Eyeing a replacement for Roddy White, the Falcons signed ex-Bengals wide receiver Mohamed Sanu to a five-year, $32.5 million contract. The expensive price tag is further evidence of the growing necessity for wide receiver depth across the league, as Sanu is at best a pedestrian talent at the position.
A 2012 third-round pick, Sanu hauled in 152 passes for 1,793 yards and 11 touchdowns during his four years in Cincinnati. A versatile weapon, Sanu also attempted five passes (he completed all five for 177 yards and two scores) and carried the ball 26 times for 153 yards and two more touchdowns.
Sanu usually worked as Cincinnati's No. 3 wideout and a situational gadget player, but, with A.J. Green, Marvin Jones and Tyler Eifert missing significant time with injuries, he was forced into playing 93 percent of the team's snaps during a career-year in 2014. He parlayed the playing time into 56 receptions, 790 yards and five touchdowns, but was mostly inefficient and dropped seven passes that season.
Across four seasons, Sanu has finished a week among the top 10 wide receivers in fantasy points four times and among the top 20 receivers four additional times. Despite Cincinnati's offensive explosion in 2015, Sanu failed to record a single top-20 week and was inside the top 30 only twice.
Sanu is not a particularly good wide receiver, but Atlanta was (and still is) extremely desperate for offensive playmakers. The versatile Sanu is the current favorite for a starting gig opposite Julio Jones, which would put him in position for decent volume in Atlanta's pass-first, high-volume offense. That said, Sanu's inefficiencies could very well lead to sophomore Justin Hardy or a future draft/free-agent acquisition overtaking him on the depth chart. Sanu is a fine late-round flier, but both his floor and ceiling are very low.