If the Patriots are such geniuses, why did they trade a second-round pick for Sanu last year? In their defense, the wideout was hobbled by an ankle injury that eventually required surgery, so we probably shouldn't hold his meager production with the team against them. But even a healthy Sanu is at best a competent possession receiver, someone who reliably catches short passes and rarely makes big plays. As Week 1 approached, the New England moved on from the veteran wideout. Read Past Outlooks

$Signed a contract with the 49ers in September of 2020.

This section compares his draft workout metrics with players at the same position. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that metric and it would be considered average.

The team and position group ratings only include players that are currently on the roster and not on injured reserve. The list of players in the table only includes defenders with at least 3 attempts against them.

The bars represents the team's percentile rank (based on QB Rating Against). The longer the bar, the better their pass defense is. Learn more about this data The team and position group ratings only include players that are currently on the roster and not on injured reserve. The list of players in the table only includes defenders with at least 3 attempts against them.

The number of air yards he is averaging per game. Air yards measure how far the ball was thrown downfield for both complete and incomplete passes. Air yards are recorded as a negative value when the pass is targeted behind the line of scrimmage. All air yards data is from Sports Info Solutions and does not include throwaways as targeted passes.

This section compares his advanced stats with players at the same position. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that metric and it would be considered average. The longer the bar, the better it is for the player.

Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Mohamed Sanu

Past Fantasy Outlooks

Sanu quietly had a a career year in 2018 with 838 yards and 8.9 YPT. Of course, it's a modest career wherein he's never seen 100 targets, caught 70 passes or scored more than five TDs. But in a league where teams are increasingly spreading the ball around, you could do worse for your third wideout. At 29 and playing alongside likely Hall of Famer Julio Jones and last year's first-round pick Calvin Ridley, Sanu doesn't have much upside beyond 2018's showing. At 6-2, 215, he has good size but saw only six red-zone looks all year. And while he had two catches of 40-plus last year, Sanu is slow even for his size - he ran a 4.67 40 at the 2012 combine. The best-case scenario is the status quo - he's the clear No. 3 wideout in an above-average passing offense that doesn't throw a ton to its backs or tight ends, and as such has a decent floor.

Sanu is what he is at this point - a reliable, low-upside possession receiver in an offense that likes to run and spread the ball around. At 6-2, 210, and with glacial 4.62 speed, Sanu gets by on size, experience, good hands and the defensive attention given to teammate Julio Jones. Sanu doesn't get a ton of red-zone work (12 of his 96 targets were in that area) and has only two 40-yard catches over his last 46 games. For 2018, Sanu might still be Matt Ryan's No. 2 receiver, though first-round pick Calvin Ridley should push him for that role. Wideouts Justin Hardy and Marvin Hall aren't major threats, but tight end Austin Hooper could conceivably have a larger role, particularly in the red zone.

Sanu has a job, and that's not likely to change. Otherwise, there's not much else to say. As a complement to Julio Jones, Sanu posted respectable numbers in a vacuum for a possession receiver -- 11.1 YPC, 8.1 YPT -- but those don't look quite as good when you consider QB Matt Ryan averaged 9.3 YPA on the year. At 6-2, 210, Sanu has good size, but he's slow -- 4.62 40 -- and he's not all that shifty. Sanu is a good athlete, though, and theoretically has red-zone upside, but he saw only 13 targets in that area last year, catching four for TDs. With Jones back, Taylor Gabriel emerging as the team's all-purpose threat, two quality pass-catching backs and a diverse offense, Sanu's upside is fairly limited. Even if Jones were to go down and allow Sanu to see an uptick in targets, it's hard to see him being a viable No. 1, given his lack of speed.

Someone other than Julio Jones has to see targets. The Falcons guaranteed $14 million to Sanu, so expect him to be used more than an aging Roddy White was last year. With Jones drawing double teams on the other side, Sanu should benefit from single coverage, but even opposite A.J. Green in Cincinnati, Sanu was rarely more than passable (8.1, 8.0 YPT last two years). Sanu has only had four catches of 40-plus yards in his four-year career and runs a 4.62 40, so don't expect many downfield plays. At 6-2, 210, Sanu has enough size and athleticism to operate in traffic and could see red-zone work - especially given the team's lack of options (aside from Jones, 31-year-old TE Jacob Tamme and 5-10 Justin Hardy are next in line). But aside from being Matt Ryan's likely No. 2 WR, there's not much to get excited about.

As the less-flashy understudy to AJ Green, Sanu put up solid numbers in 2013, but he got surpassed by Marvin Jones in the Bengals' receiver pecking order and second-year tight end Tyler Eifert will probably start commanding more targets this season as well. Sanu's size and route-running could keep him in a possession receiver role, and out of the gate he figures to see added opportunities thanks to an injury to Jones.

After not seeing much action during the first half of the season, Sanu made his way into the starting lineup in Week 11 and scored three touchdowns the next two weeks. Then he broke his foot in practice and missed the rest of the year. At 6-2, 211, Sanu has good size and steady hands, but he's not especially fast. Now that his foot is healthy, he'll likely reclaim the starting job opposite A.J. Green and work shorter possession routes. He's also likely to see targets in the red-zone, but keep in mind Green and both of the team's pass-catching tight ends will be busy there, too.

With Andy Dalton coming off a promising rookie year, and A.J. Green sure to draw the bulk of the defense's attention, Sanu finds himself in a more favorable environment than most rookies. At 6-2, 211, Sanu has good size, but only average speed. The third-rounder is a polished receiver with good hands that did damage down the field in college but likely projects as a possession type in the pros. Jordan Shipley is also around, but he'll mostly work out of the slot, so Sanu should challenge for a starting job. Rookie Marvin Jones could also push for some targets, however, and there's always a chance the team brings in a veteran.