Team news: Atlanta Falcons

The Cardinals are trading WR Rondale Moore to the Falcons for QB Desmond Ridder.

Related Players: Drake London, Darnell Mooney

Moore should slot in as the WR3, and will likely be used in a gadget-y role every so often. That won't be enough for fantasy relevance, and the team could still add a piece through the NFL Draft for Kirk Cousins.

The Falcons are signing Bears WR Darnell Mooney, giving them a key new playmaker for Kirk Cousins. Mooney gets a 3-year, $39M deal with $26M fully guaranteed.

Related Players: Drake London

This gives Atlanta a nice tertiary piece in a wide receiver room that is barren outside of Drake London at the moment. It may not be at No. 8, but there's no chance the Falcons leave the draft without at least one wide receiver after getting Kirk Cousins. Mooney's fantasy outlook will hinge on how many more guys they add between now and Week 1.

Kirk Cousins, the top free-agent QB on the market, has agreed to terms with the Atlanta Falcons, per sources. The Vikings pushed strongly for Cousins’s services, but in the end, the Falcons were going to go as far as they needed to make this happen.

Cousins provides an immediate upgrade to the entire Atlanta Falcons offense, spiking the value of Drake London, Kyle Pitts, and Bijan Robinson. The quarterback should be his usual QB1/QB2 fringe fantasy option in his new home.

Regardless of who the Vikings end up with to replace him will be a downgrade, lowering the stock of Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.

WR Hollywood Brown will go on IR with heel injury. Ends Brown’s season.

QB Kyler Murray will be back at practice today and should be fine to play Sunday.

Related Players: Michael Wilson, Rondale Moore, Greg Dortch, Trey McBride

With Brown out here in Week 17, the best way to use the Cardinals receiving group is to just stick with Trey McBride and ignore the rest.

Bears practice report:

DNP: Darnell Mooney, Cole Kmet
Limited: Lucas Patrick
Full: Teven Jenkins, Noah Sewell, Equanimeous St. Brown

Related Players: D.J. Moore, Byron Pringle, Dante Pettis, Robert Tonyan

Justin Fields' legs yet again saved a mediocre passing game last week, and it looks like he may have to do without some of his best weapons yet again. D.J. Moore should be peppered with targets upon his return, which will make him a safe WR2 for Championship Week.

Cardinals WR Marquise Brown will not play Sunday in Chicago, coach Jonathan Gannon said.

He also said CB Garrett Williams and CB Bobby Price won’t play, as well.

Related Players: Michael Wilson, Rondale Moore, Greg Dortch

Hollywood Brown popped for 12 targets and 88 yards back in Week 12 but has combined for a total of 60 snaps, three targets, and zero receptions in the two following games. It will be difficult to trust him for the rest of the season in fantasy.

In open part of Cardinals practice, WR Hollywood Brown was not out there. Jonathan Gannon said earlier they need a healthy Brown "to help us win."

Also not spotted:
ILB Josh Woods
WR Greg Dortch

Related Players: Michael Wilson, Rondale Moore, Greg Dortch

Hollywood Brown popped for 12 targets and 88 yards back in Week 12 but has combined for a total of 60 snaps, three targets, and zero receptions in the two following games. Even if he is cleared ahead of Week 16, it will be nearly impossible to trust him in the fantasy Semi-Finals.

The plan for the Falcons moving forward is to have Taylor Heinicke start the final three games of the season, per Arthur Smith. Desmond Ridder will be his backup.

The Falcons quarterback room continues to be a flip-floppy mess. Heinicke came in as relief during Week 8, only to be re-benched two weeks later, producing minimal fantasy success with his brief time on the field. The Falcons don't have the easiest defensive road the next two weeks, so he is unlikely to come back on the fantasy radar.

According to TheAthletic.com, the Falcons will be starting Taylor Heinicke against the Colts. It would be the second time that Smith and the Falcons have benched Ridder in favor of Heinicke this season.

Related players: Desmond Ridder

Falcons head coach Arthur Smith said on Monday that he was considering a quarterback change after the team fell to 6-8 with a 9-7 loss to the Panthers. Smith said following the bye he wanted to stick with Ridder after previously going back and forth over a span of a few weeks. But the Falcons will again make a switch after Ridder threw a terrible INT on a potential game-winning drive in what was a must-win game against the Panthers.

Arthur Smith said at a Monday press conference that he is still considering what direction to go at quarterback for their Week 16 matchup with the Colts. Logan Woodside is also on the roster, but Smith said that Taylor Heinicke is the only choice other than Desmond Ridder for this week.

Following their bye, the team went back to Ridder because they didn't want to keep switching QBs week-to-week. But as the story said, Ridder threw a brutal interception at a key point in the game and that may be enough for the team to make yet another change. We'll hopefully know more by Wednesday.