expected to make two starts in the upcoming fantasy baseball week,... Read More


Fantasy Baseball Week 24 Injury News and Updates: Tyler Glasnow, Ozzie Albies, Starling Marte, Anthony Rizzo, Zack Wheeler

September is now more than half over. The baseball season is slowly coming to a close. At this point, fantasy players are pushing for their league titles or just playing for pride. Major League Baseball teams continue to do the same and injuries continue to happen, now with the dreaded term "done for the season"... Read More


Joe Musgrove - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Draft Sleepers, MLB Injury News

Free MLB Betting Picks - Today's Best Bets, Expert Predictions, Odds (9/17/22)

Happy Saturday, RotoBallers, we're back for another weekend of MLB betting picks! Make sure you're following my Twitter, as I can't guarantee that I'll always be able to get the added plays written here in the article, but I will typically add whatever else I'm playing throughout the day. The entire RotoBaller team has been... Read More


DraftKings, FanDuel Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks (9/17/22): Today's Top MLB DFS Lineups

Today's MLB slates are split up as is the norm for September baseball. Half the guys I think will play will not, so you have to be as flexible as Gumby to play MLB DFS in September, but that also means that there is a lot of money out there should you dare to dive... Read More


Max Fried - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Draft Sleepers, MLB Injury News

Free MLB Betting Picks - Today's Best Bets, Expert Predictions, Odds (9/15/22)

Happy Friday, RotoBallers, we're back for another weekend of MLB betting picks! Make sure you're following my Twitter, as I can't guarantee that I'll always be able to get the added plays written here in the article, but I will typically add whatever else I'm playing throughout the day. The entire RotoBaller team has been... Read More


Robbie Ray - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, MLB Injury News, Draft Sleepers

DraftKings, FanDuel Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks (9/16/22): Today's Top MLB DFS Lineups

Fridays are big MLB DFS days and offer a nice respite from the NFL, who command our attention on Thursdays, Sundays, and Mondays. This slate, like most Friday slates, is a big one as all MLB teams are in action today and 28 of those teams are on tonight's 14-game DFS slate. This was a... Read More


kyle farmer fantasy baseball rankings draft sleepers MLB injury news

Top Hitter Streamers and Starts for Fantasy Baseball - Week 24

There are only two weeks left of fantasy baseball! It's going to be very sad when the season comes to an end, but the impending end of the season means that these are the most important, and therefore most fun weeks of the year – for those of you still competing, at least. I have... Read More


TODAY’S MOST VIEWED PLAYERS

rotating JS ad test

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF

MORE RECENT ARTICLES

 
derrick henry fantasy football rankings news NFL DFS lineup picks

test publish 5 mins in future

Hello everybody and welcome! The 2022 NFL season is finally underway and that means our friends over at PrizePicks have a TON of great props we can look to take advantage of. PrizePicks is a great DFS picks site where you can choose to select plays in terms of fantasy points or single stats. The... Read More


PrizePicks NFL DFS Picks - Monday Night Football

Hello everybody and welcome! The 2022 NFL season is finally underway and that means our friends over at PrizePicks have a TON of great props we can look to take advantage of. PrizePicks is a great DFS picks site where you can choose to select plays in terms of fantasy points or single stats. The... Read More


D'Andre Swift - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL DFS Lineup Picks

Fantasy Football Injury Reports For NFL RBs: Updates for Aaron Rodgers

Warning: Undefined array key "amp_post_template_footer" in /var/www/rotoballer.com/wp-content/plugins/php-code-for-posts/Classes/Shortcode.php(91) : eval()'d code on line 6 Warning: foreach() argument must be of type array|object, null given in /var/www/rotoballer.com/wp-content/plugins/php-code-for-posts/Classes/Shortcode.php(91) : eval()'d code on line 6 Featured Promo: Get any full-season NFL Premium Pass for 50% off and win big in 2022. Exclusive access to our Premium articles, 15 lineup... Read More


derrick henry fantasy football rankings news NFL DFS lineup picks

PrizePicks NFL DFS Picks - Monday Night Football

Hello everybody and welcome! The 2022 NFL season is finally underway and that means our friends over at PrizePicks have a TON of great props we can look to take advantage of. PrizePicks is a great DFS picks site where you can choose to select plays in terms of fantasy points or single stats. The... Read More


Justin Jefferson - Fantasy Football Rankings, DFS Lineup Picks, NFL Injury News

NFL DFS Prop Picks for Monkey Knife Fight - Monday Night Football

Welcome to NFL Monday Night Football, where we have two games scheduled between the Minnesota Vikings vs. Philadelphia Eagles and the Tennessee Titans vs. Buffalo Bills.  Monday's games mean our friends at Monkey Knife Fight are offering some fantastic props for us to play once again! The good people at Monkey Knife Fight offer some... Read More


D'Andre Swift - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL DFS Lineup Picks

Fantasy Football Injury Reports For NFL RBs: Week 2 Updates for Najee Harris, J.K. Dobbins, D'Andre Swift, Alvin Kamara, Mark Ingram

Below you will find our fantasy football injuries report for running backs in Week 2, as of September 17. The injury statuses for various NFL running backs are up in the air for Week 2 including D'Andre Swift, Najee Harris, Alvin Kamara, J.K. Dobbins, and more. The fantasy football season may be just getting underway,... Read More


michael pittman jr. fantasy football rankings NFL DFS lineup picks

Fantasy Football Injury Reports For NFL WRs: Week 2 Updates for Michael Pittman Jr., Mike Evans, Tee Higgins, Allen Lazard, Julio Jones

Welcome to Week 2 of the fantasy football season and the Saturday edition of our WR injury reports! Below you will find our fantasy football injuries report for wide receivers in Week 2 as of September 16th. The injury statuses for various NFL wide receivers are up in the air for Week 2, including Michael... Read More


justin herbert fantasy football rankings NFL DFS lineup picks

Fantasy Football Injury Reports for QBs: Week 2 Updates for Dak Prescott, Justin Herbert, Jameis Winston, Mac Jones

Below you will find our updated fantasy football injuries report for quarterbacks in the days before Week 2 of the 2022 NFL season as of Friday, September 16. There are a few NFL QBs dealing with injuries, including Dak Prescott, Justin Herbert, Jameis Winston, and Mac Jones. Being up-to-date on NFL injury news can give... Read More


Trey Lance - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Key Starters and Tough Calls - Lineup Spotlights for Fantasy Football Week 2

Every week, I share some of my favored choices and players to go with when dealing with challenging lineup decisions. These selections are based on my Premium Weekly Lineup Rankings, available as part of the RotoBaller NFL Premium Pass. Enter promo code KING at checkout for a discount and get access to my ranks in all formats, plus... Read More


Saquon Barkley - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, Draft Sleepers

Week 2 NFL Pick Em Selections for No House Advantage

Hello everybody and welcome! The 2022 NFL season is underway and that means our friends over at No House Advantage have a TON of great DFS plays we can look to take advantage of. No House Advantage is a unique DFS prop picks site where you do not have to play against the house to... Read More


Wide Receiver Matchups to Target in Week 2: Greg Dortch, Terry McLaurin, Christian Kirk

Week 1 made some things come to light as we got some clarity on some murky situations. Unfortunately, many of our WR targets for DFS last week were victims of this. Robert Woods finished the game with one reception for 13 yards, as the Titans used the rookie receivers much more than him. Brandon Aiyuk... Read More


Carson Wentz - Fantasy Football Rankings, Waiver Wire Pickups, Draft Sleepers

Thunder Dan's NFL Betting Picks for Week 2: Top NFL Player Props Bets

Football season is back! Whether you like to bet game totals, sides, or player props, I have something in here for you, and try to cover a little bit of everything! This year, I started my own free sports betting newsletter, and the good people here at RotoBaller are allowing me to share my picks... Read More


Fantasy Football IDP Injury Reports For NFL Defensive Players: Week 2 Updates for T.J. Watt, Jamal Adams, Jalen Thompson, Ed Oliver

T.J. Watt owners, you know the feeling... I had T.J. Watt in my home league last season. He was constantly checking out of games early with nagging minor injuries, but he must have led every IDP manager who started him to the playoffs. I went back to the well and drafted him early this year.... Read More