Atlanta Falcons: 3 Early breakout candidates on offense for 2020
1. Hayden Hurst, TE
A position that stepped up and became a big part of the offense in Atlanta during the 2019 season came at the tight end position and most notably from Austin Hooper.
Hooper had a career year in Atlanta a season ago but ended up parting ways with the Falcons this offseason when he joined the Cleveland Browns via free agency. That left a big hole in the middle of the field for Atlanta that it needed to find a player to fill that need ahead of the new year.
Shortly after Hooper moved on from the Falcons, Atlanta went out and quickly traded for his replacement when it acquired tight end Hayden Hurst from the Baltimore Ravens.
Hurst will immediately get a chance to step into a starting role at tight end, something he wasn’t able to do in his two seasons in Baltimore while serving as a backup to Mark Andrews on the Ravens depth chart.
Hurst, who was selected by Baltimore in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft, will be entering his third season in the league this season while providing Atlanta with a nice young player at the position both this season and beyond.
During the 2019 season last year, Hurst put together his best season to date while appearing in all 16 contests for Baltimore. He ended the year with 30 receptions on 39 overall targets, recording a career-high 349 yards receiving and two touchdowns within an offense led by Lamar Jackson and company.
While being a backup for the entirety of his young professional career, Hurst will be a breakout candidate on the offensive side of the ball for the Falcons this season while taking over starting role duties and being thrown into yet another top-notch offense alongside Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley and Todd Gurley, among others.
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It will be interesting to see if Hurst, who will turn 27 years old in August, will be able to become that red zone threat and target in the middle of the field that Hooper became in 2019. If he is able to become a similar player, watch out for Hurst in Atlanta.