The fantasy community is overreacting to the sudden emergence of Cordarelle Patterson. Stash Mike Davis for later. Patterson and Davis can co-exist in the same Atlanta Falcons backfield, but they hurt each other in fantasy value. Patterson is eligible to be slotted into the running back position on most platforms, so he has extreme value.
Stash Mike Davis If Available in Fantasy
Scoop up Davis in an instant if he got dropped in your league. Davis is just above the cut line for being droppable in most standard fantasy leagues. Davis has scored an average of 11 fantasy points per week in standard fantasy leagues. Keeping him on your roster could pay dividends as bye week replacement weeks are approaching.
This 2021 season has been full of running back injuries, so keeping healthy running backs on your roster is a good idea. If someone dropped Davis and you have an extra roster spot, stash him away for now. Someone’s trash can turn into a valuable piece of gold later in the season. Davis may not be the same player he was in Carolina, but he certainly could get make a few big plays and anger the owners who trashed him after just four games.
Cordarelle Patterson Effect
Davis and Patterson are often on the field at the same time. Davis has been hit behind the line of scrimmage many times and is not a shifty running back. Patterson is a hybrid player who is the kick returner, lines up as a receiver, and takes snaps at running back.
Patterson can take the ball to the house on any given play. He has the perfect combination of field vision, and acceleration to make NFL players break their ankles when attempting to tackle him. If the Falcons are down a few scores in a game, the offense changes to a pass-happy system which hurts Mike Davis.
Changing Your Expectations
We have seen four weeks of football now, and it is a bit easier to digest what happens going forward. From a projection standpoint, Davis is not the bell-cow running back that he projected to be. Davis overperformed last season with the Carolina Panthers after the Christian McCaffrey injury. Davis finished the 2020 regular season as the 18th best running back in fantasy football with 235 touches.
Offensive weapons like Calvin Ridley (out week 5) and Kyle Pitts have been wildly invisible this year. Matt Ryan will figure out how to get these two receivers involved which will open up the offense. Pushing the ball into the red zone is not easy with a struggling offensive line, but a few tweaks can go a long way. A good passing game opens up a good running game.
2nd/3rd and short opportunities are about all Davis have gotten in the second half of all of these first four games. The opposing defense knows that Davis is getting the ball in those situations, which is hard on Davis.
The hope is that the offense gets better, which opens the team up to more positive game scripts. Being in panic mode in the 2nd half of most games leads the Falcons into neglecting Mike Davis. Keeping the game close is going to give Davis more opportunities. What the Falcons have been doing thus far lead to four straight losses, so maybe the coaching staff tries to be more competitive. If this happens, Davis’s fantasy season could completely turn around.
Cordarelle Patterson vs. Mike Davis Statistical Breakdown
Cordarelle Patterson’s statistics through the first four weeks of the regular season are:
- Rushing attempts: 27
- Rushing yards: 119
- Yards per carry: 4.41
- Rushing touchdowns: 1
- Receptions: 18
- Targets: 18
- Receiving yards: 235
- Receiving touchdowns: 4
- Snap Percentage: 34%
- Fantasy Rostered Percentage: 89.1%
- Fantasy Points: 82.4
Mike Davis’s statistics through the first four weeks of the regular season are:
- Rushing attempts: 49
- Rushing yards: 159
- Yards per carry: 3.08
- Rushing touchdowns: 0
- Receptions: 16
- Targets: 19
- Receiving yards: 80
- Receiving touchdowns: 1
- Snap Percentage: 67%
- Fantasy Rostered Percentage: 97.9%
- Fantasy Points: 45.1
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
