Predicting the offensive explosion for the Atlanta Falcons key players

With a big offseason behind them, the Atlanta Falcons have a lot to be excited about.

The Atlanta Falcons have every reason to be excited this season. With the weapons they have on offense, there is no reason to think that this season could be one of their best.

If the key parts of this Atlanta Falcons offense can stay healthy, there is no reason not to believe they can have one of the best offenses in the NFL this year.

As long the offensive line does its job, this Atlanta Falcons offense could be a tough one to deal with. With defense having to pick and choose who to key in on will lead to quite a few guys having some amazing seasons.

Matt Ryan – 4400 yards 38 touchdowns

Matt Ryan has been as consistent as they come at the quarterback position this past decade. Ryan should consistently be mentioned as one of the best at the quarterback position, even with the number of issues the Falcons have had on offense.

Ryan still has Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley to throw the ball to as well as Russell Gage who came into his own when Ridley went down with an injury. Hayden Hurst has the tools necessary to fill the shoes left by Austin Hooper and Todd Gurley is the best running back Ryan has had the chance to play with.

Ryan will lead this team to the end zone quite a few times this season. With more weapons on offense, it’s going to be harder for the defense to key in on just one person like they have in the past.

Todd Gurley – 900 yards rushing 8 TD, 500 yards receiving 5 TD

900 yards rushing for a running back who was the best back in the league a few years ago? Yes, that’s the prediction but do the Falcons really need 13-1400 yards from their primary back? Not necessarily.

This offense runs off of the Ryan-Jones connection and 900 yards rushing seems like a very realistic goal for Gurley. The yards that he doesn’t get via rushing, he will definitely account for in the passing game.

Gurley is the best pass-catching back this team has had since Warrick Dunn. If the offensive line doesn’t hold up the way the Falcons would like, Gurley will make a living off eating yards with check down passes and doing damage in the open field. Gurley will also be another scoring threat in the red zone has had the most red zone carries by a running back since 2018.

Julio Jones – 103 receptions 1,300 yards 11 TD

Julio does numbers. That’s what he does and he’s very good at it. Regardless of what the NFL 100 list and the Madden creators think, Julio is the best receiver in the NFL.

Jones had the quietest 99 reception, 1,394-yard season in NFL history. That alone should tell you how great he is. He comes into this season with a new threat at running back and a receiver in Ridley who as well on his way to 1,000 yards receiving. It’s only a matter of time before defenses can’t just put all their attention on him and because of that, he will get back to doing what he does…getting numbers.

Because of the talent around him, there is a slight chance Julio doesn’t put up numbers like he did in 2015 (136 receptions 1,871 yards), but he could very well see an increase in touchdowns and finally reach that double-digit mark for only the second time in his career.

Calvin Ridley – 80 receptions 1,100 yards 9 TD

Ridley is a superstar waiting to explode on the scene and ready to let the NFL know he has arrived. Ridley was on his way to his best NFL season to date when, the Falcons arch-enemy, the injury bug reared its ugly head.

This season will be the first time Ridley will cross the 1,000 yards receiving threshold. With his improvement and playing opposite of Julio, defenses will now have to pick their poison when it comes to these two.

If Ridley can come out and produce, the Falcons will have the best receiving duo in NFL and it won’t be close.

Hayden Hurst – 50 reception 600 yards 5 TD

Hurst is the one that nobody is really talking about when it comes to this Atlanta offense, but that could prove to be a mistake in the long run.

Hurst had the pleasure of playing in one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL with the Baltimore Ravens. The only problem is that the offense was run based and there were only a handful of times in which we could see Hurst showcase his talents.

Hurst was far from a scrub when he was in Baltimore and coming out of the draft, he was one of the best tight end prospects. Being surrounded by all the weapons that the Falcons have on offense should allow Hurst to produce way more than he ever could have in Baltimore.

Hurst will have the same type of impact Hooper had in this offense.