The Baltimore Ravens have their third AFC North clash in a row on Sunday, as the winless Cincinnati Bengals (0-5) roll into M&T Bank Stadium. The Ravens had a hard-fought win over the Pittsburgh Steelers last week, while the Bengals were the victims of Kyler Murray and Kliff Kingsbury’s first wins in the NFL.
To help gear you up for fantasy football in Week 6, I’ve gone over some of the Ravens you might have on your fantasy team. Here, I’ll offer my thoughts on players to start and players to sit this week.
Start – RB, Mark Ingram
Ingram had two 100-yard games in his first three as a member of the Ravens. In his last two games, he has only 115 combined. However, you could hardly ask for much more of a bounceback game than one against the Bengals.
The Bengals are yet to allow a 100-yard rusher, but they have been regularly ripped apart by running backs in 2019. They have seen an average of 25.2 running back rushing attempts per game, whilst allowing 5.1 yards per attempt and the most PPR points to backfields in the league (38.8 per game). There have been six running back rushing touchdowns scored against them in five games.
The Ravens have the second most rush attempts in the NFL this season, and Ingram is dominating the opportunities in the backfield. He can be started with confidence in Week 6.
Start if you have to – TE, Mark Andrews
This suggestion is tinged with an air of caution. Andrews is among the NFL’s most productive at his position if you care to take in the seasonal rankings. He’s seen the 6th most targets and has the 5th most receptions. Only three tight ends have more fantasy points than Andrews in 2019.
But after scoring 50 fantasy points in the first two games of the season, Andrews has only 27.1 in the last three games. His targets are still fairly constant, seeing at least seven in every game this season. He only caught 12 of his 22 looks between Weeks 3 and 5, after snaring 16/17 in the seasons opening fortnight.
Andrews has also been hampered by a foot injury and showed up on the injury report this week with a shoulder complaint. It’s expected he’ll play on Sunday, but it’s uncertain how productive he’ll be if he does. The Bengals’ numbers against tight ends look good this season, but they’ve really only played George Kittle who could be classed a difference-maker. He was held to three catches for 54 yards.
Still, the tight end landscape is something of a toxic wasteland, especially with four teams on their bye this week. You may have to trot Andrews out and hope for a touchdown to save his week.
Start – Ravens DEF
The Ravens’ defense has not been a unit to trust in fantasy football so far this season. They’ve allowed 290.8 passing yards per game at an 8.7 per attempt average, marks that are “good” for third and fourth highest in the NFL. They’ve only mustered nine sacks on the year. The Ravens DEF scored 14 fantasy points in Week 1 but has a combined 11 points in the four games since.
Sunday could be a day for this unit to bounceback, however. The Bengals offense, such as it is, has averaged a mere 1.45 points per drive in 2019. 16.4% of their drives have ended in a turnover, while only the hapless New York Jets (23) and the Tennesse Titans (22) have allowed more sacks than the 21 quarterback takedowns inflicted upon the Bengals. Andy Dalton has 17 interceptions in 15 regular-season games against the Ravens and has seven games in which he has absorbed multiple sacks.
Sit – Ravens Wide Receivers
Marquise Brown is a set to be a game-time decision on Sunday, after missing three straight practices with an ankle injury. However, even if he is passed fit to play he is unlikely to be someone you can trust in fantasy this week. Brown has back to back games with just 22 receiving yards, while a touchdown that upped his PPR tally to 11.2 prevented him from a third straight week as a WR6.
The matchup on paper is not a particularly appealing one for the Ravens wide receivers on the whole. The Bengals have seen wide receivers targeted against them at the lowest rate in the NFL and have allowed the 5th fewest PPR points per contest. Teams are not being forced to throw against them due to their woeful run defense.
The Ravens have not exactly benefited from outstanding wide receiver play in 2019. Their 45 wide receiver receptions are tied for 28th most in the NFL. 25 teams have seen their wideouts post more receiving yards than the 662 amassed by the Ravens. This is not a week to get cute and think that Willie Snead, Miles Boykin or even Seth Roberts could give you an edge in fantasy.
