Michael Jenkins

Jenkins likely enters the preseason as the leading candidate for the No. 2 receiver job while Jerome Simpson misses three games due to a suspension, but faces stiff competition from Devin Aromashodu and Greg Childs. Jenkins missed the final five games of last season due to a torn meniscus and had surgery over the winter. He was slowed by the injury in spring practices, so watch his health during training camp.

After trading the farm to move up and draft Julio Jones, the Falcons decided to cut bait with Jenkins, who had his lowest totals in four years (41 receptions, 505 yards and two touchdowns). He moves onto the Vikings, who where he will be one of the many mediocre (other than Percy Harvin) options for new quarterback Donovan McNabb. Jenkins will likely line up as a third receiver behind Harvin and Bernard Berrian, but with Adrian Peterson in town, Jenkins likely won't have a big impact in fantasy leagues this season.

Jenkins caught 50 passes in each of the last two seasons but his yards and touchdowns both declined last year. He is a consistent #2 receiver for the Falcons but not much more than a #3 for your fantasy team. The Falcons have Harry Douglas back from injury and drafted Kerry Meier to further limit Jenkins' value.

With Matt Ryan, Roddy White and Michael Turner all experiencing breakouts last year, it’s easy to overlook Jenkins, a former first-round draft pick, who more than pulled his weight as the No. 2 receiver on a run-heavy team. Jenkins averaged 9.6 yards per target (good for 5th among all receivers with 80 or more looks – and incidentally slightly more than White) and 15.5 yards per catch. At 6-4, 215, Jenkins has ideal red-zone size, but the Falcons only targeted him 10 times there, and only one of those was from inside the 10. With Tony Gonzalez now in the mix, and White also getting his share of in-close looks (16 last year), we don’t expect that to change significantly in 2009. Jenkins has decent downfield speed and above-average athleticism, but he lacks explosion and isn’t particularly quick in and out of breaks. With teams focused on stopping the Falcons’ more prominent players, he’ll see a lot of man coverage and is a good bet to make the most of his targets once again. Just don’t expect him to see a big increase in them.

Jenkins had as break-out of a year he could in 2007 after being some what of a fantasy bust in his first two seasons. He caught a career-high 53 passes with four touchdowns, including two nine-catch games late in the season. He's a big target, but should not be much of a deep threat in 2008 on account of the below average quarterback squadron the Falcons will trot out. However, Jenkins has hardly hit his full potential, so he may still shock us all.

Jenkins was Atlanta’s No. 1 option at receiver last season, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at his numbers. He never eclipsed the 100-yard mark or recorded more than four receptions in a game. In fact, he didn’t even surpass 150 yards receiving in any month of the season. Yet despite the subpar stats, there’s hope for Jenkins in 2007. He did grab seven touchdowns last year, using his 6-5 frame to become a fairly reliable redzone target. With new coach Bobby Petrino installing a fresh offensive system, Jenkins could see a rise in productivity. However, there’s also a chance his numbers could remain static or even drop, thanks to the likelihood that the receiving duties will be split fairly evenly between Jenkins, Joe Horn, Roddy White and tight end Alge Crumpler. Jenkins provides decent value late in fantasy drafts because of his upside, but in three years of NFL action he’s yet to live up to his potential.

Tall, sure-handed receiver who should see increased red zone targets with the loss of Brian Finneran to a season-ending knee injury. Entering his third season, Jenkins is worth a pick in the later rounds of fantasy drafts.

Jenkins was a non-factor in 2004 but has done some maturing in the offseason. He has developed to the point where he will battle with incumbent Peerless Price for starting duties but considering this offense has a run-first mindset, his fantasy production will be limited.

Jenkins could develop into a nice complement to Peerless Price and though we don't expect monster numbers from him in 2004, he should be an immediate contributor to what could be a dynamic Falcons offense.