The Falcons hope to see their offensive production rebound in 2018 and a couple of players aren’t waiting for the offseason program to start working toward that goal.
Tight end Austin Hooper is in Atlanta rather than spending time at home in California so that he and quarterback Matt Ryan can get in more work together. They are working on their timing after a 2017 season that saw Hooper catch 49 passes for 526 yards and three touchdowns.
Hooper hopes to increase his workload in the red zone, which was a problem across the board for the Falcons in 2018, and said he isn’t worried about the team looking for outside help at the position after releasing Levine Toilolo.
“It’s not my decision to make,” Hooper said, via ESPN.com. “All I can control at the end of the day is just improving every single day. If the organization wants to bring in a free agent or draft somebody, whatever their plan is, that’s their prerogative. It’s the organization. I’m sure they have the best intentions in mind in dealing with personnel.”
Improving the offensive output in Year Two with offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian will involve more than a bigger role for Hooper, but there’s no bad place to start the work necessary to realize that improvement.