Baltimore Ravens

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Malik Cunningham has officially transitioned to wide receiver, according to his listing on the team's website. The Louisville product even hauled in some passes during Thursday's OTAs. This move has been roughly a year in the making for Cunningham, who previously drew attention thanks to his athleticism and flashy playing style last preseason with the New England Patriots. The Patriots were reportedly interested in using him at both quarterback and wide receiver, but they ultimately made him active for just one game and deployed him under center. The Ravens poached him from the Patriots' practice squad in December, but he only appeared in one game with Baltimore, too. In theory, though, this official switch to wide receiver could allow Cunningham to carve out more opportunities, even if it's in a depth role. With most teams carrying around a half-dozen receivers on their 53-man rosters, there's a chance that Cunningham could be active in Week 1. Of course, that's dependent on him producing throughout training camp and the preseason. Even if he does make the team, he's unlikely to generate any fantasy appeal.

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Rashod Bateman has struggled and battled injuries since being selected with the No. 27 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft out of Minnesota. Through his first 35 games, he's hauled in 93 receptions for 1,167 yards and four touchdowns. However, Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken expects him to take a Year 4 leap in 2024. "You know, last year was interesting in the fact that we had Odell [Beckham Jr.] and Bate had missed the offseason and some of Fall camp," Monken said. "But as the year went on, Rashod really came on. I expect a tremendous year out of him." Although this is a positive sign, it's tough to find a path toward consistent fantasy production for the 24-year-old. Second-year wide receiver Zay Flowers and veteran tight end Mark Andrews are the clear No. 1 and No. 2 options in the passing game, and Baltimore will likely remain a low-volume passing offense like in previous years under Lamar Jackson -- especially after the addition of star running back Derrick Henry. Bateman might be worth a late-round flyer in fantasy football drafts, but his weekly upside figures to be limited.

Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry has been one of the busiest ball-carriers in the NFL since earning the clear RB1 role with the Tennessee Titans in 2019. Since Week 1 of the 2019 campaign, he's tallied 1,645 total touches, 7,209 rushing yards, 1,086 receiving yards, and 68 touchdowns. He led the league in carries in four of the last five seasons and is entering his age-30 campaign. However, Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken declined to put a cap on his workload in his first season with the Ravens in 2024. "Well, if he carries it 300 times, we're having a helluva year. I can tell you that. It means we're running it a lot; it means we're up in games," Monken said. "We want him to finish. We want him to be the closer." He mentioned that the team wants to ensure he stays healthy through 17 games and will use other running backs in the offense, but it sounds like he'll continue to be a high-volume rusher. Although Henry seems to have lost a step in his long speed and efficiency, he should have plenty of goal-line opportunities on a team that has scored the sixth-most touchdowns (249) over the last five years, and he continues to possess RB1 upside thanks to volume.

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, last year's NFL MVP, said that he dropped weight this offseason to "be more agile." Jackson said he weighed 205 pounds, which is 25 pounds less than his 2022 weight and 10 pounds less than last year. The 27-year-old is already the most prolific running QB in the NFL, as he's gained 5,258 yards on the ground in his first six seasons in the league, 1,399 more than any other signal-caller. He led the NFL by averaging 5.5 yards per carry in 2023, but that was his lowest in any full season. Jackson had nine runs in his first three seasons in which he reached a maximum speed of 20 mph or faster, but he's managed just one of those runs in his last three seasons. He doesn't think the weight loss will impact how he takes hits, and it shouldn't deter fantasy managers from taking him as a high-end QB1.

Baltimore Ravens running back Keaton Mitchell (knee) is "on schedule" with his recovery from a torn ACL suffered in Week 15 of last season. However, the speedster won't take part in training camp this summer, and he's likely to miss at least a few games early in the 2024 campaign. This is no surprise given the usual timeline to return from a major knee injury. After going undrafted last year out of East Carolina, Mitchell rushed 47 times for 396 yards and two touchdowns. His sample size was small, but his 8.4 yards per carry led all running backs, and he flashed his splash-play upside. The 22-year-old should be stashed in dynasty formats, but he has a slim chance of being a significant fantasy contributor this year behind Derrick Henry. Justice Hill is slated to begin the season in the RB2 role, though fifth-round rookie Rasheen Ali could make a run at it.