ESPN's Marc Raimondi singled out Falcons WR Ray-Ray McCloud III as a "surprise" performer through the team's spring workouts. McCloud signed a two-year, $6 million deal with Atlanta in free agency and was generally expected to primarily return kicks. But McCloud reportedly also worked in with the first team at WR in spring and "performed well, catching passes from [Kirk] Cousins for big plays." McCloud will compete with Rondale Moore and sixth-round rookie Casey Washington for snaps behind lead duo Drake London and Darnell Mooney.
Raimondi: "New offensive coordinator Zac Robinson figures to use many wide receivers."
That last snippet might be the biggest key here. It'll be tough for McCloud or any other Falcons WR beyond London and Mooney to make a significant impact. Targets figure to be spread thin behind those two, TE Kyle Pitts, and RB Bijan Robinson.
McCloud should draw interest if you play in a league that scores return yards, though. He has returned at least 24 punts each of the past four seasons and tallied 599+ kick-return yards in three of those seasons.
The league's big shift in kick-return rules is expected to increase the impact and frequency of those returns this year. Consider anything McCloud can add via offense on top of that a bonus.
None of the three WRs mentioned in the competition for the No. 3 role here is likely to make a dynasty impact. Casey Washington arguably looks most interesting on that front, given that we haven't had a chance yet to see whether he'll contribute limited numbers. (McCloud and Moore have already done so.)
Rondale Moore -- a former second-round pick -- remains the most prominent name of the WR3 competitors. But he looks like a poor bet for fantasy relevance in his new home.
Keep in mind that the Falcons invested more in McCloud this offseason by signing him to a two-year deal. They picked up Moore by merely trading away QB Desmond Ridder, whom the team was clearly done with.
Of course, that doesn't necessarily put McCloud ahead of Moore on the offensive depth chart. We'll see how the competition plays out through summer.
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