Week 5 at Pittsburgh Steelers
Willie Snead was only targeted twice last week against the Browns, but he caught both passes for 61 yards and a touchdown. Snead has been inconsistent in production, but he actually leads Baltimore receivers in snaps so far this season and he’s caught two touchdowns in four games. He’s only valuable in super deep leagues and best-ball formats, but he’s an interesting desperation option for fantasy owners looking for touchdown-or-bust production. Most leagues, he should remain on waivers, however.
Week 4 vs. Cleveland Browns
Willie Snead caught three of the five balls sent his way last week against the Chiefs for 47 yards. He has a role in the offense and he’ll likely have the occasional touchdown, but the team seems to favor rookie Marquise Brown as a deep target, and quarterback Lamar Jackson looked for tight ends or running backs on 26 of his 43 pass attempts in Week 3. That doesn’t leave a lot of action for the third receiver in the offense and he’s too risky to consider using in most leagues. He should remain on waivers.
Week 3 at Kansas City Chiefs
Willie Snead was only targeted once last week against the Cardinals after catching a touchdown in Week 1. Expect the rest of the season to be more like Week 2, with the Ravens rarely throwing often enough to get Snead consistent work. He has talent and big-play ability, but his targets are unlikely to be high enough on a week-to-week basis to warrant rostering him. He has a nice matchup against the Chiefs this week, but is too risky in most leagues. He’s not a bad end-of-bench flyer in best-ball leagues, but shouldn’t be active in other formats.
Week 2 vs. Arizona Cardinals
Willie Snead had 41 yards and a touchdown in a blowout victory over the Dolphins last week. While those are nice numbers, he was only targeted three times on the day, catching two. Snead had a nice rapport with Lamar Jackson a year ago, but with the tight end position taking up 15 targets against the Dolphins and 46 rushing attempts in the game, it’s difficult to trust him. We still need to see more from this offense to get a true feel for how valuable the receivers are going to be.
Week 1 at Miami Dolphins
Despite the presence of John Brown and Michael Crabtree on the roster last year, Willie Snead averaged 6.79 targets per game over the course of the season on a team that emphasized the running game. Snead has some upside if that rapport he built with quarterback Lamar Jackson carries over to this season, and if he can find the end zone more – he scored only once in 2018 – then he might be worth a roster spot in large leagues. For now, however, it’s too risky to trust any Ravens receivers, even against a rebuilding Dolphins defense.
Fantasy Upside
After Lamar Jackson took over as the starting quarterback midway through the season, Willie Snead was really the only Ravens receiver to get consistent targets. Throughout the year, he averaged 6.7 targets and after Jackson took over, had less than his average in only three games. Snead has big-play potential dating back to his days with the Saints, and he’s the most natural fit in the slot among the Ravens’ current receivers. If Snead wins that job, he might lead the team in receptions.
Fantasy Downside
Despite getting steady work throughout the year, Snead wound up with only 651 yards and a single touchdown, which he scored in his first game of the season. Also, receiving production might be limited in Baltimore, as Jackson never attempted more than 25 passes in a game last year, and his completion percentage was only 58.2%. Plus, rookies Marquise Brown and Miles Boykin are lurking on the depth chart, and veteran Chris Moore might be in play for the slot job as well.
2019 Bottom Line
Snead might be worth a gamble late in PPR formats, but it’s hard to get too excited about any of the Ravens’ receivers considering how little they threw the ball with Jackson behind center a year ago. The team brought in Mark Ingram and should continue to run a ball-control offense, using Jackson’s legs instead of his arm. No significant draft capital should be spent on Snead.
Wildcard Round vs. Los Angeles Chargers
Willie Snead suffered along with the rest of the Ravens receiver corps when Lamar Jackson took over at quarterback seven games ago. While he did have three games with five catches, he also had four games with either one or zero catches. The Ravens have gone to a run-heavy approach and there’s no reason to think that changes against the Chargers this week in the playoffs. With excellent receivers available this week for other teams, there’s no reason to look to Snead or any other pass-catcher in Baltimore.
Week 11 vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Willie Snead hasn’t put up big numbers, but he’s quietly led the team in targets in each of his past two games. He’s now averaging 7.7 targets per game this year. Snead is still not producing at a high level – only one touchdown this season and no game over 60 yards receiving – but he’s getting looks and his playmaking ability makes him a threat to score anytime he touches the ball.
This week, Snead has some boom-bust potential in a great matchup against the Bengals, who allow 42.7 fantasy points per game to opposing wide receiver this year. Snead is super risky as the third option on the depth chart in an offense that’s trending downward, but his targets and matchup is interesting enough for swing-for-the-fences lineups this week.
Week 9 vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Willie Snead led the team with five receptions on 11 targets last week against the Panthers, gaining 54 yards. Snead hasn’t put up big numbers this season, but he’s averaging 7.6 targets per game, including 28 over the past three games. He still has big-play potential, giving him some upside for the rest of the season in deep leagues. However, even in a great matchup against the Steelers this week, it’s hard to trust he’ll get those kinds of targets again. Fantasy owners should consider him too risky to put in lineups.
Week 7 vs. New Orleans Saints
Willie Snead is super risky to trust in any given week, but he has some upside against the Saints, who only have one good cornerback and are allowing the most fantasy points per game to the wide receiver position in the entire league this season. Snead has big-play ability and he's facing his former team, so he may show up big. Classic boom/bust situation.
