Despite the Ravens having the ability to activate both Mark Ingram and JK Dobbins, they chose to leave both running backs inactive for their 3:40 PM game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Now that fantasy football managers have some sense of clarity on the Ravens RBs, who should they trust between Gus Edwards and Justice Hill?
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Mark Ingram and JK Dobbins are inactive for Wednesday Night Football
As the Baltimore Ravens enter their game later today, it seemed they would be getting back two of their most critical offensive players. Both Ravens RBs Mark Ingram and JK Dobbins are eligible to return after being placed on the reserve list last week. However, according to NBC Sport’s Michele Tafoya on the Dan Patrick Show earlier this morning, the Ravens will not activate either player.
ESPN’s Kimberley Martin reported that Dobbins and Ingram did not fly to Pittsburgh with the rest of the team on Tuesday night due to their isolation period still being in effect. On Wednesday morning, CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora said both Ravens RBs were still not with the team.
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After a number of positive tests for the Ravens organization last week, which landed more than 20 players on the reserve list, the Ravens are choosing to be “cautious,” according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Neither of these players would have had a chance to play if it wasn’t for the games being moved three different times, leading to frustration from the Steelers, fans, and fantasy football players who may have chosen to wait and leave open roster spots for players in this game.
Gus Edwards and Justice Hill will lead the Ravens RB group on Wednesday
While some may have thought both Mark Ingram and JK Dobbins would have been activated, I don’t believe this choice surprises anyone either. For most of the past week, they never even had the chance to play due to NFL guidelines. It’s a loss that will be felt by the Ravens offense, who is missing so many key pieces.
JK Dobbins leads the Ravens RBs with 380 rushing yards on 72 attempts and three touchdowns while serving as the primary pass-catching back with 17 receptions on 22 targets for 103 yards. Mark Ingram, who has played in only eight games due to injury, has had a less impactful season than normal in 2020. Ingram has 57 rushes for 232 yards and two touchdowns while adding 49 yards through the air on his five receptions. Between Lamar Jackson, JK Dobbins, and Mark Ingram, the Ravens are missing 74% of the team’s rushing total.
What have Edwards and Hill provided to the Ravens offense so far in 2020?
Gus Edwards, who rushed for 87 yards and a touchdown in the teams’ first meeting, a 28-24 Steelers win in Week 8, is expected to be the lead back. Edwards has seen the most rushing attempts of the Ravens RBs through 10 games, rushing 85 times for 376 yards and three touchdowns and catching three of his seven targets for 43 yards. He has been somewhat underwhelming this season, though, as the backfield usage lends to no one having fantastic days. Gus Edwards has rushed for more than 43 yards twice this season but has been under 30 yards in five games. While the third-year pro has rushed for 700 or more yards in each of his first two seasons, his erratic play leaves a lot to be desired from a fantasy aspect as he sits as the RB56 in PPR.
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The Ravens and fantasy GMs will also be relying on RB Justice Hill to see an expanded role. In his second year out of Oklahoma State, Hill has primarily been used on special teams. He has yet to see a rushing attempt in 2020 and has one reception for three yards. In 2019, Hill saw more usage, gaining almost 300 all-purpose yards and scoring two touchdowns.
At Oklahoma State, Justice Hill was a productive running back. He carried the ball 632 times for 3,539 yards (5.6 avg) and 30 touchdowns in his three seasons. He also demonstrated his receiving skills with 304 yards on 49 receptions for another touchdown.
Which Ravens RB should fantasy managers trust between Gus Edwards and Justice Hill?
Trust is a subjective term in this instance. I don’t know if you can trust anything regarding the Ravens’ offensive production this week, knowing how decimated they are as a roster. Not only that, but they are playing a Pittsburgh Steelers team who is out for blood because they feel they have been put at a disadvantage. Add in the missing rushing threat of Lamar Jackson and there being no need to cover Mark Andrews across the middle, the Steelers likely will have no respect for the passing game — all eyes will be on the backfield.
Through the 2020 season, the Steelers defense allows the second-fewest fantasy points to running backs per game (17.39), and that was with teams at full strength. That is after facing players such as Saquon Barkley, Melvin Gordon, David Johnson, Miles Sanders, Kareem Hunt, Derrick Henry, and Ezekiel Elliott.
Both Gus Edwards and Justice Hill could be in for a tough outing
If you waited for this game and kept a spot open for a Ravens RB in fantasy, you don’t have a choice but to play them. Personally, I stayed away and benched every Steelers and Ravens player as I took the guaranteed points rather than a costly potential zero. Out of the two Ravens RBs, I have a bit more confidence in Gus Edwards. He has already had a fantasy-relevant game against the Steelers, but that was a different Ravens team back in Week 8.
Justice Hill will serve as a more passing down back and also a change-of-pace player. Knowing the team only had a walkthrough, and one practice leading into this game makes us wonder how many reps Hill has gotten as an RB this week, or even for the whole season. He has been a healthy scratch in four games this year and has seen offensive snaps in just four others. If you are in a pinch in a PPR fantasy format, Justice Hill makes some sense, but I would first check to see if any Steelers RBs are on the waiver before committing to Hill for fantasy.
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Tommy Garrett is a writer for PFN covering Fantasy Football. You can read more of his work here and follow him at @TommygarrettPFN on Twitter.