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Fantasy Football: Baltimore Ravens Season Preview

By Bruce Matson

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Baltimore Ravens Season Preview

The Ravens finished last season with a record of 10-6, and made it to the playoffs where they were defeated by the New England Patriots in the divisional round 35-31. The Ravens hired offensive coordinator Marc Trestman, who is known for elevating the production in the passing game for every team that he has coached. It’s going to be very interesting to see if Trestman’s system can elevate some of the player’s fantasy production on the Baltimore Ravens roster.

Quarterback

Joe Flacco

Flacco finished last season ranked 13th in fantasy points among QBs with 369.80 points, which equates to a high end QB2. Marc Trestman is the new offensive coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens, and he is known for running a pass heavy offense. There’s a good chance that Flacco will see and uptick in production this year. Flacco’s floor this year is a high-end QB2, and his ceiling is a top-5 QB.

Running Back

 

Justin Forsett

Forsett finished the season ranked 8th in the league in fantasy points among running backs with 249.90 fantasy points. During 2014, Forsett averaged 15.62 fantasy points a game. If Forsett can continue being the starter, he will have the potential to be a top-10 back in PPR leagues. Marc Trestman loves having his QBs check the ball down to the running backs out of the backfield, which will play perfectly to Forsett’s skill set. Forsett isn’t bulletproof. In October he will turn 30 years old and there’s a possibility that he could break down somewhere down the line. Forsett should be a good running back in fantasy this year, but he does carry some risks with him, so buyer-beware.

Javorius “Buck” Allen

Buck Allen is the wild card this year for the Raven’s running game. The Ravens drafted Allen this year in the 4th round. Allen is a bigger 3-down back who is very good at catching the ball out of the backfield. This is going to affect Forsett if he goes down with an injury this year because he might not be able to get his job back if Allen performs to his potential. All Allen needs is a chance.

Wide Receiver

Steve Smith

Smith finished the season last year ranked as the 18th WR in fantasy with 224 fantasy points, and averaging 14 fantasy points a game. Smith had 8 games where he scored 10 fantasy points or more. I expect Smith to have a similar season compared to last year. He’s going to run all the underneath routes as the flanker, while Breshad Perriman will run all the deep routes as the X wide receiver. Smith is 36 years old, but he manages to continue to be fantasy relevant. We can’t ignore that there could be a potential drop off in production due to a decline in his abilities. Smith should be a solid Flex play to a WR2 for your fantasy team, but he does carry some risks.

Breshad Perriman

Perriman is Flacco’s new toy. The Ravens drafted Perriman in the first round in this year’s draft. Perriman will replace Torrey Smith and play wide receiver on the opposite side of the field of Steve Smith. From a talent perspective, Perriman can do everything that Torrey Smith can do but with a higher ceiling. Perriman will be a solid WR2 this year once he shakes off those rookie jitters. Torrey Smith finished the season last year ranked 29th among receivers, and I see that being Perriman’s floor this year. Perriman is bigger and faster than Smith, and he has better ball skills. Once Perriman gets acclimated to the speed of the game, he could have the potential to be a top 12 wide receiver. Perriman is going to be a sleeper in your drafts this year.

Tight End

Dennis Pitta

Pitta injured his hip last year, and he’s more than likely going to start the season on the PUP list. (Physically Unable to Perform). The odds are highly likely that he’s not going to be able to play this year due to this injury and his career is in jeopardy.

Maxx Williams

Williams is another new toy that was placed in Flacco’s toy chest. The Ravens drafted Williams in the 2nd round of this year’s draft, and he is going to compete for the starting tight end job. Flacco loves to get his tight ends involved in the passing game, and Williams, if he’s the starter, could possibly be a top-12 tight end if he gets the opportunity. Offensive coordinator Marc Trestman has a history of getting his tight ends involved in the passing game, so the arrows are pointing to a highly productive fantasy season to whoever the starting tight end is in Baltimore.

Crockett Gilmore

I love saying the name Crockett. The name reminds me of and old hound dog in an old country western movie. Anyways, Gilmore flashed last year during the playoffs and he will be in the mix for the starting job at tight end. The Ravens do have some equity invested in him because they drafted Gilmore last year in the 3rd round. I look for Williams to win the job this year, but keep an eye out for Gilmore during training camp.

Defense/Special Teams

The Ravens finished the season last year ranked 5th in fantasy production for defense/special teams with 131 fantasy points (ESPN Standard Scoring), which was tied with the Patriots. Last year the Ravens DST had 5 games where they scored 10 fantasy points or more. I look for the Ravens to have a similar output this year, and I think they will be a solid streaming option.

For help with your fantasy team throughout the season feel free to follow me on Twitter @bmatz08.

Next: Cincinnati Bengals Season Preview

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