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USATSI

The Falcons have been one of the most run-heavy teams in the league so far this season, and they just beat the Browns in Week 4 by completing seven passes. But their running game is about to face a serious test, as we learned Monday that running back Cordarrelle Patterson will be placed on injured reserve with a knee injury, putting him on the shelf for at least the next four games.

Patterson suffered an injury during Week 3 but played through it in Week 4, rushing for 38 yards on nine carries, but he played just five snaps in the second half, and now we know why. He will undergo surgery on the knee, though the exact nature of the injury is is not yet known.

The good news for the Falcons – and for Fantasy players – is that they had two different backup running backs look good in Week 4. Tyler Allgeier rushed 10 times for 84 yards to lead the team and added a 20-yard catch to push him over 100 total yards on the day. Caleb Huntley also saw his first extended action, rushing for 56 yards on 10 carries with a touchdown, much of which came across one drive where Huntley dominated the ball. 

The Falcons have run the ball 131 times through four games, the fifth-most rush attempts in the league. However, they rank just 23rd overall in total offensive plays, so that understates how run-heavy they've been – only the Bears have run on a higher rate of their plays than the Falcons' 55.5% rate. With the mobile Marcus Mariota at quarterback, that makes sense.

I would guess Allgeier will get the first crack at being the lead back for this offense – he has played 31%, 37%, and 44% of the snaps over the past three weeks and is averaging 5.3 yards per carry on the young season. He is 45% rostered right now and figures to be one of the top targets on waivers – I'd prefer him to Mike Boone, even with Javonte Williams suffering a season-ending knee injury. Allgeier's path to lead back status is clearer than Boone's, given the presence of Melvin Gordon.

However, Huntley was a revelation Sunday and figures to have a role. I would expect he'll step into Allgeier's No. 2 RB spot and is worth adding on waivers as well – however, I would target Boone ahead of him, at least. Allgeier is someone I would be willing to spend 30% of my FAB budget on, maybe more, if I needed an RB, while Huntley is more of a 5-10% flier. 

But he could be good. This Falcons offense clearly wants to establish the run, and with Mariota there, they've found quite a bit of running room for their running backs in the early going. This injury may lead to the Falcons being more pass-heavy if Allgeier and Huntley can't get it done, but I think Arther Smith will give this duo every chance to carry the load for Atlanta for the foreseeable future. That's what you're looking for on waivers.