Baltimore Ravens 2016 Fantasy Football Preview

By Vincent Frank on Tuesday, August 2nd 2016
Baltimore Ravens 2016 Fantasy Football Preview

2015 Review

Last season can be defined as one of injuries for the Baltimore Ravens. They finished with their worst record in nearly a decade. It sure didn't help that the likes of Joe Flacco, Justin Forsett, Steve Smith and Breshad Perriman missed a combined 37 games. Though, some other players stepped up, at least from a fantasy perspective. Kamar Aiken compiled 75 receptions for 944 yards and five scores. Meanwhile, tight end Crockett Gillmore added 33 receptions for 412 yards and four scores. Either way, the injuries to these starters definitely had an impact on the Ravens' fantasy performance as a whole. 

 

Quarterback: Joe Flacco

Flacco hasn't necessarily been a horrible fantasy quarterback in the past. He did finish the 2014 campaign as the 13th-best player at his position. That represents top-end QB2 production right there. This is going to be Flacco's ceiling in 2016. In the 10 games that he did play last year, the Super Bowl-winning signal caller averaged 17.3 fantasy points per outing. That would have ranked him as a mid-tier QB2 option had he played the full 16-game slate.

The issue here is going to be finding a nice mix with the plethora of pass-catching options he boasts. Can Flacco get back into a groove with Steve Smith? Is Breshad Perriman going to actually take to the field after missing his entire rookie season? What to make of the tight end situation? With all these questions, there's really no reason to rely on anything more than bottom-end QB2 production. At this point, Flacco is barely worth a roster spot in standard 12-team leagues. 

 

Running Back: Justin Forsett, Kenneth Dixon

Stay away. Personally, I wouldn't be comfortable relying on any of these backs as anything more than a deep bench option. Forsett appears to be slated to return as the starter after putting up nearly 800 total yards in 10 games a season ago. The issue here is that Forsett, 30, has put up only one season of 650-plus yards throughout his career. Are you really going to rely on that type of production from a RB2 option? 

The highest-upside player here is Dixon, a rookie from Louisiana Tech. He projects to be the team's starting running back moving forward — an eventuality that could take place relatively early in his career. Dixon put up 1,500-plus total yards and 26-plus total touchdowns in each of his final two seasons at Tech. In reality, we'd be more comfortable banking on him as a deep bench option than Forsett as a RB2 or FLEX type heading into the year. 

 

Wide Receiver: Steve Smith, Kamar Aiken

Smith is the true wild card here. If the 37-year-old receiver proves he has recovered from a torn Achilles suffered last season, he might very well be the team's most-legitimate fantasy option. Remember, he did average 6.6 receptions and 95.7 yards per game last season. A PPR threat if there ever was one, look for strong production from him should he remain healthy in 2016 — potentially even solid WR2 production. 

Aiken on the other hand is likely set for a disappointing statistical season. He did catch 75 passes while putting up nearly 1,000 receiving yards last year. Though, that came on 127 targets. With Smith set to return to the lineup and the addition of Mike Wallace to the roster, the expectation here has to be that Aiken's targets will drop dramatically. 

 

Tight End: Crockett Gillmore, Benjamin Watson, Dennis Pitta, Maxx Williams

A cluster mess. Well, maybe a good mess. Either way, Flacco has a ton of talented pass-catching tight ends at his disposal this season. Dennis Pitta returns after playing in just seven games over the past three seasons. Needless to say, he's nowhere near worthy of a mention in the fake football world.

In reality, the best option here has to be free-agent signing Benjamin Watson, who surprised the masses by putting up 74 receptions for 825 yards and six scores with the New Orleans Saints last season. That was good enough for him to finish as the eighth-best fantasy tight end. While expecting similar production this season makes no real sense, Watson is someone to keep an eye on when it comes to the early-season waiver wire. 

 

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