Rams vs. Falcons: Fantasy Football Implications

For many of us, fantasy football is nearly as important as real football. If you're reasonably skilled in drafting your fantasy team, it's likely that you have some Falcons on your roster, and you might even have some Rams in the mix. Let's take a look at the implications of this week's real life matchup on your fantasy team.

Start:

Steven Jackson: Jackson didn't blow anyone out of the water with his numbers last week, managing 77 yards on just 11 carries, and no touchdowns. Jackson does have an unusual familiarity with the St. Louis defense, and Yahoo Fantasy Football has Jackson projected for 13.75 points this week.

Tony Gonzalez: Roddy White is still nursing the high ankle sprain that has plagued him for the last few weeks, and Julio Jones spent this week at varying degrees on the injury report with a knee injury. Neither will be 100%. If both Jones and White are limited on Sunday, Tony Gonzalez may see a lot of targets. Gonzalez finished week one with 9.6 fantasy points from Yahoo Fantasy Football, with 36 receiving yards and a touchdown. He's projected for just 8.65 points this week, but conditions are favorable for him to have more of an impact.

Matt Bryant: Seriously, if you have Matt Bryant on your team, you should always start him. This isn't even a discussion. Bryant scored five fantasy points in last week's uncharacteristically low-scoring game against New Orleans, and is projected for 9.30 fantasy points this week by Yahoo Fantasy Football. That's more than Tony Gonzalez is projected to score this week.

Jared Cook: Look, it's not pleasant to acknowledge this, but Atlanta's defense is an extremely favorable matchup for tight ends in general. It has been a consistent struggle for the Falcons to cover and contain tight ends. Cook is coming off of a huge week against Arizona, scoring 24.10 fantasy points with 141 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Yahoo Fantasy Football has him projected at just 7.25 points this week, but expect more out of Cook against the Falcons.

Sit:

Roddy White: White is arguably one of the toughest players in the league, and rarely misses time, and it's likely that he'll take the field this Sunday. We saw last week how severely the lingering high ankle sprain is limiting White on the field, as he finished the day with just 19 receiving yards, breaking the hearts of fantasy owners everywhere, mine included. We'll all be delighted if White comes out and puts up huge fantasy numbers against the Rams, but you can't count on it. Yahoo Fantasy Football has Roddy projected at 8.58 points, but that's a long shot. Sit White until that ankle is farther along in the healing process.

Sam Bradford: Bradford had a strong performance against the Arizona Cardinals last week, thanks in part to a strong showing from tight end Jared Cook. Last week Bradford managed 21.06 fantasy points on Yahoo Fantasy Football, and this week he is projected at 15.29. The issue is, Atlanta's secondary in particular was pretty tough against Drew Brees last week, and Bradford is no Drew Brees.

Which Falcons or Rams players are you starting this week, and which players are you sitting?