Baltimore Ravens: Week 2 Fantasy Football Start or Sit ‘Em

Fantasy football is bigger to some NFL fans than the games themselves. Here are our predictions on which Baltimore Ravens to start or sit in Week 2 against the Cleveland Browns.

The first week of the NFL season saw many fantasy superstars exceed expectations, and others disappoint. We are here to help you turn that 0-1 mark into a .500 record in Week 2

The Baltimore Ravens had a quiet performance on offense. Mike Wallace had the Ravens only touchdown and finished with 16 fantasy points. Joe Flacco had 12 points, but the rest of the offense failed to score any more than five against the Buffalo Bills.

Things should be better for fantasy owners this week as the Ravens have a favorable matchup against the Cleveland Browns. They allowed rookie Carson Wentz to run wild against them, and we expect Joe Flacco to post better numbers than that. The Browns defense might be the least talented in the NFL.

Each week we will give you our start or sit for the Ravens, beginning with the leader of the offense.

Joe Flacco – Start

Flacco was held to 258 yards and a touchdown in Week 1, but we fully expect him to air it out against the Browns. Outside of Joe Haden, Cleveland’s secondary is soft and should allow the Ravens receivers to make plays. Flacco found Wallace on a deep pass for the touchdown and we expect at a few more shots down the field this week. Flacco should flirt with the 20-point mark which makes him a solid spot start option.

Justin Forsett – Flex Play

Forsett was the beneficiary of Javorius Allen being a healthy scratch on Sunday as he saw most of the work on passing downs. He led the Ravens backfield in snaps and total yards last week, and has averaged 123.6 yards from scrimmage against the Browns since joining the Ravens. If Allen is inactive once again, Forsett is a solid flex play because he can play on all three downs, unlike his teammate.

Terrance West – Flex Play

While Forsett had the higher number of snaps, West led the Ravens in touches in Week 1 and has been the more explosive player since the start of training camp. He will be looking for vengeance against his former team and a couple goal line touchdowns could make him flex play. Until we have more clarity in the Ravens running back situation, both backs remain a hit-or-miss option.

Mike Wallace – Start

Wallace showed us all that he still has some juice left in the tanking his 66-yard touchdown reception. With Flacco’s strong arm, that opens up plenty of space for Wallace to run. He’s the clear No. 1 receiver for the Ravens and makes for a good No. 2-3 WR against a soft Cleveland secondary this week.

Steve Smith – Sit

Smith led the receivers in snaps, targets and receptions in Week 1, but managed just 19 yards on five grabs. He did not look explosive, but one must remember that he missed the entire preseason. It will take Smith some time to get back into game shape, but in the mean time, stash him on the bench unless you have no better options.

Breshad Perriman – Sit

Perriman missed practice on Wednesday and is listed as questionable for Sunday. His unknown status makes him too much of a risk to trust in your lineup this week. Perriman is a player who could pay dividends down the stretch, but until he has a significant role on offense, he’s barely worth owning.

Kamar Aiken – Sit

After leading the Ravens in receptions a year ago, Aiken caught just two passes in Week 1 for 14 yards. If Perriman is out this week, that is one less receiver to take passes away from him, but he is another player that cannot be trusted at this point of the season. Leave him on the bench until we see more from the passing game.

Dennis Pitta – Start

There was a lot of unknown at the tight end position heading into Week 1, but Flacco’s favorite target over the middle is still Dennis Pitta. Not only did he start, but he played most of the snaps for the Ravens. Pitta is a player Flacco has looked for in the red zone in the past, and his return to fantasy relevance could come this week.

Maxx Williams and Crockett Gillmore – Sit

The Ravens want to use more two tight end sets this year, but it seems like these two will rotate with Pitta. Unless one takes over as the No. 1 option, neither is worth owning in fantasy.

Justin Tucker – Start

Same thing as last week: He’s the best in the game at a position that you never know what points you will get from them. If you own him, you start him.

Next: Five Matchups to Watch vs. Browns

Ravens Defense – Start

Make this note for the rest of the season: if a defense is playing the Browns, you start them. The Ravens are coming off a dominating effort against the Bills and are going up against an offense that scored only 10 points last week. Josh McCown did torch the Ravens secondary last season, but they have played significantly better since the second half of last season. A Devin Hester or defensive touchdown would not surprise me this week.