Falcons Sign Underwhelming Free Agent Running Back

With both Todd Gurley and Brian Hill becoming unrestricted free agents this offseason, it was clear the Atlanta Falcons were going to have to address the running back position. Heading into next season with Ito Smith as the only back on the roster was obviously not the answer.

But with a ton of big-name running backs available on the market, Falcons fans may be a little disappointed by who the team chose to sign — former Carolina Panther Mike Davis.

Mike Davis Falcons

Davis isn't a bad back by any stretch, but his ceiling appears to be pretty low. He started a career-high 12 games in 2020 thanks to Christian McCaffrey's injury woes, and he tallied 1,015 yards from scrimmage on 224 touches. That included an average of 3.9 yards per carry, which was right in line with his career average of 3.7.

That beat Gurley's mark from last year (3.5), but trailed what both Hill (4.7) and Smith (4.3) managed in Atlanta.

Even though the first year of Davis' deal is fully guaranteed, the low dollar amount does leave the door open for the Falcons to continue addressing the position.

Whether that comes by way of another free agent running back or by drafting a running back with their second-round pick (No. 35 overall), Falcons fans surely have their fingers crossed that a more exciting option will be joining Davis in the backfield.

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Jason Schandl is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Jason Schandl also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username Jaymun. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.