Team news: Atlanta Falcons | Page 8

Cardinals ruled out WR AJ Green for Sunday’s game versus the Panthers due to a hamstring injury and are listing WRs Marquise Brown (foot) and Rondale Moore (hamstring) as questionable.

Related Players: Greg Dortch

Greg Dortch has become a surprising name to emerge in fantasy circles as Arizona deals with injuries and the DeAndre Hopkins suspension. The 24-year-old has racked up 23 targets through three weeks and can still be considered a WR3 regardless of Randale Moore's status.

Wide receiver Rondale Moore could be back in the lineup for the Cardinals this week.

Moore has missed the first three games of the year after hurting his hamstring days before the season opener, but he has taken a big step toward returning to action. Moore took part in practice on Wednesday for the first time since his injury.

Related players: Greg Dortch

Word from the team on his participation level will come later in the day, the story said, but any work is obviously a move in the right direction for a Cardinals team that has struggled to put points on the board outside of a strong finish against the Raiders in Week 2. Owners will need to monitor the situation as Moore could end up on a pitch count if he does play in Week 4. His return could affect Dortch's usage.

The Falcons are trying to scheme for Kyle Pitts – a source told ESPN that 13 of Atlanta’s passing plays Sunday had Pitts as the primary target – the production just hasn’t come yet.

The story went on to say Pitts has to win his matchups better. He openly admitted that Sunday, and according to NFL Next Gen Stats, his average yards of separation when the ball arrives is 2.11 yards – No. 27 among qualifying tight ends and No. 138 among all pass-catchers, between Baltimore wide receiver Devin Duvernay and Jacksonville receiver Zay Jones. Sometimes the quarterback, Marcus Mariota, sees something else. Defenses are paying attention to Pitts, too, it went on to say.

Sophomore WR Rondale Moore is one of a handful of players who have already been ruled out for Sunday's contest.

Related Players: Greg Dortch, A.J. Green

Kyler Murray's skill position group will be limited once again, as the 3-WR set appears to be Marquise Brown, Greg Dortch, and A.J. Green. Though Greg Dortch was a pleasant surprise in Week 1, Green's 0.42 yards per route run ranked 84th out of 89 qualifying wide receivers.

Things aren't looking good for George Kittle to return for the 49ers in Week 2, stemming from a groin injury suffered ahead of the team's opening game in Chicago.

Related Players: Ross Dwelley, Tyler Kroft

Unlike other situations around the league (the Raiders, for example) there is no plug-and-play option for the 49ers in regards to the tight end position. The team schemes plays for George Kittle himself, not necessarily the position. Trey Lance can run himself into fantasy relevance regardless, but his ceiling is lowered without one of the best play-making TEs in the league, if Kittle were to miss another week of action.

49ers TE George Kittle (groin) will not return to practice today, per Kyle Shanahan.

Related players: Tyler Kroft, Ross Dwelley

Kittle didn't play in Week 1 after being listed as questionable. However he didn't practice all last week and this week now isn't off to a good start. It was a sloppy Week 1 game but the Niners didn't get much out of their TE position as Kroft and Dwelley each had one catch.

Saints WR Michael Thomas (hamstring) and Falcons WR Drake London (knee) are both expected to play in Sunday's game in Atlanta.

Both were listed as questionable as both were limited all week. But both seem ready to roll in Sunday's early NFC South matchup. Thomas will be playing his first game since the Saints' playoff loss against the Buccaneers after the 2020 season. With Chris Olave and Jarvis Landry in the mix, the Saints can take it easy if they need to with Thomas, but you know Thomas is eager to get out on the field for a regular-season game. Thomas is currently our No. 30 WR this week.

As for London, he can be a tricky start. Between the injury and his first NFL start against a strong Saints defense, he's a bit of a risky start. Kyle Pitts will likely see a chunk of the targets. The Falcons can also mix in Olamide Zaccheaus and KhaDarel Hodge. London checks in at No. 48 on the half-PPR WR rankings.