Getty Wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus No. 17 of the Atlanta Falcons.
The Atlanta Falcons may have fallen short to the Washington Commanders on Sunday, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t any bright spots to come out of the 19-13 loss.
Falcons’ four-year veteran wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus brought his A-game and logged a season-high of five receptions for 91 yards, for an average of 18.2 yards per catch.
With Kyle Pitts sidelined, Zaccheaus was forced to step up into a larger role in Atlanta’s offense. Which, clearly, he did his job just fine as all five of his catches resulted in a first down and ultimately put the Falcons in a winning position.
Although the Falcons rely heavily on the run game, it was comforting for quarterback Marcus Mariota to have options.
“It’s tough. It’s tough without Kyle, right?” Mariota said, via AtlantaFalcons.com. “He’s just an unbelievable player and I thought multiple guys stepped up into that role. You have to when you’re replacing a guy like Kyle, whether it’s (Zaccheaus), whether it’s (MyCole Pruitt), and (Anthony Firkser). I thought our guys came out and filled that role nicely. Unfortunately, we just didn’t make enough plays.”
Zaccheaus Warned Public Not to Sleep on Atlanta
The Atlanta Falcons entered the 2022 season with a lot of new names on the roster and a lot of doubt.
However, one person who had zero doubt in Atlanta was Zaccheaus.
“I feel like we’re a playoff team,” Zaccheaus told D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution back in June. “We just (have) to put everything together. Really start fast at the beginning of the season and not get into a hole. I just feel like as a team, we can shock a lot of people.”
The Falcons, 5-7, may have dug themselves into a small hole entering Week 13. However, that doesn’t mean they are out of the playoff race just yet––special thanks to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for losing their Week 12 matchup against the Cleveland Browns.
But while they’re still in the hunt, they have no choice but to finish strong at the tail end of their schedule strong.
Zaccheaus Outdoing 2021 Season
Zaccheaus joined the Falcons as an undrafted free agent out of Virginia in 2019. He finished his rookie year with three receptions for 115 yards and a score. He also added two tackles and a fumble recovery for a touchdown on special teams.
With the absence of Julio Jones, Zaccheaus saw his production increase in 2020, when he recorded his first 100-yard game. While playing in 11 games, he had 20 receptions for 274 yards and one touchdown. Zaccheaus’s best season, prior to 2022, was in 2021, when logged career-highs of 31 receptions for 406 yards and three touchdowns.
Zaccheaus now leads Atlanta’s receiving corps with 30 receptions for 465 yards, two touchdowns with an average of 15.5 yards per catch.
Sure, Zaccheaus is having a successful season, but to him, “understanding” and “assessing” is more important than the numbers he puts up.
“I think for me, it’s just understanding what they’re in and understanding the concepts,” he said, via AtlantaFalcons.com. “Just understanding where people might be when you catch the ball and just kind of taking a picture of where you catch the ball and assessing after that.”