The Atlanta Falcons got some good news Monday when Julio Jones and Grady Jarrett reported to mandatory minicamp. But unfortunately, they're also dealing with a few minor injuries. Jones is being held out of drills with a foot injury, and now we have word that tight end Austin Hooper is a bit banged up as well.
Hooper is dealing with an ankle injury that will sideline him for all of minicamp, per Jason Butt of The Athletic. Thankfully, “Hooper's injury is not serious and he is expected to be ready for training camp,” Butt reports.
While it certainly doesn't sound too serious, it's not what Hooper needs right now as he looks to build on a solid if not spectacular season.
Drafted in the third round back in 2016, Hooper has been an offseason darling seemingly every year now. He's always been talented, but hasn't been able to turn that talent into production consistently. He had a few big weeks in 2017, which had everyone excited heading into last year.
He started the season off slow, but ended up having some big weeks in the middle of the campaign. Overall he finished with 71 catches for 660 yards and four touchdowns. He had the 71 catches on just 88 targets, and he's always been very efficient in that regard.
He ended up making the Pro Bowl as an alternate, but it still felt like he underachieved a little bit. Hooper has the potential to be one of the best receiving tight ends in the game, and this will be a very pivotal season for him.
He's set to be a free agent after this year, and if he can have a good season he should be in for a massive payday next March.
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