Nothing like a game in Jacksonville to help the Falcons get right, after their historic offensive struggles the past couple of games. Well, that and the return of team MVP Cordarrelle Patterson.

After scoring just three points in Weeks 10 and 11 combined, Atlanta scored 21 against the Jags. This isn’t anything to write home about by any means, but comparatively it can be considered an explosion.

The load, from a fantasy perspective, was mostly carried by Patterson and Russell Gage, as all other fantasy relevant players on the team struggled to put up sufficient points for managers competing for playoff spots.

There is a lot of great content available here at the Falcoholic, and I encourage you to check it out if you want some in-depth analysis. This article will look at things strictly from a fantasy football perspective (that means looking at nothing other than pure statistics). Here are Atlanta’s fantasy stud and fantasy dud from Week 12’s victory against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Fantasy Stud/Dud 2021 History:

Past Studs: Cordarrelle Patterson (4), Kyle Pitts (3), Younghoe Koo (1), Matt Ryan (1), Nobody (1)

Past Duds: Mike Davis (3), Matt Ryan (3), Kyle Pitts (2), Younghoe Koo (1), Olamide Zaccheaus (1)

Stud: Cordarrelle Patterson

Stat Line: 16 carries, 108 rushing yards, 2 rushing touchdowns, 2 catches, 27 receiving yards: 25.50 standard league points; 27.50 PPR points

Welcome back, Cordarrelle Patterson! The one time Tennessee Volunteer came back from an ankle injury to save Atlanta’s offense, and to likely act as a savior for many fantasy teams as well. Patterson finished as the overall RB4 in PPR leagues, and overall RB3 in standard leagues going into the Monday night game for this week.

Patterson has now totaled nine touchdowns this season, which ties his career career from his rookie season (where he had seven rushing/receiving scores and two return TDs). The 108 rushing yards were a career high, as he continually gashed a pretty decent Jaguars run defense to the tune of 6.8 yards per carry.

The team has at this point clearly given up on the committee approach and have begun featuring their best weapon, as evidenced by CP’s 16 carries (no other running back got more than five). Patterson has been the best waiver wire add in leagues this season, and he looks poised to help fantasy teams make their championship runs.

Dud

Kyle Pitts: 2 catches, 26 receiving yards: 2.6 standard league points; 4.6 PPR points

There’s a lot of unpredictability when relying on a rookie tight end, even the most highly touted rookie tight end in NFL history. Pitts has had his explosion games (119 yards against the Jets and 163 yards against the Dolphins in back to back weeks), and he’s also had games like this one, which were massively underwhelming.

The good news is that the opportunity remains there for the University of Florida product. He was second on the team with six targets and remains a big part of the game plan.

Unless you have Travis Kelce, the tight end position has once again been a major crapshoot in fantasy this season. Despite the poor stat line games, Pitts has still delivered TE1 numbers overall and the dice should continue to be rolled with him moving forward. Opportunity is the only thing we can sustainably chase with tight ends, and the opportunity is there for Pitts in Atlanta’s offense.