Falcons: Who needs more playing time in Week 17?

I’m writing this shortly after another classic Falcons loss to the defending Super Bowl champs, and as of now, Atlanta owns the fourth pick in the draft. There’s obviously nothing to play for in the final week of the season, so I want to see the Falcons get a few guys involved in Week 17 to decide if they’re worth keeping. I’ll mostly focus on guys who either need to prove something before the draft or impending free agents.

 

Laquon Treadwell

Megaquon has been… efficient. He has two touchdowns on four catches! Atlanta has done a good job of getting the best out of their wideouts, and working alongside two fantastic options like Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley has to be a boost. With Julio on the shelf, I would like to see what Treadwell can do in an increased role. Maybe I’m just trying to vindicate myself; I thought he would be incredible coming out of Ole Miss.

 

Jacob Tuioti-Mariner

JTM has come alive recently, most notably with his monster game against the Raiders. His 87/113 ranking for EDGE by PFF is solid enough for a rotational guy, and he narrowly missed an INT off Patrick Mahomes. He’s only broken 50% of the team’s defensive snaps twice, and I want to see that number closer to 75%. I think he’s worth keeping in a thin defensive line rotation already, but I want to get a better look this week.

 

Chris Rowland

Rowland handled kick return duties and was not one of the ten Falcons to catch a pass. He is an UDFA and is blazing fast, but it would be cool to see him on a go route next week. The Falcons added speedster Greg Dortch to the practice squad, so Rowland is on the hot seat.

 

Jaeden Graham

500th edition of me lobbying for more Jaeden Graham. Hopefully, tight end is addressed in the draft, and the team parts ways with Luke Stocker. Along with running the ball, Dirk Koetter refuses to use Graham. I expected a breakout year from Hurst in 2021, but I want to see Graham and his 14.5 YP/R from 2019 on full display next week.

 

Deadrin Senat

Senat has been inactive for almost all of 2020, and I guess it makes sense with Davison in the fold. You really only need one active nose tackle. However, just let Senat play Sunday and see what he has going forward. There is no point in rostering him anymore if not.

 

Matt Hennessy

This one won’t be by choice. Atlanta is likely saying goodbye to one of the best free-agent signings in team history after this season, and Matt Hennessy is the heir apparent. He didn’t have much of an offseason program, but 2020 has been rough on him. He got whipped (granted, against two fantastic players in Derrick Nnadi & Chris Jones) against Kansas City in his first action at center. His 51.2 PFF grade is unappealing. Atlanta may need to look for interior offensive line help in the draft AGAIN, so it would be nice to see Hennessy show some chops in Week 17. His 25.1 pass blocking grade doesn’t qualify, but it has to rank near last for centers. 60.4 is a start for run blocking, but he needs to improve.