St. Louis Rams wide receiver Tavon Austin made his presence known in more ways than one during Sunday's 34-31 win over the Seattle Seahawks.
Tavon Austin scores twice in Week 1, worth a waiver claim in fantasy leagues with return yards
The elusive wide receiver got past the Seahawks’ defense and punt coverage unit during Sunday’s win. We break down the fantasy implications.
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Austin beat defenders around the edge en route to a 16-yard touchdown run, and also took a punt return into the end zone from 75 yards out. The two touchdowns will highlight Austin’s stat line, but the speedy wideout finished with just 15 yards from scrimmage while adding 85 yards from punt returns. Despite the modest yards from scrimmage numbers, Austin led all Rams receivers with 48 snaps.
Fantasy Spin: The intriguing part of Austin's line is the large snap count, despite reeling in just two of his five targets for minus-2 yards. It's an encouraging footnote for a wide receiver who hasn't gotten many touches in offense that's been lethargic during Austin's career, but with Nick Foles now at the helm, there's reason to be encouraged.
While that encouragement is warranted, expectations should still be tempered in the meantime. Austin should be owned in all leagues that count return yardage, but his usage isn’t at a point where he can be trusted in leagues of other formats.
