What We Saw: Week 14

The What We Saw team recaps everything you missed from Week 14

Ben Brown
What We Saw A Year Ago
Series Navigation
Introduction
Patriots @ Steelers
Buccaneers @ Falcons
Lions @ Bears
Colts @ Bengals
Jaguars @ Browns
Panthers @ Saints
Texans @ Jets
Rams @ Ravens
Vikings @ Raiders
Seahawks @ 49ers
Bills @ Chiefs
Broncos @ Chargers
Eagles @ Cowboys

Rams @ Ravens

Final Score: Ravens 37, Rams 31

Writer: Brett Ford (@fadethatman on Twitter)

 

In one of the most exciting games of the Sunday slate, the Baltimore Ravens did just enough to defeat the always-dangerous Los Angeles Rams, walking off the visitors with an overtime punt return touchdown for the win.

The Rams kept true to themselves with a narrow touch distribution as Kyren Williams, Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua dominated most of the production. On the Ravens’ side of the football, Lamar Jackson continued his MVP-caliber campaign while Keaton Mitchell dominated the backfield touches but not necessarily the snaps, and Odell Beckham Jr. found the end zone against his former team.

Let’s dig in.

 

Los Angeles Rams

 

Quarterback

 

Matthew Stafford: 23/41, 294 Yards, 3 TD | 1 Carry, -1 Yards

 

Stafford made the Ravens’ vaunted secondary look pedestrian, attacking through the air with layered routes and pinpoint accuracy when he wasn’t running for his life. The Rams only allowed two sacks, but the Baltimore defense registered 10 QB hits, forcing Stafford to get rid of the ball quicker than he wanted to in a lot of situations. But in some spots (like the touchdown pass he threw to Kupp), it didn’t matter.

 

 

Stafford has thrown for 10 touchdowns in the last three games combined, while getting picked just once over that span. With the Rams sitting at 6-7  and in the middle of a battle for the final wild-card spot in the NFC, Sean McVay will likely continue relying heavily on his veteran quarterback to make plays and try to sneak into the seventh and final postseason spot.

 

Running Back

 

Kyren Williams: 25 Carries, 114 Yards | 4 Targets, 3 Receptions

 

Williams was a monster, carrying the ball 25 times for the second time this season, joining the Las Vegas Raiders’ Josh Jacobs as the only running backs in the league to carry the ball 25 times or more twice this season. Williams was on the field for 69 out of 77 offensive snaps, and was targeted four times as well. Though his three receptions didn’t go anywhere, the pass game involvement is always encouraging from a stud fantasy running back. The only thing that could have made his game more complete would have been if he found the end zone. He never really had the opportunity. The Rams ran 10 plays inside the 10-yard line, and rushed the ball just twice.

 

Royce Freeman: 3 Carries, 9 Yards

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Puka Nacua: 1 Carry, 6 Yards | 8 Targets, 5 Receptions, 84 Yards

 

Returning from an injury sustained during last week’s game, Nacua looked just fine going for five catches and 84 yards. Heavily involved in the offense, as usual, it appears that Nacua is still the Padawan of the wide receiving corps as he was beaten out in targets by both Kupp and Demarcus Robinson.

Nacua made one of the best catches of the day, laying out full extension and pulling this snag in for a first down late in the game.

 

 

Cooper Kupp: 10 Targets, 8 Receptions, 115 Yards, TD

 

Cooper Kupp was a force against the Ravens’ secondary, making all-pro cornerback Marlon Humphrey look like a nobody. Stafford and Kupp actively went after Humphrey in several situations, and were successful in most of them. Kupp snagged eight grabs on 10 targets and found his way under a lofted pass in the end zone for a score. He’s back to being an elite wide receiver and there’s no reason to think that he can’t be a league-winner now that he is back to full health.

 

 

Davis Allen: 5 Targets, 4 Receptions, 50 Yards, TD

 

Who?

Tyler Higbee missed this game with an injury. Second-string tight end Hunter Long left the game in the second quarter with an injury (without seeing a target). Lo and behold, rookie tight end Davis Allen. Allen became the first Rams’ tight end to reach 50 yards receiving this season, and pulled in his first career touchdown. McVay had no problem using the rookie in the same way that he would have used Higbee, even in high-leverage situations (like the red zone). If Higbee misses more time, Allen could be a deep-league or sneaky DFS play in the coming weeks.

 

 

Tutu Atwell: 1 Target

 

Demarcus Robinson: 10 Targets, 3 Receptions, 46 Yards, TD

 

It was a nice little reunion for Demarcus Robinson, who spent last season as arguably the most reliable Ravens wide receiver. On Sunday, he lined up against his old teammates and was more involved than anyone may have thought coming into this contest. Robinson jumped into the mix after Tutu Atwell suffered what appeared to be a first-quarter concussion. From that point on, Robinson played as many snaps as Cooper Kupp and was targeted just as many times as well. Robinson punctuated his homecoming with a touchdown catch in the corner of the end zone, breaking free from coverage as Stafford extended the play. With the amount of 11-personnel that the Rams play, Robinson could be fantasy-relevant if Atwell misses more time.

 

 

 

Baltimore Ravens

 

Quarterback

 

Lamar Jackson: 24/43, 316 Yards, 3 TD, INT | 11 Carries, 70 Yards

 

Jackson made his case for MVP on Sunday, throwing for more than 300 yards and three touchdowns as he orchestrated a fourth-quarter comeback and helped the Ravens to an overtime victory. Despite a sloppy start that included an interception and a botched fumble that Jackson kicked out of the back of the end zone for a safety, Jackson made a handful of “how-did-he-do-that” type plays to keep the squad within striking distance, and eventually to take the lead.

 

 

One of the stark differences in this week’s performance against previous weeks is that Lamar looked sharp on the deep ball, hitting Isaiah Likely and Odell Beckham Jr. for long touchdown passes on accurate balls. His deep ball interception came on a pass that was slightly underthrown, but the mistake was made up for by his dynamic playmaking the rest of the day.

 

Running Back

 

Keaton Mitchell: 9 Carries, 54 Yards | 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 8 Yards

 

Despite the clear disparity in production, Mitchell was only on the field for five more snaps than Edwards (25 to 20), and was used only slightly more than the veteran back. Nearly half of Mitchell’s yardage came on an explosive run up the left side behind Gus Edwards and Patrick Ricard. The Ravens’ most explosive playmaker not named Lamar Jackson needs more touches.

 

 

Gus Edwards: 6 Carries, 15 Yards

 

Remember a few weeks ago when Edwards was getting all kinds of goal-line work and converting multiple touchdowns per game? Well, it was fun while it lasted. Now splitting early-down carries in the Ravens’ backfield, Edwards will need the positive touchdown variance to come back for him to regain fantasy relevance. The Gus Bus was a fun ride, but it appears to have run its course.

 

Justice Hill: 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 12 Yards

 

Hill was on the field for 29 snaps, the most by any Ravens running back, largely due to the pass-heavy game script with the Ravens trailing for most of the game. He did not get a carry though, and was targeted just twice.

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Odell Beckham Jr.: 10 Targets, 4 Receptions, 97 Yards, TD

 

In what some might call a revenge game, OBJ posted his best fantasy game of the season with four catches for 97 yards and a score. The route he ran left the safety in the dust, turning him around completely, and giving Odell all the space he needed to make a diving catch and roll his way into the end zone for a score. Beckham has now registered at least 50 yards or a touchdown in four of his last five games, and is starting to blossom into form in this Ravens offense.

 

 

Isaiah Likely: 7 Targets, 5 Receptions, 83 Yards, TD

 

Most of Likely’s yardage came on a long touchdown pass. The Ravens put Likely in motion and the Rams’ secondary completely blew coverage, leaving Likely in his own time zone for a long pitch and catch. A season-high in targets, receptions, and yardage could indicate that his role is growing within the offense, though clearly not to the level of Mark Andrews… yet.

 

 

Zay Flowers: 10 Targets, 6 Receptions, 60 Yards, TD

 

Flowers looked largely ineffective early, as he wasn’t able to get much YAC on his short-area catches. On the Ravens’ final offensive drive of regulation, Flowers broke free on a crossing route and pulled in a dart for a go-ahead score in the final two minutes of the game. Flowers also caught the two-point conversion for an “Octopus” as the Ravens pulled ahead by three points. With touchdowns in back-to-back games, Flowers still isn’t reaching the yardage numbers that fantasy owners might want but should factor in most PPR formats as he continues to pull in short-yardage catches.

 

 

Rashod Bateman: 4 Targets, 2 Receptions, 24 Yards

 

Nelson Agholor: 5 Targets, 5 Receptions, 32 Yards

 

Both Bateman and Agholor have been ancillary options for the Ravens for most of the season and neither one showed much more than that on Sunday. Agholor was on the field for 42 offensive snaps (three more than OBJ), but didn’t make much happen on his five receptions.

Bateman continues to struggle to find chemistry with his quarterback. He was the target deep downfield on the pass that was intercepted, and gave up on a route early a couple of plays before that.

 

https://twitter.com/bobbybaltimoree/status/1733916443329118282

 

Tylan Wallace: PR TD

 

Wallace lined up wide for the Ravens on just five offensive snaps, and ran just four routes. He made the most important play of the game on special teams, running back a 76-yard punt return for the walk-off game-winning touchdown in overtime.

 

Series Navigation
Introduction
Patriots @ Steelers
Buccaneers @ Falcons
Lions @ Bears
Colts @ Bengals
Jaguars @ Browns
Panthers @ Saints
Texans @ Jets
Rams @ Ravens
Vikings @ Raiders
Seahawks @ 49ers
Bills @ Chiefs
Broncos @ Chargers
Eagles @ Cowboys

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