
AJ McCarron
QB - FA
2023 Outlook
Atlanta Falcons QB AJ McCarron (knee) suffered a torn ACL in his right knee during a 37-17 preseason Week 2 loss against the Miami Dolphins on Saturday.
Fantasy Impact
McCarron suffered the torn ACL after being tackled on a seven-yard scramble. The Falcons are left with a shallow depth chart behind aging veteran Matt Ryan, as rookie Feleipe Franks is athletic and mobile but has not shown strong competency with his passing ability during the preseason. However, the roster has supreme talent at the wide receiver and tight end positions, which means passing will likely be the offensive identity. New head coach Arthur Smith's history of a run-centric offense with the Tennessee Titans should be ignored, as the personnel in Atlanta is much different. Ryan led the league in pass attempts in 2020, so expect a similar offensive scheme in 2021.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reports Falcons QB AJ McCarron suffered a "significant" knee injury in Week 2 of the preseason.
Fantasy Impact
There's no diagnosis yet but it already sounds as if McCarron's season could be in jeopardy. UDFA Feleipe Franks is currently the team's No. 3 QB behind Matt Ryan and McCarron.
Atlanta Falcons QB AJ McCarron completed 5-of-12 pass attempts for 36 yards and an interception, adding 11 rushing yards on two carries in a 23-3 loss against the Tennessee Titans on Friday.
Fantasy Impact
McCarron signed with Atlanta this offseason, making it his fourth team in a seven-year career. The 30-year old quarterback has a 2-2 record as a starter throughout his career, playing his best football back in 2015 during his rookie season with the Bengals. McCarron failed to complete half of his passing attempts on Friday against the Titans, throwing an interception on third-and-long at the end of the first quarter that capped a poor showing for the career back-up.
The Atlanta Falcons have agreed to terms with QB AJ McCarron.
Fantasy Impact
There were some rumors of the Falcons considering taking a quarterback with the No. 4 overall pick on Thursday, but they instead chose to add another offensive weapon for Matt Ryan in tight end Kyle Pitts. This signing of McCarron shows that the Falcons remain committed to Ryan for the near future and may not address the position early on day two of the NFL draft.
AJ McCarron completed 21 of 36 passes for 225 yards and an interception in the team's Week 17 loss to the Titans. He added five rushes for 39 yards and a score.
Fantasy Impact
McCarron received his first start since 2015 with Deshaun Watson getting the day off. The Texans decided to rest some starters with their playoff matchup having already decided. McCarron will back into a backup role once the playoffs start.