Hooper enters a Monday night clash with the Giants in the midst of a likely soon-to-be career year, with 30 receptions on 37 targets for 273 yards and two touchdowns through six games.
Matt Ryan has a 116.8 passer rating this season when targeting Austin Hooper, the second-highest among any quarterback-tight-end duo in the league. Voluntary offseason workouts have paid dividends for Hooper, as he and Ryan built rapport over the offseason playing catch at a local high school. If Hooper's stat line through six weeks is extrapolated over a 16-game stretch, he remains on pace to rack up 80 receptions for 728 yards and five touchdowns (previous career highs 49/526/3). Week 7 brings a challenging matchup against a Giants defense that has shut down tight ends in 2018, allowing just 23 receptions and one touchdown to the position (among NFL's 10 best in both categories).