Thursday Night Football: Ravens at Steelers

It’s finally time for some Week 4 football! The Baltimore Ravens will travel to Heinz Field to battle AFC North rival the Pittsburgh Steelers. Even though both teams is dealing with some injuries, this game should bring us some intriguing fantasy players. From Ben Roethlisberger to Crockett Gillmore, the game will be missing some key ingredients, but it still should be a fun game to watch!

So, here’s my GF2 Week 4 Thursday Night Football preview:

Injuries

• The injury with the largest fantasy implications comes from Steelers starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. During Week 3, Big Ben went down with an MCL sprain versus the St. Louis Rams. It’s looking like Pittsburgh will be without him for at least five to six weeks. Michael Vick will take the reigns for the Steelers at quarterback.
• Steelers wide receiver Martavis Bryant will also be missing out on the action as well against Baltimore. Bryant is still serving his 4-game suspension, but will be back in Week 5.
• Ravens starting tight end Crockett Gillmore also won’t be playing tonight due to a calf injury. Rookie Maxx Williams will be stepping up in his absence versus the Steelers.

BALTIMORE RAVENS

Joe Flacco, QB

Flacco is one of my least favorite options every year for fantasy football and this year he has proven why. He’s been absolutely inconsistent each and every year during the regular season, but he does have a favorable matchup against the Steelers. So far in 2015, Flacco has thrown for 863 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions. He also has a dreadful 48.95 QBR and most weeks can’t be counted on for fantasy purposes. This year, Pittsburgh ranks 23rd at defending opposing quarterbacks and allow an average of 23.7 fantasy points per contest. This could very well be one of Flacco’s better games this season, so he may be a nice spot start option.

Fantasy Prediction: 275 yards and 2 touchdowns

Justin Forsett, RB

Forsett was one of my favorite fantasy running backs coming into the 2015 season. He had a great 2014 season and Marc Trestman was inserted into the Ravens’ coaching staff, so there should be a plethora of points coming his way right? Well in 2015, Forsett has 39 rushing attempts for 124 yards and no scores. He also has only caught 12 passes for just 41 yards and no touchdowns this year as well. He’s facing a super greedy Steelers rush defense who ranks 2nd overall against running backs. Pittsburgh only allows an average of 9.9 fantasy points per game to running backs, so I don’t expect a massive night for Forsett.

Fantasy Prediction: 40 rushing yards and 3 receptions for 40 yards

Steve Smith, WR

Smith seems to always start the first half of the season off hotter than a firecracker. In Week 3 he was one of the highest fantasy scorers across the league and is primed to be great again this week. So far this season, Smith has caught 25 passes for 349 yards and two touchdowns. He also receives a massive amount of targets at 40 overall for the season. He will be going up against a mediocre Steelers defense who ranks 16th overall at defending opposing wide receivers. Pittsburgh gives up an average of 21.5 points per game to wide receivers, so Smith should once again come through for your squad.

Fantasy Prediction: 7 receptions for 90 yards and a touchdown

Maxx Williams, TE

Coming into this game I was very high on Crockett Gillmore, but now he is out with an injured calf so we’ll see Williams take on Pittsburgh. In 2015, Williams has reeled in five receptions for 57 yards and no touchdowns. This year, Pittsburgh is 30th at defending opposing tight ends and allow an average of 14.6 points per game to them. Williams could very well be a sneaky start for your fantasy team in Week 4.

Fantasy Prediction: 4 receptions for 45 yards and a touchdown

PITTSBURGH STEELERS

Michael Vick, QB

With Big Ben out for the immediate future, Vick will now take the reigns for the Steelers at quarterback. Vick entered Week 3’s game and completed 5-of-6 passes for 38 yards. In three starts with the Jets in 2014, he threw for 604 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. In 2015, the Ravens rank 30th at defending against quarterbacks and allow an average of 26.2 fantasy points per game to them. I don’t think we’ll witness Vick go out and light the world on fire tonight, but I do think he will find some success versus Baltimore.

Fantasy Prediction: 200 passing yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception

Le’veon Bell, RB

Bell is by far one of the best options at running back for fantasy in the NFL. Following his two-game suspension, Bell had 19 attempts for 62 yards and a touchdown in Week 3. He also caught 7 balls for 70 yards versus the Rams. The Ravens have a solid defense against running backs where they rank 5th overall and allow an average of 12.4 fantasy points per game. Bell should easily score some good points versus Baltimore on both the ground and through the air, start him with extreme confidence in Week 4.

Fantasy Prediction: 85 rushing yards, 8 receptions for 70 yards and a touchdown

Antonio Brown, WR

Brown is hands down the best wide receiver in the world right now! He’s going to at least catch five balls for 50 yards every single week that he takes the field. This season, he has caught 29 passes for 436 yards and two touchdowns. Baltimore ranks a league worst 32nd at defending against opposing wide receivers, giving up an average of 38.3 fantasy points per game. With Vick at quarterback, I see Brown getting a lot of looks within the screen pass game which will be successful for his fantasy owners.

Fantasy Prediction: 8 receptions for 80 yards

Heath Miller, TE

Every season Miller is a tight end who we all can rely on to score us some fantasy points, but this is a very sketchy matchup for him. This year, Miller has caught 12 balls for 116 yards and one score. Baltimore ranks 1st overall in the league at defending against opposing tight ends, giving up an average of just 1.5 fantasy points per game to them. I would choose any other tight end in the league this week to play for fantasy purposes.

Fantasy Prediction: 2 receptions for 20 yards

WEATHER

It’s looking to be a nice night for football with temperatures in the low-60’s. There are no chances of rain and the winds will be blowing at nine miles per hour. All in all, this should be a good night to watch some football!

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