2022 Week 13: Ravens 10, Broncos 9 (Dynasty/Fantasy Analysis Game Report)
Boy this was a real barnburner...hope you don’t like offense/scoring!
All field goals for 59+ minutes, a 9-3 Denver lead dashed by a 91-yard TD drive by Tyler Huntley with 0:28 left. Denver tried to get into a field goal position for a last second win, and they had a shot with a 63-yard FG attempt…but Brandon McManus came up short again on a 60+ yard FG and the Ravens snuck out with the victory.
Lamar Jackson got hurt early and Huntley ran the final three quarters of a defensive battle where he ran for the game winner against another dreadful Denver offensive performance.
Baltimore is now (8-4) but have been playing pretty mediocre football. The easy season-ending schedule that was supposed to allow them to waltz to the AFC North crown…is still easy…it’s just the Ravens are so mediocre they may not be able to capitalize on it. While at the same time the Bengals are also now (8-4) and their incredibly tough finishing schedule doesn’t seem as daunting as Burrow mows down the top AFC teams one-by-one. The Ravens still can win this division because of their schedule, but they won’t be a threat in the playoffs…they’ll be one-and-done, whether as a division winner or wildcard.
Denver is now (3-9)…losers of eight of their past 9 games, and they may not win another game this season. Big changes coming in the offseason to Denver -- a new coaching staff, and possibly a new GM. This was so bad, everything and everyone may get swept by new ownership.
*Note any fractional numbers in parentheses (4/2) or (2/3), etc., are a ‘split’ stat on our definition of a ‘quality start’ (or not) marker on a player -- using 14 PPR points in a game for RB-WR-TE and 21 for a QB…point levels that are good/productive/well above average starts for a Fantasy week. Trying to identify trends, consistency (or not) in players we might not normally realize.
A (3/2), for example, means: 3 times the player hit at/above the mark, and 2 times they did not.
Fantasy Player Notes…
-- The biggest FF-thing from this game was the Lamar Jackson injury. He’s out Week 14. Probably out Week 15. May return Week 16. Tyler Huntley (27-32 for 187 yards, 0 TD/1 INT, 10-41-1) will take over for Lamar.
As I’ve written, repeatedly, for a couple years now… When Huntley replaces Lamar, I really can’t tell a huge difference in the offense. They’re both runners. They both can throw the ball OK. Lamar has a little more flash. Huntley has more stable consistency. There is such a narrow difference, I would never pay Lamar Jackson what he is asking, and I’d just trade his rights to another team and go with Huntley while drafting another QB to develop. The media and fans would have a fit if Baltimore were to do that, but Lamar may have backed them into a corner to do just that.
I’ll care about 2023 after the season. For now, for Week 14, what to expect from Tyler Huntley? Lamar like numbers…50+ yards rushing, hope of a rushing TD, 200 +/- passing yards and about one passing TD a game…which is almost what he did in this game, only playing three quarters. Huntley is a very solid, experienced mobile QB. When it mattered the most, the final 3+ minute do-or-die drive, Huntley threw for a 4th-down completion from his own 19-yard line and ran for a clutch 4th-down conversion…and ran in the winning score himself. He’s good.
-- Who did Huntley throw to? Pretty much the same pattern as Lamar the past few weeks/months…
Demarcus Robinson (7-41-0/8) continues to inexplicably be the center of the Ravens pass game, every other week. He led the way in targets for Baltimore and looked like he had a comfortable connection with Huntley.
Robinson has a weird pattern of catches in games the last 5 weeks: 6-1-9-1-7. The Ravens new #1 is a (1/11) for quality starts this season. Good luck with that.
-- Mark Andrews (4-53-0/7) was second in targets for Huntley here…as Andrews’ season output continues to fall down.
His last five games: 3.4 rec. (5.8 targets), 39.8 yards, and 0.0 TDs per game. He hasn’t had a quality start in his last 5 games after starting the season a (4/2) with the ‘4’ being all 22+ point PPR games.
It has to be that injury that cropped up a few weeks ago…it’s all that can explain this massive fall from grace.
-- Russell Wilson (17-22 for 189 yards, 0 TD/0 INT) finishes with another 0 TD pass game. 8 passing TDs in 11 games is absolutely pathetic and not all Nathaniel Hackett’s fault. Can’t be. He’s a (1/10) this season.
-- Wilson did push TE Greg Dulcich (6-85-0/8) as his new favorite receiver in this game. It looks like the only real connection he has...or it was the thing to do facing Baltimore’s so-so TE coverage ability. But opposing teams have been rolling the Ravens secondary on-and-off as well with nice stat output for the WRs, but not Denver. Jerry Jeudy (4-65-0/4) had another forgettable game, but he played less than 50% of the snaps in his return from injury.
H-C Hackett says they are using Dulcich as a WR, essentially…well, then I’m on board for that in FF. With Courtland Sutton likely out Week 14, Dulcich vs. KC might be a lot of targets in a blowout/in garbage time for Denver.
-- If Denver gets rocked by KC, we might also see Mike Boone (6-18-0, 1-8-0/1) get an inordinate amount…or just a decent amount…of targets in the wreckage, as Denver’s 3rd-down/relief back.
-- I have no idea what the Ravens are doing with their backfield…
Last week, Gus Edwards (6-12-0) returns from injury and takes all the touches, and Kenyan Drake (7-29-0, 2-17-0/3) becomes a bystander. This game, Gus started but then Drake took over and Gus barely played. All the main RBs for Baltimore look sad and ineffective. J.K. Dobbins isn’t likely to return for another week or three.
Who gets the bulk of the touches, or how they are distributed, Week 14? I have no idea. I’ll bet Huntley leads them in rushing.
Snap Counts of Interest:
36 = Latavius
12 = Boone
05 = M Mack
41 = Hinton
25 = Br Johnson
23 = Sutton
20 = Jeudy
08 = Montrell Wash
04 = Virgil
25 = Drake
17 = Gus Edwards
17 = Justice Hill
