Week 5 Booms and Busts: Ravens and Bengals put on fantasy football show in 79-point OT thriller

Lamar Jackson got the last laugh against the division rival Bengals, with four TD passes and an overtime victory. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

So often September feels like the glorified preseason for the NFL. We need October football to cleanse our palate, to feel good again.

Baltimore and Cincinnati heeded that call Sunday. Jacksonville and Indianapolis did, too.

The Ravens and Bengals deserve the lead item. Contending teams, big-name quarterbacks. The Ravens escaped with a 41-38 overtime victory, in a game that featured 962 yards of offense and 53 first downs. Almost every plausible fantasy angle came home.

Lamar Jackson was marvelous leading the Baltimore offense, throwing for 348 yards and four touchdowns. He added 55 more yards on the ground. There were occasional errors — two fumbles (one lost) and a safety, though he only absorbed one sack. But the highlights from Jackson, the splash plays, more than make up for the infrequent mistakes. I can’t imagine how the Commanders will contain him next week (now there’s a delightful matchup Washington at Baltimore).

Baltimore’s passing tree can be a tricky solve some weeks, but Jackson focused on his receivers, steering 20 targets to Zay Flowers (7-111-0, 12 targets) and Rashod Bateman (4-58-1, eight targets). The tight-end work was split three ways, with Isaiah Likely catching two short touchdowns, Charlie Kolar vulturing 3-64-1 on every waiver wire in America, and Mark Andrews eventually joining the party, four grabs for 55 yards. Given that Andrews had two targets and zero catches over the two previous weeks, I suppose this is progress.

For the most part the Bengals did an excellent job on Derrick Henry, but two plays saved his day — a short touchdown run in the first half and a 51-yard gallop in overtime, the last scrimmage play of the game. That’s the joy of Henry, it can feel like he’s doing nothing, and he still cobbles together 16.10 fantasy points. Surprisingly, Justice Hill was targeted just…

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Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-10-06 22:55:29

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