Photo: Bobak Ha'Eri, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons²

Zachariah Branch

Wide Receiver, Atlanta Falcons · #17.

Player facts

Team: Atlanta Falcons
Position: Wide Receiver
Number: 17
Born: Mar 29, 2004 (age 22)
Birthplace: Las Vegas, NV, USA
Height: 5' 10"
Weight: 180 lbs
College: Georgia
Experience: Rookie
Status: Active

Stats

2026 Offense

	REC	TGTS	YDS	AVG	TD	LNG	FD	CAR	YDS	AVG	TD	LNG	FUM	LST
Regular Season	7	8	46	6.6	0	23	2	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
Last 5 Games	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Career	7	8	46	6.6	0	23	2	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0

Advanced stats

2026 season through week 6. EPA per play is the points a play added to the team’s expected score; success rate is the share of plays that kept the offense on schedule; CPOE is completion percentage over what the throws’ difficulty predicted. Rank is by EPA per play.

	Plays	EPA/play	Success	CPOE	League rank
Receiving	10 targets	-0.14	40%		fewer than 24 plays

NFL data: nflverse, CC BY 4.0.

Recent games

			Receiving							Rushing					Fumbles
Date	Opponent	Result	REC	TGTS	YDS	AVG	TD	LNG	FD	CAR	YDS	AVG	TD	LNG	FUM	LST
Sun, Oct 11	vs BAL	L 30-23 OT	2	2	15	7.5	0	23	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
Mon, Oct 5	@ NO	W 45-24	2	2	10	5.0	0	9	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
Thu, Sep 24	@ GB	W 35-14	1	2	7	7.0	0	7	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
Sun, Sep 20	vs CAR	L 34-3	2	2	14	7.0	0	11	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0

Last 4 games. Click a game for its box score.

About

Zachariah Eric Branch (born March 29, 2004) is an American professional football wide receiver and kick returner for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans and the Georgia Bulldogs and was selected by the Falcons in the third round of the 2026 NFL draft.

From Wikipedia’s article on Zachariah Branch, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.¹

Background

Early life

Branch was born on March 29, 2004, the youngest of two sons to Sheve and Renee Branch. His father is a sports performance coach. Branch is the great-nephew of late Hall of Fame receiver Cliff Branch. Branch and his brother grew up attending USC football games. Branch was raised in Las Vegas and attended Bishop Gorman High School. He was one of the top players in the 2023 college football recruiting class, ranked No. 6 nationally by ESPN and No. 9 by 247Sports. He was the top wide receiver in the class.

USC

Branch enrolled at the University of Southern California in early 2023. In June 2023, he was recorded on a treadmill sprint at 26 miles per hour, close to Usain Bolt's top speed. Prior to the start of the 2023 season, he was selected by 247Sports as a true freshman preseason All-American. In his college football debut, Branch tallied 232 all-purpose yards, including his first touchdown reception and a 96-yard kickoff return. Following his first game, the Los Angeles Times wrote that his "feats had even his opponents in awe", and his speed and ability to change direction drew comparisons to Reggie Bush.

In December 2024, Branch entered the transfer portal.

Georgia

On January 5, 2025, Branch announced his decision to transfer to the University of Georgia to play for the Georgia Bulldogs, alongside his brother, Zion Branch.

Personal life

On April 19, 2026, Branch was arrested in Athens, Georgia on two charges of obstruction; the charges stemmed from an incident in which Branch allegedly blocked a public sidewalk and failed to follow instructions from law enforcement. On June 3, it was announced that the charges against Branch had been dropped.

From Wikipedia’s article on Zachariah Branch, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article.¹