Atlanta Falcons: 3 players with rising stock after Week 4

1. Austin Hooper, TE

Austin Hooper did all he could to step up at tight end and wound up with five receptions for 50 yards. Outside of Coleman, he was the No. 1 option in the passing game with Sanu and Jones out and probably should have been targeted more.

A third-round pick in 2016 out of Stanford, Hooper has been developing into a solid option in the passing game for Atlanta. He broke the first game of the season open for Atlanta with a beautiful catch and run for an 88-yard touchdown and then added another 40-yard reception in that one as well.

He’s been quiet since then catching just three passes for 16 yards in their wins against the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions. Maybe his play in Week 4 will lead to him seeing more targets going forward.

Bonus player:

This week we have an extra guy that deserves some praise. Kick returner Andre Roberts was an underrated signing this offseason by general manager Thomas Dimitroff. The veteran player has a knack for making big plays on special teams and set Atlanta up for a shot to tie or take the lead late in the game.

Next: Atlanta Falcons: Bye Week couldn’t have come at a better time

With less than five minutes to go and Atlanta down by just three, Roberts ran a kickoff back 61 yards into Buffalo territory. He put them in perfect to position to tie the game at a minimum, but instead quarterback Matt Ryan forced a pass to receiver Nick Williams and it bounced off his fingertips and landed into the hands of safety Micah Hyde.

Despite how it wound up, Roberts did what he was brought here for on the exciting return.