Rashod

Bateman

Bateman made his only reception count by finding the end zone from 14 yards out in the second quarter. The touchdown gave Lamar Jackson 36 on the season, tying both a career high and franchise record. The veteran signal caller would then break through both for his 37th touchdown pass of the season on a pass to tight end Mark Andrews in the third quarter. Bateman came into the contest listed as questionable with a foot injury sustained in practice on Wednesday, potentially influencing his snap rate and route participation rate in the win.

Bateman injured his foot on Wednesday and did not practice Thursday but is healthy enough to suit up against the division rival Steelers in Week 16, which is massive for the team considering Nelson Agholor is out with a concussion and Diontae Johnson was waived earlier in the week. Joining Agholor as inactive for the Ravens are CB Jalyn Armour-Davis, S Marcus Williams, RB Keaton Mitchell, LB Adisa Isaac, and C Nick Samac.

According to Breer, Bateman will meet with the team on Saturday to decide whether or not he will play in Week 16’s game against the Steelers. We don’t know the specifics of his injury, but we do know that Bateman was spotted around the team facilities on Thursday wearing a boot. Bateman is considered questionable heading into Saturday. While his injury may not be as bad as initially thought, we wouldn’t rule out the possibility of him missing at least one game.

Bateman’s Week 16 outlook doesn’t look great despite his questionable status. The veteran receiver popped up on Wednesday’s injury report and was a DNP on Thursday. On top of all of that, he was also spotted in the facility wearing a boot. The Ravens will probably give Bateman until Saturday to see whether or not he can suit up, but the early signs suggest he’s in line to miss this week’s game. His status will be one to monitor in the coming days.

With the Ravens playing on Saturday, we should learn of player’s game statuses soon. That said, Bateman was a DNP in Thursday’s practice after popping up on Wednesday as a limited participant due to a foot injury. Bateman has dealt with foot injuries in the past, but head coach John Harbaugh declined to comment on his status Thursday after practice. We’ll check back in once Bateman’s Week 16 availability is released on the team’s final injury report.

There’s nothing worse than a mid-week addition to the injury report, especially for a player with an injury history as extensive as Bateman’s. The Ravens play on Saturday meaning their first injury report of the week dropped yesterday. Bateman was not on it. With Diontae Johnson excused from the team this week and Nelson Agholor in concussion protocol, the Ravens may be down to Tylan Wallace and Devontez Walker in three-receiver sets for Week 16’s game versus the Steelers.

It’s his first multi-touchdown game in his four-year NFL career. Bateman came down with a 49-yard score in the first quarter before catching another one in the second quarter of the Ravens’ blowout win against an overmatched New York team. Bateman nearly came down with another long score on an underthrown ball from Lamar Jackson in the second half. Next week against the Steelers, Bateman will continue as a high variance fantasy option in the run-heavy Baltimore offense. Before Sunday, he had cleared 50 receiving yards just four times in 2024.

Bateman tweaked his knee in Week 13 but got the bye to recover before returning to action. He practiced in full this week and is good to go for Sunday’s destruction of the Giants. Bateman is a boom/bust WR5 for Week 15.

The week off evidently served Bateman well. The field-stretching WR is now on track to face a banged-up Giants defense in Week 15. While Bateman is unlikely to command significant target volume, he will have opportunities to deliver explosive gains.

The Ravens will head into their Week 14 bye, so it is possible that Bateman misses no additional time at all if this optimistic report from their head coach is correct. Bateman being an unreliable target in a Ravens passing game that seems to have a new focal point every week means you could probably sneak him through the waiver wire in most shallow leagues if you need the roster spot this week.