15 Transactions For Week 2

Add Justin Forsett and Lorenzo Taliaferro

After a Bernard Pierce fumble, the Ravens opted to give the ball to Justin Forsett on Sunday against the Bengals. The game itself was a little odd from a play-calling perspective, as Joe Flacco dropped back and threw the ball 62 times, while Pierce and Forsett combined for 17 carries.

There’s talk that Forsett is going to start against the Steelers on Thursday, and according to our metrics, that’s smart. Bernard Pierce has been incredibly inefficient in terms of Rushing Net Expected Points (NEP) throughout his two-plus year career, and only secured 14 yards on 6 carries on Sunday. Forsett was flat-out better.

But it’s tough to be completely solid on a running back (Forsett) who’s never carried the ball more than 118 times in a single season after entering the league in 2008.

While he may be a decent short-term fix, it wouldn’t surprise me to see rookie Lorenzo Taliaferro steal some carries from this backfield as the season moves forward. As noted yesterday, his top READ comparable is Matt Forte, who was the fourth-best fantasy football running back during his rookie year. Taliaferro led the preseason in running back rushing attempts, and probably has the most upside – not immediate, however – of all three Ravens running backs.

You want to be a step ahead in fantasy football, and adding Taliaferro could be a move that helps you out in the long run.