Falcons Post-Week 4 Fantasy Outlook
By Adnan Ikic
6. The Other Guys
Jacob Tamme (2 catches, 3 receiving yards, 1 receiving touchdown: 6.30 points)
It was a very quiet day for Jacob Tamme, other than a 4-yard touchdown catch which opened up the scoring. That one play alone turned this into a decent fantasy output for a TE. Tamme should have scored another touchdown, in the second quarter, but lost his footing and caught the pass while laying on the ground instead.
While the touchdown was nice, the fact that the former Kentucky Wildcat only had 3 yards can’t be overlooked. Keep treating Tamme as a TE2, who should only be started as a bye week plug-in.
Taylor Gabriel (3 catches, 49 receiving yards: 4.9 points)
Gabriel had a very nice real life day of production for the Falcons, converting a 3rd down on one occasion, and a 2nd and 19 on another. All three of his catches went for over 10 yards.
Gabriel, however, should still not be on your roster. Matt Ryan distributes the ball to too many receivers to expect this type of yardage (which is pretty modest) every week.
Austin Hooper (1 catch, 42 receiving yards, 1 receiving touchdown: 10.20 points)
Austin Hooper’s touchdown catch was a carbon copy of his reception against Oakland which went for big yardage — Matt Ryan rolled to the right, then threw deep to the other side of the field to a wide open Hooper, whom the defense abandoned. It was a beautiful play design by offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan.
Despite the touchdown catch, this game solidified the notion that Hooper should not be picked up in any redraft leagues. That was his only target of the game, after a week 3 which featured zero targets. Take a flier on Hooper if you’re in a dynasty league, and get ready to use him next season.
Aldrick Robinson (2 catches, 48 receiving yards, 1 receiving touchdown: 10.80 points)
The highlight here was obviously Robinson’s big-time 35-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter. However, just like with Justin Gabriel, Matt Ryan distributes the ball to too many players for Robinson to be considered a legitimate fantasy option.
Justin Hardy (0 catches, 0 yards: 0.0 points)
The touchdowns were always going to cease, but in a game where nine different players caught a pass, Justin Hardy was not one of them. There’s no reason for anyone to have him on their fantasy roster.
Still Got It: Matt Bryant (6 PAT, 1 20-29, 1 50+: 14 points)
For the second straight week, the Atlanta Falcons put up six touchdowns, and gave Matt Bryant an opportunity to convert on six PATs.
The big points came in the form of a 53-yard fourth quarter field goal which split the uprights. That was Bryant’s longest kick of the season, surpassing his previous high of 34 yards. He also converted on a 28 yarder in the second quarter.
Analysis: There’s really not much to analyze here: Bryant is the third ranked kicker in fantasy at the quarter mark of the season, and should be owned in more than 14.4% of leagues. If you have him, just continue riding the wave.
The Defense (1 sack, 2 interceptions, 1 touchdown, 27 points allowed: 11.0 points)
The defense was having a tremendous game against the reigning MVP, until they started going with that conservative play calling as a result of a big lead. Dwight Freeney recorded his second sack of the season in this one.
The defense, and more specifically Robert Alford, racked up 10 of these 11 total points on the final two Carolina drives of the game. The first resulted in an Alford pic-6 which sealed the game, and the second ended up finishing with yet another interception for Alford. QB Derek Anderson was the victim, as Cam Newton left the game early due to a concussion.
The defense is slowly starting to build some trust on the road to becoming a streaming option, but I’m not quite ready to claim them as such yet. Tough games against Denver, Seattle, San Diego, and Green Bay are on the horizon.