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Playmaker Julio Jones was on pace for a monster season in 2013, but a foot fracture sidetracked the success of the Atlanta Falcons and fantasy football owners around the world.
Jones showed the potential for success in his rookie season in 2011 with 959 receiving yards and eight touchdown receptions, and he was able to expand on that in 2012 with 1,198 receiving yards and 10 touchdown catches. Obviously, fantasy players were excited about what Jones could do in his third year in the league, but his injury really hurt many teams that drafted the 25-year-old as their first receiver.
Even though the Falcons only had a four-win season in 2013, Matt Ryan still led the offense to finish with the seventh-most passing yards in the NFL. If you think that there may be a curve for Jones getting back into the offense, just consider how often Ryan throws the ball. He has increased his passing attempts every year except for one. Here are the signal caller’s passing attempts since his rookie year: 434 in 2008, 451 in 2009, 571 in 2010, 566 in 2011, 615 in 2012 and 651 in 2013.
Ryan only finished second behind Peyton Manning in passing attempts last season, and the stats from 2012 prove that Jones is going to be called upon even more than his previous seasons. When Ryan was attempting to target his receivers, Jones accounted for 20 percent of his attempts, Roddy White accounted for 23 percent and Tony Gonzalez accounted for another 20 percent. Entering the 2014 season, the 32-year-old White was limited last season due to ankle and knee issues and Gonzalez is no longer with the team, so Jones should be set up for a career year.
Ryan only had 566 passing attempts when Michael Turner rushed for 1,340 yards in the 2011 season, and Steven Jackson may cut into his numbers if he is able to stay healthy. Ryan still had personal success despite only really having the veteran Gonzalez and 29-year-old Harry Douglas to throw the ball to, so the passing attempts will not dramatically fall off when Jones and White are both able to play at the same time, even if the run game is stronger than last year.
Some fantasy owners may be worried that it will take time for Jones to insert himself back into the offense, but he should be able to pickup right where he left off last season.
Jack Delaney is a fantasy football writer for www.Rantsports.com. You can follow him on Twitter @jackbmore13, “Like” him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.
