Atlanta Falcons: 5 Burning questions for the 2020 season
3. Can Hayden Hurst fill in void left behind at tight end?
One position that 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 broke out to have a career-best season last year and emerged as a reliable target for quarterback Matt Ryan and the Falcons passing game.
This offseason, however, Hooper ended up parting ways with Atlanta when he joined the Cleveland Browns via free agency. That left a big hole in the middle of the field for the Falcons 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.
While getting the chance to step up into a starting role at tight end right away, something Hurst wasn’t able to do in his two seasons in Baltimore while serving as a backup to Mark Andrews on the Ravens depth chart, a large question remains as to if he will be able to properly fill that void left behind by Hooper in the middle of the field for Atlanta.
Hurst, who was selected by the Ravens 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.
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.