Nick Whalen called Derrick Henry a no-brainer safety pick in the second round. Henry has posted RB4 or better finishes in per-game scoring in five of the past six years and even in his half-season 2021 injury still landed inside the top-20. Now tethered to Baltimore’s league-best 74 % red-zone TD offense, Whalen expects Henry’s goal-line volume to spike. Age and minimal passing-game usage are the only flags, but Whalen believes Henry’s unique conditioning and unchanged explosiveness make those concerns negligible relative to his dependable rushing workload and touchdown upside.

Nick Whalen placed Lamar Jackson in the same "set-and-forget" tier as Josh Allen. He acknowledged last season’s career-high 41 passing touchdowns may regress, yet emphasized the Ravens’ coaching continuity, strong offensive line and red-zone efficiency (74 % of trips ended in TDs) keep Jackson’s weekly floor extremely high. Although Jackson carries slightly more injury concern than Allen, Whalen still views him as one of the only quarterbacks worthy of an early-round pick because the rushing baseline plus improving passing totals have made him remarkably safe year over year.

Hayden Winks downgraded Isaiah Likely after confirming the tight end broke his foot—almost certainly a Jones fracture—and will undergo surgery. Winks noted that the typical recovery for such a procedure is eight weeks, making a PUP designation (minimum four missed games) the most probable outcome. Because Likely is already a contingent-value player whose spiked weeks come when Mark Andrews sits, drafters were unlikely to start him during Weeks 1-4 anyway. Winks recommended pushing Likely several rounds down best-ball boards and treating him purely as an injury hedge rather than an early-season bye-week plug-in.

Josh immediately elevated Mark Andrews to TE6 overall after Isaiah Likely’s foot fracture. Rich Hribar’s research shows that in the one 2023 game Likely missed, Andrews logged season-high snap rate and route participation, and it was one of only three games with more than six targets. With Likely expected to be placed on PUP (minimum four games, likely closer to six-to-eight weeks because a Jones fracture often requires eight weeks), Andrews projects for 75-80 percent snaps out of the gate instead of last year’s mid-50s. In a September landscape where Travis Kelce (no Rice), T.J. Hockenson (no Jordan Addison) and Andrews (no Likely) all get early-season volume bumps, Josh recommends taking Andrews as the last of the veteran ceiling plays, then pairing him with a late-round upside tight end.

Best Ball Guy said drafters should scoop DeAndre Hopkins whenever he slips to the 180s. He reminded viewers that they were happy to pay a seventh-round price for Hopkins on the Titans last summer, so a 15th-round tag on a Ravens weapon is a bargain. His reasoning: Baltimore scores a ton of points, and the depth chart is anything but settled—Rashod Bateman has an injury history, Zay Flowers hurt his knee last year, and Isaiah Likely is already sidelined. Given that teams do not sign established veterans just to let them rot on the bench, Hopkins should see immediate snaps and red-zone work even if he is merely the WR2/3 in the pecking order. At pick 182 you need only the occasional spike week, making Hopkins a low-risk upside play in Best Ball rooms that have been slow to react.

Best Ball Guy called Mark Andrews a smash at pick 107. Andrews produced 11 touchdowns last season and paid off a fifth-round price; this summer he is lasting into the ninth. The discount is amplified by the ankle injury to teammate Isaiah Likely, which should funnel even more early-season targets to Andrews. In Best Ball Guy’s words, you can "take him there and not overthink it."

Best Ball Guy said drafters should mentally bump Zay Flowers up their wide-receiver tiers after tight end Isaiah Likely was carted off with a foot/ankle injury that is expected to cost him "a couple to a few weeks." He pointed out that soft-tissue and lower-leg issues often linger, and if Likely’s recovery drags into the season the Ravens will have to lean even harder on their wide-out group opposite Mark Andrews. That scenario would funnel extra routes, short-area targets, and possible red-zone looks to Flowers, making him a more attractive pick in current best-ball drafts.

Sean Koerner noted that books finally seem to have cooled on John Harbaugh’s legendary preseason winning streak. After two summers where Baltimore laid numbers as high as ‑6.5 in what Koerner graded as even matchups, early 2025 lines have drifted back toward pick’em. Koerner is ready to fire on the Ravens again when the spread is sensible (roughly PK to ‑3) because the franchise still sports one of the deepest 90-man rosters and a live kicker competition that should keep Harbaugh chasing points with plenty of field-goal attempts. With public fatigue softening the price, he believes Baltimore could once again be the most profitable side on the August board.

Sean Koerner said scrambling quarterbacks like Tyler Huntley are even more valuable in August than in the regular season. With backup offensive lines and replacement-level receivers, pocket passers stall while mobile QBs can manufacture offense—the scramble is already the highest-EPA play and it is even deadlier against third-string defenders. Koerner bumps Ravens power ratings whenever Huntley is expected to log extended snaps and looks to bet overs or second-half sides on teams that roster similar backups (he name-checked Dorian Thompson-Robinson) because those players can erase deficits and cash overs almost single-handedly.

Chris Raybon reminded bettors that some organizations—he highlighted the Baltimore Ravens and Minnesota Vikings—draft and develop so well that their third-stringers are legitimate NFL players. That depth shows up in August when fringe veterans are battling talented mid-round rookies, while opponents are trotting out future practice-squad bodies. The roster construction explains why the Ravens carried a multi-year preseason winning streak and why Raybon is comfortable blindly leaning to these deep franchises on the pre-kickoff spread or moneyline.

Hayden Winks said Lamar Jackson is one of the easiest early-round clicks in both best ball and redraft builds. Winks argued that elite quarterbacks are still mispriced in half-PPR formats because you "chop points off every other position except quarterback," giving zero-RB drafters a weekly floor that wide receivers cannot match. He added that Jackson is only 28, squarely in his athletic prime, and returns to the same offensive coordinator, eliminating scheme-change risk. Given those factors, Winks sees no reason to forecast decline and routinely grabs Jackson at the 2-3 turn instead of chasing another wideout.

Gilles Gallant warned that Derrick Henry is a trap when his anytime-TD line is in minus territory. Henry found the end zone in 13 of 17 games last season, yet a one-unit wager on every game returned only +2.8 units—116th among all NFL players and just seventh on the Ravens. Gallant highlighted a brutal four-game drought (Weeks 12-16) where prices closed as short as –245, –215 and –295, numbers that torched parlays and single-leg ROI alike. With league-wide TD rates falling while sportsbooks keep inflating favorite pricing, Gallant advised passing on Henry unless the market flips to plus money and instead targeting longer shots who routinely close in the +200 to +400 range.

Sean Koerner projected inevitable touchdown regression for Lamar Jackson after last year’s 41-4 TD-INT masterpiece but still slotted him inside his own top tier with Josh Allen. Koerner’s median line is 28.5 passing TDs, 7.5 INTs and another near-1,000 rushing-yard season— numbers that remain "elite with massive rushing upside" because nothing in Baltimore’s setup changed: Todd Monken’s scheme, Derrick Henry’s gravity, and Jackson’s prime athletic window. While he doubts Jackson can repeat 2024’s historic efficiency, Koerner sees virtually no scenario where a healthy Jackson falls out of the weekly top-5, making him worth an early pick whenever the draft room lets him slide after Allen.

JJ Zachariason explained why he is mostly fading Zay Flowers at his Round-4 DraftKings ADP. Flowers’ efficiency metrics scream star, yet Baltimore rarely throws near the goal line—John Harbaugh’s offense mirrors the Eagles inside the five and leans on quarterback or running-back rushes. Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely then soak up most of the remaining red-zone targets. That usage left Flowers with only five touchdowns in 2023, even though Lamar Jackson’s passing TD rate was unusually high— a rate JJ expects to regress hard. Because Flowers’ expected touchdowns were low and his role caps high-end volume, JJ views him as a stable WR3 without the ceiling of similarly priced options like George Pickens. He is willing to scoop Flowers only if the speedster falls at least a full round past current ADP.

JJ Zachariason leaned toward fading Zay Flowers in DraftKings best-ball drafts, arguing that Baltimore’s scoring profile throttles Flowers’ touchdown ceiling. The Ravens are "Eagles-esque" inside the five, pounding in rushing TDs rather than targeting wideouts, and Mark Andrews plus Isaiah Likely dominate red-zone looks. Flowers scored just four times last season despite elite efficiency metrics, and JJ expects Lamar Jackson’s 2023 passing-TD rate (6.0%) to regress. That combination leaves Flowers needing a 90-catch season merely to justify his WR20-ish price—volume JJ doubts he sees in an offense that finished 31st in wide-receiver target share. With similarly talented WRs like George Pickens or Jameson Williams available cheaper, Zachariason is underweight on Flowers and willing to let the market chase last year’s yards-per-route-run pop.

Kendall Valenzuela said she’s clicking Zay Flowers most often in the WR29–31 range. Flowers has delivered back-to-back WR3 seasons of 12.8 and 12.3 fantasy points per game despite Baltimore finishing third-from-last in dropbacks in 2024. She referenced Dwain McFarland’s ceiling-floor model that pegs Flowers for an 18.5-point ceiling (a WR1 pace) in his third campaign. Valenzuela views that upside as too good to pass up at his current discount even in a run-heavy scheme.

Jonathan Fuller labeled Rashod Bateman a negative-regression candidate. Bateman’s 2024 breakout hinged on nine touchdowns despite only 67 targets (two more than his rookie year) and no career highs in catch rate, YPC, or yards per route run. His average depth of target has risen each season, cementing him as Lamar Jackson’s deep threat but also making production boom-or-bust. With Zay Flowers, Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely, and newly signed DeAndre Hopkins ahead or alongside him, Fuller expects a capped 60-70 targets. PFF’s Expected Points model suggests a 638-yard, 5.8-TD season, well below last year’s 756/9 line. Fuller is fading Bateman in season-long formats, reserving interest for best-ball builds where the sporadic spike weeks auto-count.

Best Ball Guy argued that the 4-5 turn duo of Zay Flowers and George Pickens will out-score early-round names like Marvin Harrison Jr. and Tee Higgins once price is factored in. His angle is strictly game-theoretic: at current ADPs you can lock up two ascending second-year talents with every-down roles while still grabbing elite running backs or quarterbacks in the first three rounds. That flexibility, he said, creates more "paths to first" in small-field contests than sinking premium capital into Harrison, whose rookie-year range of outcomes is wider and already baked into an inflated cost.

Pat Kerrane said he is intentionally near-zero on Derrick Henry at his current first-round cost in Best Ball drafts. Henry is now 31, showed clear efficiency slippage in 2024, and Baltimore appears set on working a fully healthy Keaton Mitchell in for 6–8 touches a game to keep the veteran fresh. Kerrane argued that drafting Henry inside the top-12 forces managers to pass on elite wideouts like Puka Nacua, AJ Brown, or Brock Bowers—players he views as possessing equal ceiling with far less age-related downside. Yes, a 20-plus-TD season is in the range of outcomes, but at this price that upside is already baked in while the cliff scenario is not. Kerrane would have taken 6–8 % exposure last summer when Henry was a late-third pick, but at today’s sticker price he is comfortable fading almost entirely and reallocating capital to premium receivers.

Erik Beimfohr urged drafters to hammer Keaton Mitchell in the final round, laying out a bullish two-pronged thesis. First, beat-writer reports say Mitchell looks "better, faster, healthier" than before his knee injury, and Baltimore could siphon 6-8 touches per game from 32-year-old Derrick Henry to keep the veteran fresh—giving Mitchell weekly best-ball viability even without an injury. Second, Mitchell’s college production screams upside: as a 19-year-old at East Carolina he averaged 6.3 yards per carry, then posted 1,452 rushing yards, 250 receiving yards, and 7.2 YPC on 200 carries as a sophomore. If Henry misses time, Beimfohr believes Mitchell has rookie-year De’Von Achane type upside because Justice Hill profiles as a change-of-pace receiver rather than a workhorse. The combination of explosive athletic traits, early-declare pedigree, and an aging starter makes Mitchell his favorite late dart throw.

Erik Beimfohr said Zay Flowers is one of the easiest fifth-round clicks on the board because Baltimore is actively building its pass game around him. Beimfohr dismissed worries about Flowers’ 5-foot-9 frame by pointing to Deontae Johnson and Terry McLaurin as examples of "smaller" receivers who eventually posted double-digit touchdown seasons once volume caught up with talent. He cited John Harbaugh’s pre-camp quote that the offense must "get the ball to Zay Flowers more" and called Flowers the Ravens’ best pass-game player outside of Lamar Jackson. If Baltimore follows through, Beimfohr thinks a 12-TD breakout is firmly in play thanks to Flowers’ first-read chemistry with an MVP-caliber quarterback. The floor is simply a seventh-round value loss (“small miss”), but the ceiling is a league-winning WR2 attached to a top-five offense (“big win”).

Pat Kerrane said Zay Flowers is the true "skeleton key" to Ravens stacks in 2025 drafts. Kerrane loves grabbing Lamar Jackson in the third, then pushing Flowers to the fifth where his 2.25 yards per route run and clear WR1 role make him a smash. The volume knock is baked into price, but Kerrane outlined several ways it could spike: a more pass-centric Todd Monken year-two offense, defensive injuries forcing shootouts, or Derrick Henry missing time and removing Baltimore’s planned run-heavy tilt. If any of those happen, Flowers’ first-read chemistry with an MVP quarterback could yield league-winning production, especially because stacking costs remain cheap—Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely, and even DeAndre Hopkins are all affordable follow-ups. Kerrane concluded that the fifth round is too late for a first-round talent tied to this ceiling and is upping his exposure accordingly.

Pat Kerrane said he has almost black-listed Derrick Henry at his new first-round DraftKings ADP, calling it a textbook age-cliff trap. Henry was routinely available in the late-third or even fourth round last summer, so drafters are now paying two full rounds of inflation for a 31-year-old back coming off 353 touches and joining a Ravens offense that already plans to work in Keaton Mitchell and Justice Hill. Kerrane admitted Henry could pop a 25-TD season, but argued the opportunity cost is brutal: you pass on elite ceilings from AJ Brown, Puka Nacua or Brock Bowers for a running back who probably needs 20-plus scores to justify the price in half-PPR best-ball scoring. With earlier fades (Saquon last year) still fresh, he is reallocating that early-round capital to high-end wideouts and calling <2 % Henry exposure a feature, not a bug, in his 2025 tournament portfolio.

Pat Kerrane pushed back on the Mitchell enthusiasm, warning that even a Derrick Henry injury may not unlock a workhorse role. Kerrane expects the Ravens to default to a committee of Justice Hill, Mitchell and rookie Rasheen Ali if Henry were sidelined, noting that Mitchell’s frame (179 lbs) makes him best suited for 6-8 specialized touches rather than 15‐plus carries. He compared the profile to Donnel Pumphrey and flagged that Baltimore gave Hill most of the No. 2 work last year. Kerrane is comfortable bidding FAB on Mitchell in season-long after an injury clarifies the depth chart, but is reluctant to burn an 18-round Best Ball spot on a player whose ceiling usage remains speculative and whose recovery from ACL surgery has yet to be proven in live action.

Erik Beimfohr said he is “hammering” Keaton Mitchell in the final rounds because the second-year back offers both weekly splash-play juice and massive contingent upside behind 32-year-old Derrick Henry. Beimfohr reminded listeners that Mitchell was a true early-declare out of East Carolina who averaged 7.2 yards per carry on 200 totes and caught 27 passes in his final collegiate season, then flashed game-breaking speed (1.24 yards per route run) before tearing his ACL. Beat writers now report the knee looks fully healthy, and Mitchell himself says he feels “better, faster, healthier than before the injury.” Beimfohr expects Baltimore to protect Henry’s workload—dropping him from 30 carries to the low-20s—and funnel 6-10 touches plus screens to Mitchell each week, giving him spike-week viability even with Henry active. If Henry misses time, Beimfohr believes Mitchell’s breakaway profile could create a rookie-year-Achan scenario in the league’s most efficient rushing offense, a tournament-swinging outcome that is impossible to find elsewhere at an 18th-round ADP.

Erik Beimfohr said Zay Flowers is the quintessential “small miss, big win” target in Best Ball. Although Flowers is not the prototypical alpha red-zone body, Beimfohr argued that great receivers still stumble into double-digit touchdowns—citing Deontae Johnson’s and Terry McLaurin’s spike seasons—as long as they play with an elite quarterback. John Harbaugh openly admitted the offense has to feed Flowers, calling him their best pass-game weapon outside Lamar Jackson. That mandate plus Flowers’ 2.25 YPRR as a rookie gives him a realistic 140-target, 12-TD ceiling, yet his ADP sits in the mid-fifth round. Beimfohr framed the downside as merely wishing you’d taken him in the seventh, while the upside is a league-winning Ravens stack that buries the field if Todd Monken leans pass-heavy.

Pat Kerrane said Zay Flowers is the "skeleton key" to a high-upside Ravens stack because his current fifth-round ADP lets drafters take Lamar Jackson in the third, grab Flowers two rounds later and still circle back for Mark Andrews or Isaiah Likely at palatable prices. Kerrane pointed out that Flowers posted 2.25 yards per route run in Year 2 and is already Baltimore’s clear No. 1 wideout. If the Ravens lean into the pass—whether because Derrick Henry finally shows age, defensive injuries force shoot-outs, or Todd Monken simply steps on the gas—Flowers has a path to a 140-target season. Kerrane argued that drafters must be "absolutely sure" the volume never spikes, because if it does, a fifth-round Flowers attached to an MVP-caliber quarterback will bury the field. He’s prioritizing Lamar/Flowers starts and then hammering rookies like RJ Harvey or TreVeyon Henderson in the sixth to round out the build.

Shawn Siegele countered that the best way to play Baltimore’s hyper-efficient attack in best ball is to draft the discount—Rashod Bateman. Because Zay Flowers and Mark Andrews both carry top-60 prices, Siegele prefers Bateman two to three rounds later, calling him "the risk-mitigation play that still owns real tournament-winning juice." Bateman’s vertical role produced a 16-yard aDOT and multiple three-catch, 20-plus-point fantasy games last year, proof that he can break a week on minimal volume. In an offense where "everyone scores every time they touch it," Siegele argued you do not need 120 targets; you need the cheapest piece with multi-TD spike potential. If all four Ravens pass catchers finish with disappointing full-season totals, the one who actually beats cost is most likely Bateman, whose price assumes failure. Siegele views him as the ideal WR6/7 on tournament builds that are light at the position early.

Ben Gretch said Rashod Bateman’s current double-digit-round ADP still overstates his ceiling because the target pie in Baltimore is simply too cramped. In 2023 Bateman produced a gaudy 20 percent TD rate—11 scores on just 55 catches including playoffs—which Gretch called "an outlier that is going to regress, period." Bateman logged only 190 routes and cleared five targets in just three games while Zay Flowers, Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely all demand additional looks in 2024. The Ravens’ own coaches have repeatedly used the "only one ball" quote this offseason when asked how they’ll feed everyone, and the arrival of Derrick Henry further siphons red-zone touches. Gretch argued Bateman must add real volume to offset inevitable efficiency pull-back, yet he projects Bateman for the lowest targets-per-route of the core four. In a best-ball environment Bateman will still deliver the occasional long-TD spike week, but Gretch doubts there are enough of them to make him a tournament-winning bet at current cost.

Ben Gretch called Rashod Bateman criminally undervalued in the double-digit rounds, noting that drafters are ignoring his explosive-play profile in one of the league’s most efficient offenses. Bateman’s 15-plus-yard target rate remains elite and Lamar Jackson’s career-best 7.9 % TD rate gives every Ravens pass catcher outsized touchdown equity. Gretch expects Bateman to handle the higher-aDOT perimeter looks that disappeared when Odell Beckham left, forecasting enough 60-yard scores to deliver multiple best-ball spike weeks even if overall volume is modest. At a cost that trails low-ceiling floor options, Bateman is the type of swing Gretch wants after loading up on running backs early.

For drafters ready to grab a tight end, Coventry listed Mark Andrews as the premier option in the 8/9 turn. Even though total targets dipped last year, Andrews remained Lamar Jackson’s favoured red-zone and big-play threat, preserving weekly top-tier upside.

Sam Monson dismissed offensive-line hand-wringing and kept Derrick Henry firmly in the RB1 conversation. He pointed to 2024—the veteran’s "best statistical season"—as proof that Baltimore’s backfield "axis" of Henry plus Lamar Jackson buys the line the grace it needs. Defenses must rush conservatively to contain Jackson while Henry sheds arm tackles, leading to late-game explosion runs mirroring his Tennessee heyday. Even if second-year RT Roger Rosengarden stagnates and the guards are a revolving door of Daniel Faalele, Andrew Voorhees or Ben Cleveland, Monson expects the math to stay heavily in Henry’s favor. Fantasy managers and DFS players, he argued, should continue treating Henry as a high-volume, touchdown-rich option tailor-made for run-heavy scripts when Baltimore plays from ahead.

Steve Palazzolo said Lamar Jackson should again be treated as a top-tier fantasy quarterback after back-to-back healthy seasons that produced one MVP and even better follow-up numbers. Palazzolo emphasized the supporting cast upgrade—Derrick Henry’s power runs forcing lighter boxes, Zay Flowers’ second-year leap, a cheap flier on DeAndre Hopkins, and both Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely at tight end. He argued that Lamar’s dual-threat skill set masks any lingering offensive-line concerns, routinely "opens it up for Henry" and allows Baltimore to post elite efficiency regardless of pass-protection grades. Given the Ravens’ habit of blowing out quality opponents and Jackson’s capacity to "take over any game at any time," Palazzolo projected another top-3 fantasy finish and labeled him a weekly DFS cornerstone.

Sam Monson framed Baltimore’s FanDuel win total of 11.5 as entirely reasonable, noting the Ravens have posted a 12-5 record, own one of the two best five-year DVOA runs ever for a team without a Super Bowl trip, and field "very few holes" across the roster. He reminded listeners that Baltimore routinely crushes playoff-caliber teams in the regular season—beating Detroit, San Francisco and Buffalo handily the past two seasons—while returning an MVP-level quarterback in Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry off his best statistical year, and a defense Monson just ranked as the NFL’s best secondary. Because their only lingering questions are postseason specific, Monson implied the path to a 12-win regular season is clear and bettors should lean to the over.

Shawn Siegele called Isaiah Likely a worthwhile long-shot in the late rounds because the Ravens occasionally build game plans that feature him over Mark Andrews, citing Baltimore’s Week-1 approach against Kansas City last season as an example. Even if Likely’s season-long catch total ends up modest, those tactically focused weeks could produce bunched receptions and big fantasy scores that matter more in best ball than in managed leagues. Siegele views Likely as the kind of cheap tight end whose spiked-week profile can patch holes on teams that punt the position early while still offering legitimate breakout potential if Andrews ever misses time.

Sam Monson pumped the brakes on crowning Baltimore’s secondary, warning fantasy managers and futures bettors not to pay a full elite premium. His biggest flags: Jair Alexander has logged only about 50 percent of possible snaps over the last two seasons, Chidobe Awuzie has gone from quality starter to below average in consecutive campaigns, and Malachi Starks—no matter how much scouts love him—remains an untested rookie. If Alexander’s injuries linger, Awuzie’s decline continues, or Starks struggles to adjust, the unit’s floor drops quickly. Monson still sees a high ceiling, but advised treating the Ravens D/ST as boom-or-bust rather than a locked-in top-three option and factoring that volatility into win-total and defensive-player prop bets.

Steve Palazzolo said the Ravens secondary will be the league's best unit and a difference-maker for fantasy defenses and Under bettors. He pointed to unrivaled depth and versatility: Marlon Humphrey and Kyle Hamilton can both kick inside to the slot without weakening the back end, first-round rookie Nate Wiggins locks down the other boundary spot, and Baltimore layered on three buy-low swings—Jair Alexander, Chidobe Awuzie, and fourth-rounder TJ Tampa—to make sure CB2 is no longer a weakness. Because the group can seamlessly survive injuries at outside corner, safety, or slot, Palazzolo expects Baltimore to stay in man coverage more often, dictate weekly game plans, and keep opposing passing attacks in check. That combination makes the Ravens a top-five D/ST target in season-long drafts and a team whose games could skew toward the Under until books adjust.

Chris Raybon highlighted Isaiah Likely as one of the rare backup tight ends who can already pay off his TE15 ADP while offering league-winning upside. Likely finished 16th in Best-Ball Points Added per game last year even though Mark Andrews played all 17 contests; Baltimore essentially split routes between the two, making Likely the de-facto No. 3 target ahead of a fading veteran wide-receiver group headlined by DeAndre Hopkins. Raybon called Likely an “anti-fragile” asset: his baseline production holds when Andrews stays healthy, but Andrews missing time immediately vaults him into the top-five conversation. Because Andrews turned 30 and the Ravens were already willing to use him as a blocker at times, Raybon believes the chances of Likely’s role growing are higher than the market assumes. He urged drafters to treat Likely like a slot receiver who happens to carry tight-end eligibility, making him an ideal TE2 on tournament builds chasing late-season spike weeks.

Shawn Siegele cautioned that Derrick Henry’s Baltimore landing spot is already baked into his ADP, leaving little profit potential. Henry managed only 13.9 expected fantasy points per game last year and still offers virtually no PPR boost, so every projection assumes he continues ripping off 40- to 60-yard touchdowns at age 30. Siegele contrasted that with Jonathan Taylor’s 16.9 EP and receiving upside, arguing that Henry must keep producing highlight-reel runs just to hold serve, whereas Taylor has a workload buffer. Given Henry’s reliance on big plays and the likelihood that Lamar Jackson siphons goal-line carries, Siegele believes Henry is being drafted at his ceiling and prefers other options in the same range.

Rich Cooling warned that selecting DeAndre Hopkins in the double-digit rounds of a startup—after you have already pushed all your chips in on older producers—actually hurts the win-now plan. Hopkins is a 32-year-old wideout entering a new system with target competition from Zay Flowers and Mark Andrews, making a 25-percent target share extremely unlikely. Cooling noted that if Hopkins fails to crack your starting lineup this season, he instantly becomes a droppable roster clogger with zero trade market next summer. Those late picks should instead be pointed at rookie swing types who can either appreciate in value or slide into lineup spots during the stretch run. Hopkins offers neither upside nor liquidity, so Cooling recommends passing unless you are getting him for literal throw-in value during the season when bye-weeks force start/sit desperation on another manager.

Nick Whalen cautioned against chasing Rashod Bateman’s late-season splash plays, projecting touchdown regression and limited target share. Although Bateman is nominally Baltimore’s WR2, Whalen reminded listeners that the offense still runs through Lamar Jackson’s legs, Derrick Henry’s volume and a tight-end duo of Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely. Last year that trio soaked up 52% of the team’s targets. Bateman’s 2024 TD rate of one every 7.5 catches was nearly double his career average, a pace Whalen believes is unsustainable. He pegged Bateman as a volatile WR5 who will feel like the fourth passing option most weeks, advising drafters to pivot to higher-volume receivers in the same ADP range.

Best Ball Guy grabbed Rashod Bateman over similar ADP receivers because the Ravens’ fantasy-playoff stretch – Cincinnati, New England and Green Bay – sets up better shoot-out opportunities than Carolina and the Jets, two defenses he expects to slow games down. He called Bateman’s schedule "the tiebreaker" in a flat tier and likes that stacking costs are minimal since Lamar Jackson often goes earlier than Bateman’s ADP. BBG thinks Bateman’s health finally gives Baltimore an outside-the-numbers threat and that a couple of December splash plays could be the advance-rate edge best-ball drafters need.

McFarland endorsed Lamar Jackson at his Round-3 ADP (pick 26-27) as a rock-solid alternative to Allen. Jackson just finished as overall QB1 with career-best passing marks (245 YPG, 8.8 YPA, 2.41 pass TDs). Regression is expected, but Todd Monken’s scheme still uses 29% play action and fuels high efficiency. While Jackson only gets 4% of Baltimore’s inside-the-five rushes (22nd among QBs), he ranks 4th in designed run rate (19%) and 7th in scramble rate (8%), keeping 1,000-yard rushing seasons firmly in play. Model range: 18.3 floor, 22.5 median, 28.5 ceiling PPG. McFarland advises scooping him when Round-3 RB/WR options feel uninspiring.

Hayden Winks said Lamar Jackson should be the first name considered in both MVP futures and season-long fantasy drafts. Winks highlighted Jackson’s outrageous efficiency when holding the ball 2.5+ seconds last year (29 TDs, 1 INT) and noted he finished #1 in PFF grading, #1 in positively graded throws, and owned the league’s lowest interception rate on middle-field passes. With Todd Monken calling plays, Jackson is now a true pocket passer plus an elite runner, and at 28 his athletic juice has not dipped. Winks added that Derrick Henry’s arrival will stress linebackers on play-action, creating even wider throwing lanes. He believes the gap between Jackson and the rest of the league has never been smaller, making him a slam-dunk MVP bet and an early-round season-long anchor.

Sam Monson said Mike Green could be one of the biggest steals of the entire draft for Baltimore. Green’s tape graded as a top-15 overall player, but he tumbled into Round 2 strictly because of off-field concerns. Monson cited data showing that teams historically gain surplus value when they stop a talented player’s slide relative to the consensus board. If the character flags prove manageable, Baltimore will have landed a first-round caliber edge defender at a massive discount—a profile worth stashing in deeper IDP or dynasty formats given the Ravens’ track record of maximizing front-seven talent.

Jim Coventry called Keaton Mitchell a "super-super-late" steal. Both John Harbaugh and Mitchell say the running back is fully recovered from his late-2023 knee injury that limited him to cameo duty last year. While the 8.4 YPC he flashed as a rookie isn’t sustainable, Coventry loves his explosiveness and pass-catching chops in contrast to Derrick Henry, who only played 52 percent of snaps in 2024. The Ravens regularly use another back on the field, and Justice Hill is merely a coach’s favorite. Coventry projects 5–10 touches per week for Mitchell, enough for flex value, with league-winning upside if the 30-year-old Henry ever misses time.

Jim Coventry called Keaton Mitchell a "super-super-late" steal. Both John Harbaugh and Mitchell say the running back is fully recovered from his late-2023 knee injury that limited him to cameo duty last year. While the 8.4 YPC he flashed as a rookie isn’t sustainable, Coventry loves his explosiveness and pass-catching chops in contrast to Derrick Henry, who only played 52 percent of snaps in 2024. The Ravens regularly use another back on the field, and Justice Hill is merely a coach’s favorite. Coventry projects 5–10 touches per week for Mitchell, enough for flex value, with league-winning upside if the 30-year-old Henry ever misses time.

Kerrane preferred Zay Flowers over Alvin Kamara in the mid-fifth, calling the third-year Raven both safer and higher-ceiling. Flowers owns a first-round pedigree, has been efficient in each of his first two seasons, and projects as the clear No. 1 target in Baltimore. By contrast, Kamara is “definitely dust as a runner” and could be totally washed. In wide-receiver-heavy tournament rooms, Kerrane wants the proven young alpha with a condensed target tree instead of betting on an aging RB who now needs pass-game work to matter.

Jeff Erickson said to play Lamar Jackson over 750.5 rushing yards at –110. Jackson has cleared this number in six consecutive seasons and posted 915 yards in 2024, so Erickson views the prop as nothing more than a bet on health. He is unconcerned about Derrick Henry’s arrival siphoning carries, noting last year’s volume stayed intact once Gus Edwards was replaced. With Baltimore’s offense again structured around Jackson’s legs and the quarterback historically durable enough to log at least 15 games in four of the last five campaigns, Erickson expects another 800-plus yard season and called the price fair.

Ryan Heath advised securing Lamar Jackson whenever he slips into the fourth round. Jackson is part of the elite trio that has produced league-winning playoff rates in 5 of the last 6 Round 3-4 draft seasons. Heath noted that every QB league winner since 2017 hit 55 rush attempts; Jackson averaged 143 carries over three fully healthy seasons, blowing past that threshold while adding historic yards-per-carry efficiency. At just 27 years old, Jackson’s legs are still in their prime, and Todd Monken’s pass-first scheme gives him added stackability. Given that running back league winners can still be found in Rounds 5-8, Heath argued Jackson’s locked-in dual-threat ceiling is the highest-leverage pick you can make after the top WR tier dries up.

Whalen refuses to time the decline of Derrick Henry, ranking him atop Tier 2. Henry logged 16 rushing touchdowns last year and Whalen believes he could surpass that if Lamar Jackson’s passing efficiency cools. Age and minimal passing-game work remain knocks, but Whalen argues Henry’s freakish durability separates him from normal 30-year-old backs and that Baltimore’s red-zone design will again funnel carries to him.