What We Saw: Week 3

Indianapolis Colts vs Atlanta Falcons

 

Indianapolis Colts

 

Quarterback

 

• Jacoby Brisset: 28/37, 310 yards, 2 TDs | 3 carries, 4 yards

 

Jacoby Brisset was impressive in the first half of this game, starting with 16 straight completions and throwing for two touchdowns. He slowed down a little in the second half as the Colts were playing with a lead, but he made enough throws when he was called upon to put the game away. Brisset showed enough mobility to extend a few plays, including rolling to his right before throwing a touchdown pass to T.Y. Hilton and was decisive in making the correct reads to find open receivers. It looked like Brisset was more comfortable in the offense this week playing at home and against a Falcons defense that still struggles to defend the pass. Brisset remains a streaming option when he has an easy matchup, and he is serviceable enough to support the fantasy value of the other Colts players.

 

Running Backs

 

• Marlon Mack: 16 carries, 74 yards, 1 TD | 3 targets, 2 receptions, 14 yards
• Nyheim Hines: 2 carries, 3 yards | 4 targets, 3 receptions, 26 yards
• Jordan Wilkins: 3 carries, 2 yards

 

Marlon Mack dominated the backfield touches after showing up on the injury report all week and looked perfectly healthy in doing so. Mack had two nice stiff arms on his touchdown run and took advantage of some poor tackling by the Falcons for most of the day. He also stayed in on a few third downs that the Colts passed which is a good sign for his inclusion in the passing game going forward. Nyheim Hines does continue to get on the field for two-minute drills and obvious passing downs, which cuts into Mack’s upside a little bit. Hines was effective in that role, converting two third downs by catching short passes and making defenders miss in open space. In any game which the Colts project to trail Hines could be used as a flex play, while Mack remains a must-start running back due to his volume and the strength of the Colts offensive line.

 

Wide Receivers/ Tight Ends

 

• T.Y. Hilton: 10 targets, 8 receptions, 65 yards, 1 TD
• Zach Pascal: 3 targets, 2 receptions, 53 yards, 1 TD
• Parris Campbell: 3 targets, 3 receptions, 24 yards
• Jack Doyle: 4 targets, 4 receptions, 46 yards
• Eric Ebron: 4 targets, 3 receptions, 47 yards

 

T.Y. Hilton left at the end of the second quarter and did not return with a quad injury, but he did plenty of damage in the first half. Jacoby Brisset looked Hilton’s way often on quick passes, including once for a short touchdown, and assuming Hilton’s injury is not serious his target volume makes him a strong fantasy start. Zach Pascal benefitted from two plays where the Falcons secondary lost track of him completely. If Hilton misses any time Pascal and rookie Parris Campbell would be the two receivers to benefit the most. Jack Doyle and Eric Ebron continue to eat into each other’s production which makes it hard to start either one. If Hilton misses time Doyle probably benefits the most as Brisset’s preferred safety valve.

 

Atlanta Falcons

 

Quarterback

 

• Matt Ryan: 29/34, 304 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT | 2 carries, 3 yards

 

Matt Ryan had another strong fantasy outing while playing indoors. His interception came on a terrible throw straight into the hands of the defender while in the red zone, but aside from that Ryan was solid. He was mostly taking advantage of open receivers on short routes, but he was efficient and able to make some big throws to Julio Jones to push the ball down the field when needed. He remains a top-ten fantasy quarterback on the back of his impressive arsenal of weapons and the struggles of his defense so far. In any game that projects to be competitive Ryan seems like a lock to push for 300 yards and multiple touchdowns.

 

Running Backs

 

• Devonta Freeman: 16 carries, 88 yards | 4 targets, 3 receptions, 7 yards
• Ito Smith: 1 carry, 0 yards
• Kenjon Barner: 1 target, 1 reception, 4 yards

 

Ito Smith suffered a head injury early in this game, which led to Devonta Freeman dominating the backfield touches. Freeman had a few nice runs where he looked to have some of his old speed, but there were several plays in the second half where he seemed to go down to contact pretty easy. The Colts were without star linebacker Darius Leonard for this game so their run defense was weaker than normal, but it was still encouraging to see Freeman have a mostly solid outing. Freeman will be a safe start going forward if he can maintain this level of volume, but if Smith returns to turn this backfield into more of a committee, then Freeman remains tough to start with confidence.

 

Wide Receivers/ Tight Ends

 

• Julio Jones: 9 targets, 8 receptions, 128 yards, 1 TD
• Calvin Ridley: 1 target, 1 reception, 6 yards
• Mohamed Sanu: 6 targets, 6 receptions, 75 yards
• Austin Hooper: 7 targets, 6 receptions, 66 yards, 2 TDs

 

Julio Jones was fantastic again today, making contested catches look easy and making big catches when the Falcons needed him. Calvin Ridley struggled to get open against the zone defense the Colts employed, and as a result, was only targeted once. Mohamed Sanu and Austin Hooper had better luck finding the soft spots in the zone defense, with Hooper, in particular, having a nice day thanks to his two touchdown receptions. The Colts defense should struggle against tight ends and slot receivers thanks to their tendency to sit back in zone coverage, and can be targeted for streaming options at those positions going forward. 

 

• Dan Adams