30 players who will avoid bust status with a breakout campaign in 2024

22. Drake London, Atlanta Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons used the draft to invest heavily into the offense. They made a top-10 draft pick at every skill position over the last four years. In fact, seven of their last eight first-round picks have been on offense. The Falcons don’t have much to show for all that. Last year, the Falcons averaged fewer than 19 points per game, which was close to the bottom of the league. 

We’ve talked about Pitts, who absolutely has to show up this season, but the pressure is also on Drake London. It’s actually somewhat surprising there isn’t more pressure on London to perform. He’s going into his third season in the NFL, and his numbers are decent. He had north of 800 yards in his rookie year and beyond 900 yards last season.

Yet, he’s been the focal point of the offense. He’s had more than 110 targets in both seasons. He averaged about 8.2 yards per target, which is not where most would want him to be. It’s not, like, awful, but the Falcons want him to be closer to 9 yards per target. He also has just six total touchdowns. The Falcons dreadful offense (despite the talent) is likely a reason for London’s lack of scoring numbers, 

This season, Arthur Smith is gone, and the Falcons offense has Kirk Cousins and Michael Penix at QB. The excuses are gone. They are setting the skill players up for success. London needs to show he was held back by a bad supporting cast, and he isn’t said supporting cast that was the problem.