Falcons at Saints: 5 best fantasy options

The New Orleans Saints host the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football in Week 3. Here are the five guys from this game to start in your fantasy league.

The last game of Week 3 might be one of the most exciting, as the New Orleans Saints (0-2) host their arch rival in the Atlanta Falcons (1-1) for an NFC South rivalry game on Monday Night Football.

These two teams hate each other and this should be a high-scoring affair in the Big Easy. Neither team has elite defensive personnel, but do have themselves offenses more than capable of winning shootouts. Like most games in this rivalry series, the team with the ball last will win the game, as it should be decided by only one score.

This is a game to keep an eye on in Week 3 for your fantasy team. Both NFC South teams have dynamic players on the offensive side of the ball that are going to help you win this week. Here are the five players from the Falcons/Saints game to start on your fantasy football team.

Aug 11, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons running back Devonta Freeman (24) runs the ball against the Washington Redskins in the first quarter at the Georgia Dome. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

5. Devonta Freeman

Falcons Pro Bowl running back Devonta Freeman has been relatively quiet the first two weeks of 2016. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers did a stellar job of slowing the Falcons’ rushing attack in Week 1. In Week 2 against the Oakland Raiders, it was Tevin Coleman that did most of the damage in the Falcons backfield.

Look for Freeman to have a big day against a weak Saints defense on the ground. ESPN.com leagues project Freeman to garner only 10.5 points, but NFL.com leagues seem him as a better play in Week 3 with 16.10 projected points.

What a lot of people are overlooking with the 2016 Falcons is that they may have a top-five offense this season. Atlanta has one of the best offensive lines in football. Center Alex Mack is a welcomed addition to Kyle Shanahan’s zone blocking scheme. Tackles Jake Matthews and Ryan Schraeder are one of the best tandems at setting the edge. Atlanta is weakest at guard, but are still are still versatile in both pass protection and run blocking.

Freeman showed in year two that he can be a featured back in the NFL He usually plays his best ball in the second half once the opposing defense tires. Expect him to have 125 all-purpose yards and one of the Falcons’ many touchdowns in this one.

Sep 11, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints wide receiver Brandin Cooks (10) celebrates his second quarter touchdown catch against the Oakland Raiders at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

4. Brandin Cooks

2016 might be the year that New Orleans Saints star wide receiver Brandin Cooks asserts himself as a top-10 receiver in football. He’s become the best offensive weapon Saints quarterback Drew Brees has to work with.

Cooks is adept at making big plays vertically, as well as possession receiving. Depending on if Falcons defensive coordinator Richard Smith has his star cornerback Desmond Trufant track Cooks all night, the Saints wideout might have one of his best games on the season.

Atlanta really only has one elite defensive player in Trufant. The secondary plays hard, but like most of the Falcons defense, is undermanned. If Smith decides to deploy Trufant to strictly one side of the field, Cooks is going to have a field day against the rest of the Falcons secondary.

ESPN.com projects Cooks to have 9.8 fantasy points, while NFL.com has him garnering 16.10. The NFL.com projected point total feels about right for Cooks in this one. He’s looking at a 100-yard receiving game and a convincing touchdown on a lackluster Falcons defense.

Sep 18, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones (11) reacts after the Falcons scored a touchdown against the Oakland Raiders in the third quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. The Falcons defeated the Raiders 35-28. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

3. Julio Jones

Though he’s not going to have the best fantasy day of anybody on Monday Night Football in Week 3, Julio Jones is the best player on the field in the Falcons/Saints game and it isn’t even close. Brees is the better player in the history of the game, but Jones is in his prime as a top-three wideout in the NFL.

He and Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan have developed an outstanding rapport in Shanahan’s West Coast system. Jones can possession receive, stretch the field, and be effective in the short passing game. Jones is as complete of a receiver as there is in football today. He does everything correctly for the Falcons offense.

ESPN.com has Jones projected to get 14.9 points and NFL.com has him with 9.3. The Saints secondary is terrible and he is one of the best wideouts in the NFL today. Expect him to have close to 10 catches for over 100 receiving yards.

Though the Saints played a committed effort defensively against the New York Giants in Week 2, Jones is the more consistent playmaking that Giants wideout Odell Beckham, Jr. Jones and Cooks are going to have big days on Monday Night Football.

The slight edge goes to Jones because Trufant will mitigate a few big passing plays to Cooks for the Saints. This feels like a game where Jones can easily eclipse 16 fantasy points. He doesn’t have to score a touchdown to affect the game’s outcome.

Sep 18, 2016; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) fourth quarter against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

2. Drew Brees

Drew Brees is going to have an outstanding day for the Saints on Monday Night Football. He’s playing at home against his biggest rival in the Falcons. He and Matt Ryan elevate each other’s play under center in this rivalry series.

ESPN.com has Brees getting 18.5 fantasy points, while NFL.com has him earning 13.62 points. Those totals seem far too low, as Brees routinely achieves 20+ points each week in fantasy. All the guy does is throw for yards and touchdowns.

The only thing that can derail either quarterback in this game are turnovers. Both Brees and Ryan are incredibly accurate passers that throw for over 250 yards weekly. Brees is adept at orchestrating game-winning drives, as well as playing well from behind in a no-huddle offense.

Expect Brees to throw for over 300 yards on Monday night. He’ll probably have at least two touchdown passes. If he avoids throwing interceptions, this feels like a game where Brees can have around 25 fantasy points.

September 18, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (2) passes the football against Oakland Raiders defensive end Jihad Ward (95) during the first quarter at Oakland Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

1. Matt Ryan

Through the first two weeks of the 2016 NFL season, Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan has been the sport’s best fantasy player. Ryan has completed 72.6% of his passes for 730 yards, five touchdowns, and one bad interception. His 10.0 yards per attempt is outstanding and he has 50.2 fantasy points on the year.

Atlanta needs to win this game to avoid going 1-7 in its first eight NFC South games during the Dan Quinn era. For that to not happen, Ryan needs to play like a Pro Bowler. It’s early in the year, but it seems like he has an exponentially better feel for Shanahan’s West Coast system than he did all of 2015. Having Mohamed Sanu as the No. 2 wideout to Julio Jones is paying off in dividends for Ryan’s play this season.

Sure, it’s a hostile road environment, but Ryan has played in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome many times before. ESPN.com projects him to have 18.2 fantasy points, while NFL.com has him getting 15.38.

Like Brees, if he can limit turnovers, Ryan is poised to have a 25+ fantasy point day on Monday night. He seems like a lock to throw for over 300 yards. Atlanta looked vastly improved in the red zone in Week 2 against the Raiders. 300 passing yards and three touchdowns gets Ryan to 24 points easily. He’ll have eight days to prepare this game. Ryan will be ready.