Ravens @ Patriots
We saw a rainy, windy, sloppy game in Foxborough on Sunday night, and the Patriots pulled out a big upset in the end, winning the game 23-17. The weather got worse as the game went on, and both teams had little success taking shots downfield – and towards the end of the game, both teams had trouble completing even short passes. In fact, neither team scored in the 4th quarter. It was an entertaining game at least, with Baltimore’s last-minute efforts to comeback and win the game stymied by a torrential downpour. What does all of this mean for your fantasy team? Let’s dive into what we saw:
Baltimore Ravens
Quarterback
Lamar Jackson: 24/34, 249 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT, 2 sacks | 11 carries, 55 yards
Ravens’ QB Lamar Jackson has been somewhat of a disappointment this season compared to last. While he hasn’t lived up to his ADP in most cases, Jackson has been more than serviceable – especially lately. Jackson wasn’t able to break any huge plays against the Pats on Monday night, but he hit a season-high for completions and he passed for more yards than he had since Week 1. He threw for 2 TDs – even though one came on a touch-pass on a jet sweep. If you are currently rostering Jackson, you’re in it for the long haul, and you are likely looking forward to his juicy matchups in the last several weeks of the season – Jackson faces four plus-matchups over the next six weeks. Look for Jackson’s uptick to continue next week against the Titans.
Running Backs
Gus Edwards: 7 carries, 42 yards | 2 targets, 1 reception, 31 yards
Mark Ingram: 5 carries, 5 yards | 2 targets, 2 receptions, 24 yards
J.K. Dobbins: 5 carries, 13 yards | 2 targets, 1 reception, 1 yard
The return of RB Mark Ingram to Baltimore’s lineup had the effect that we all thought it would – it hurt everyone’s value overall. We were hoping for either Gus Edwards or J.K. Dobbins to step up and provide more value in Ingram’s absence, and we didn’t get it. On Monday night, the Ravens’ run game was completely ineffective. Ingram logged only 26% of the offensive snaps in his return, compared to 44% for Dobbins and 22% for Edwards. All three of Baltimore’s tailbacks combined barely eclipsed Lamar Jackson’s rushing yardage total (60-55). All of that being said, we didn’t see much from Baltimore’s RBs this week, and we appear to be headed back to a dreaded timeshare between the three. All three backs should face better prospects next week against Tennessee.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Willie Snead: 7 targets, 5 receptions, 64 yards, 2 TDs
Devin Duvernay: 3 targets, 3 receptions, 45 yards
Marquise Brown: 6 targets, 2 receptions, 14 yards
Mark Andrews: 9 targets, 7 receptions, 61 yards
Nick Boyle: 1 target, 1 reception, 4 yards
If you found yourself in a position where you had to plug WR Willie Snead into your lineup in Week 10, it paid off in a big way. Snead paced Ravens’ WRs in catches, receiving yards, and found the end-zone twice – easily totaling his highest fantasy output this season. Snead’s first score came on a 6-yard jet sweep on the first play of the second quarter. Snead’s second score came on a nifty route out of the slot – he was able to sneak out of the slot and cross the field and find a soft spot open in the end-zone. Other than those two scores, Ravens’ WRs were mostly disappointing. WR Marquise Brown continued to disappoint, even though his 94% offensive snap share tied his season-high. Rookie WR Devin Duvernay continues to lack fantasy relevance, so it’s uncertain what to think about how this group will perform going forward. TE Mark Andrews’ 7 catches and 61 yards were both season highs, but his inability to find the end-zone capped his overall output. A leg injury to TE Nick Boyle may lead to an uptick in volume for Andrews going forward.
New England Patriots
Quarterback
Cam Newton: 13/17, 118 yards, 1 TDs, 1 sack | 11 carries, 21 yards, 1 TD
It was a middling performance from Patriots’ QB Cam Newton on Monday night, but in the monsoon conditions, it’s easy to give him a pass. Newton leaned on a strong performance by the Pats’ rushing attack, and as a result, he hit season lows in completions and passing yardage (other than Week 7 when he was benched for QB Jarrett Stidham). Newton’s fantasy output was salvaged by a third-quarter rushing TD that gave New England a 20-10 lead. Newton has been a lower-end QB2 since his meteoric rise in Weeks 1 and 2, and it’s tough to determine how he will perform in the coming weeks. New England has won a couple of games in a row, but Newton’s productivity too largely relies on his rushing TDs. Look for Cam to perform slightly better against Houston next week.
Running Backs
Rex Burkhead: 6 carries, 31 yards | 5 targets, 4 receptions, 35 yards, 2 TDs
Damien Harris: 22 carries, 121 yards
James White: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 8 yards
The biggest takeaway from New England’s RBs on Monday night was sophomore RB Damien Harris is becoming a star before our eyes. Harris gashed Baltimore’s run defense at will and has become the clear-cut early-down back in this offense. His 56% offensive snap share was his highest so far this season, and he also set season/career highs in carries and rushing yards. RB Rex Burkhead had the biggest fantasy day from the New England backfield – finding the end-zone twice through the air against the Ravens – both in the second quarter. The second was on a nifty trick-play – a 24-yard bomb thrown into double-coverage by WR Jakobi Meyers.
Jakobi Meyers throws a dime to Rex Burkhead for a 24-yard TD. #Patriots pulling out the trickery tonight.
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 16, 2020
It was the second straight week where Harris and Burkhead provided at least some fantasy value, and the 4th straight week with basically zero fantasy output from RB James White. It’s tough to trust White at all at this point – it seems that Harris has settled in as the lead back, and Burkhead has settled in as the 3rd down/change of pace back. If White doesn’t factor in more next week against the Texans, it may be time to consider whether or not he’s even worth a roster spot anymore.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Jakobi Meyers: 7 targets, 5 receptions, 59 yards | 1/1, 24 yards, 1 TD
Ryan Izzo: 1 target, 1 reception, 20 yards
Since we saw such a heavy rushing attack from New England on Sunday night, we didn’t see much from their pass-catching group. We literally saw WR Jakobi Meyers as a targeted receiver, and no one else. There were 5 other receivers who saw offensive snaps for the Patriots, and none of them saw even a single target. WR N’Keal Harry returned from a 2-game absence, but you wouldn’t have known it from the box score. It appears that it may not be worth rostering Harry at this point considering the lack of a true passing attack, and Cam Newton’s newfound rapport with WRs Meyers and WR Damiere Byrd. TE Ryan Izzo hauled in his only target after not being targeted last week. While it’s tough to trust many of these pass-catchers, it appears that Meyers and Byrd are the favorites to provide the most value going forward.
— Corey Saucier (@Deputy_Commish on Twitter, LightsKamaraAction on Reddit)