Week 7 vs. New York Giants
Tavon Austin rushed three times for two yards and caught three-of-four targets for 24 yards in the Rams Week 6 loss to the Lions. On a day when Case Keenum passed for over 300 yards, Austin barely made a blip on the stats sheet. After forcing the ball to Austin early, he and the rest of the Rams position players took a back seat to Kenny Britt, who went off for 136 yards and two touchdowns.
Austin remains a boom-or-bust fantasy option. The Rams will continue to manufacture opportunities for him and he'll have games where he makes highlight-reel plays. That said, he's a risky start each week because he's just as capable of producing a dud. Ranked as our WR40 for Week 7, view Austin as a WR4 for the Rams date with the Giants in London on Sunday morning.
Week 6 at Detroit
Tavon Austin caught seven-of-10 targets for 59 yards while also rushing three times for an additional 26 yards in the Rams Week 5 loss to the Bills. The 10 targets were a season high, but most of his yardage came on one 31-yard reception in the second quarter. He continues to be a heavy part of the Rams game plan, but his production output remains low, as he’s turned 46 targets into 23 catches for 218 yards with one touchdown. Ranked as our WR27 for Week 6, view Austin as a boom-or-bust FLEX option against a Lions team that ranks as fantasy’s No. 26 defense versus wide receivers.
Week 5 vs. Buffalo
Tavon Austin caught two-of-six targets for 14 yards while also adding one rush for negative six yards in the Rams' Week 4 win over the Cardinals. His biggest contribution came from a 47-yard punt return late in the fourth quarter that helped set up the Rams for their game-winning score. Austin's receiving yardage per game looks like this: 13, 50, 82 and 14. He is as unreliable in fantasy as he's ever been and while he might have a breakout game or two coming, he's too much of a risk to be in your starting lineup. Ranked as our WR35, avoid Austin in the Rams' Week 5 matchup with the Bills.
Week 4 at Arizona
Tavon Austin caught 5-of-8 targets for 82 yards and a touchdown in the Rams’ Week 3 win over the Bucs. The touchdown came in the fourth quarter when Austin got behind safety Chris Conte. It was the receiver’s best game of 2016, but he remains a boom-or-bust fantasy player moving forward. Offensive coordinator Rob Boras continues to manufacture touches for Austin, but his inability to create space for himself down the field limits his potential. Ranked as our WR31 for Week 4, view Austin as a WR4 against an excellent Cardinals defense.
Week 3 at Tampa Bay
Tavon Austin caught 5-of-9 targets for 50 yards in the Rams’ Week 2 win over the Seahawks. It was a more productive day for the receiver than the 4-13-0 stat line that he posted against the 49ers in Week 1, but 27 of those 50 yards also came on one catch. Rob Boras continues to target Austin in the passing game, but the results from those targets are pitiful. Ranked as our WR55 for Week 3, avoid Austin in Tampa.
Week 2 vs. Seattle
Along with the rest of the Rams offense on Monday night in Santa Clara, Tavon Austin was woefully ineffective during the team's 28-0 loss to the 49ers. Austin turned 12 targets into just four catches for 13 yards.
Austin is too small to win contested passes down the field so offensive coordinator Rob Boras is left to manufacture touches for the 5-foot-8 receiver around the line of scrimmage. With no threats outside the numbers, defenses can key on Austin in the slot and swarm to the ball when he does make the catch.
Ranked as our WR48 for Week 2, avoid Austin against the Seahawks. In fact, if you need a roster spot this week, make Austin someone else's problem by dumping him on the waiver wire. He's going to be a boom-or-bust all season long and without a decent quarterback or a creative offensive coordinator, he'll often be more "bust" than "boom."
Week 1 at San Francisco
Tavon Austin caught a career-high 52 passes for 473 yards and five touchdowns in 2015, while rushing 52 times for 434 yards and four additional scores. That production was apparently enough for the Rams to feel comfortable handing Austin a four-year, $42 million extension this offseason. Austin remains a home run threat, but a player the Rams have to manufacture touches for because he's not big enough to win contested passes down the field. Ranked as our WR44, view Austin as a WR4 for Week 1.
Fantasy Upside
Tavon Austin is coming off his best season as a pro. He caught more passes (52) for more yards (473) and scored more touchdowns (5) in 2015 than at any point his career. He also rushed for more yards (434),and more touchdowns (4) on more carries (52) than at any point in his career. Austin finished as fantasy's WR25 in 2015 after ranking as the WR87 a year prior. Why the sudden success? Some will point to Austin maturing in his third season, but the biggest reason for the bump in production came from a change at offensive coordinator. Frank Cignetti replaced Brian Schottenheimer, who left to become the OC at the University of Georgia before the season. Schottenheimer struggled with how to best utilize Austin, who at times was foolishly asked to run between the tackles as a running back. Cignetti did a better job of creating opportunities for Austin to flash his speed and athleticism by designing ways to get the receiver into open space. Cignetti was fired in December and replaced by current OC Rob Boras, who continued to get Austin involved as both a runner and receiver. Along with Todd Gurley, Austin is one of only a few weapons in L.A.'s offense. The Rams will once again be forced to design ways to get Austin the ball and thus, his targets and carries should mirror the overall touches he had in 2015. He should also benefit from an upgrade at quarterback, as rookie Jared Goff is expected to start over Case Keenum.
Fantasy Downside
Despite posting career numbers in 2015, Austin remains limited in fantasy. He isn't the type of player who can transcend any offense; he needs play-callers to manufacture touches for him given his inability to use his body to create separation from defenders. If L.A. had better receiving options than Kenny Britt, Lance Kendricks and Brian Quick, maybe Austin would be more dangerous because defenses couldn't key on him in coverage. But opponents know they can stack the box to defend against Gurley and bracket Austin in coverage because those two players are all the Rams have offensively.
2016 Bottom Line
Jeff Fisher believes Austin can double his catches in 2016 after the receiver caught 52 passes a year ago. That's a major stretch given the Rams run-dominated attack. Another 50-plus catches seems reasonable, with 8-10 total touchdowns mixed into his final stat line. Austin ranks as our WR46 heading into training camp, which would make him a WR4/5. While he does have some upside, it would be wise not to draft Austin until the later rounds. He's worth a late-round flier, but counting on him to be anything more than receiver depth would be a gamble.
Week 17 at San Francisco
Tavon Austin caught 3-of-7 targets for 16 yards in the Rams' Week 16 win over the Seahawks, while also adding three rushes for an additional 17 yards. Rob Boras has done a great job getting the ball into Austin's hands since replacing Frank Cignetti as the Rams' play-caller four weeks ago. But Austin remains a boom-or-bust fantasy option because the Rams have to manufacture his touches. Ranked as our WR46 for Week 17, Austin is more of a WR4 than a legit FLEX option.
Week 16 at Seattle
Tavon Austin caught all three of his targets for 41 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing four times for 32 yards and an additional score in the Rams' Week 15 victory over the Bucs. Since taking over for the fired Frank Cignetti, new play-caller Rob Boras has done a great job getting Austin involved over the past two games. He now has four rushing touchdowns and five receiving scores on the year, but also remains a boom-or-bust option in fantasy formats. Ranked as our WR49, avoid Austin in Week 16 if you can. He has a tough matchup against a Seattle defense has ranks No. 4 against fantasy receivers this season and could keep Austin out of the end zone.
