Fantasy Football Week 4: Rankings and Advice for Thursday Night Football

It's safe to say this wasn't how we pictured the first Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers matchup of the fantasy football season, right?

The injury heard round the world came last week when we saw Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger get his leg bent in a way that instantly made you flinch and say, "Oh man, he's done. He's done for the year. That's his ACL."

Fortunately, Big Ben was eventually diagnosed with an MCL sprain, and instead of missing the entire season, he'll be out anywhere from four to six weeks.

Instead of Big Ben, Steelers backup quarterback Michael Vick will get his shot.

We saw Vick get a few starting opportunities with the New York Jets in 2014. Ironically, Vick threw for two touchdown passes against the Steelers last year.

The Ravens, led by quarterback Joe Flacco, are 0-3 for the first time in their franchise's history, and most would agree that this is an enormous chance to get off the schneid and secure a victory.

Let's kick this column off with the top 10 big board.

Top 10 Big Board

Billy Hurst/Associated Press

Thursday Night Big Board

Rank	Player	Pos.	Team
1	Le'Veon Bell	RB	Pittsburgh Steelers
2	Steve Smith Sr.	WR	Baltimore Ravens
3	Justin Forsett	RB	Baltimore Ravens
4	Antonio Brown	WR	Pittsburgh Steelers
5	Joe Flacco	QB	Baltimore Ravens
6	Maxx Williams	TE	Baltimore Ravens
7	Michael Vick	QB	Pittsburgh Steelers
8	Marlon Brown	WR	Baltimore Ravens
9	Heath Miller	TE	Pittsburgh Steelers
10	Markus Wheaton	WR	Pittsburgh Steelers

Quarterbacks

Patrick Semansky/Associated Press

Baltimore Ravens: Joe Flacco

Let me start by saying this: This is not a debate of whether or not Flacco is an elite quarterback.

This has been a very frustrating season for the Ravens. However, Flacco has been solid over the last two games. After throwing for a measly 117 yards in Week 1, Flacco has gone on to throw well over 350 yards in his last two contests.

Yes, the team was behind and forced into a shootout in his last two games, but the fantasy totals were there for Flacco, as he is the No. 7 QB over the last two weeks.

Now, I get it—what are the chances the Ravens get in to a shootout with the Pittsburgh Steelers led by Michael Vick?

Probably not great.

The Ravens will be without their tight end Crockett Gillmore, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun. Additionally, Zrebiec reports that Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier is out for the game as well. Just to make matters worse, the Steelers could also be without cornerback Cortez Allen for another game. 

If the Steelers are without Allen again, that horrendous secondary is in even more trouble. In fact, the Steelers rank 30th in terms of pass coverage this season, according to Pro Football Focus.

Since Baltimore won't be forced into a shootout, Flacco won't throw for insane numbers, but he'll be a very serviceable option this week with a favorable matchup.

Projections: 22-of-35 passing, 250 passing yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs

Pittsburgh Steelers: Michael Vick

You're probably not starting Vick in most leagues—he's just way too risky and unpredictable.

However, Vick is surrounded by some of the best skill position players he's had in his career. This includes running back Le'Veon Bell and wide receiver Antonio Brown.

He's not nearly the same elusive Vick from his heyday, but don't be surprised if you see him take off and run from time to time.

This game figures to be all Bell, and that's a pretty good bet. Avoid Vick this week.

Projections: 18-of-28 passing, 155 passing yards, 1 TD, 1 INT; 6 carries, 20 rushing yards

Running Backs

Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

Baltimore Ravens Starter: Justin Forsett

All right, this is the week for Forsett to get going.

Unfortunately for Forsett, the Ravens were tasked with a menacing Denver Broncos defense in Week 1 and had to play in shootouts with the Oakland Raiders and Cincinnati Bengals in the following weeks.

When those things happen, the run game is often abandoned.

The reason why Forsett should succeed this week is simple—the Ravens should actually have a decent lead at some point in the game.

After some Week 2 concerns about fellow running back Lorenzo Taliaferro cutting in to his snaps, Forsett went out and played over 81 percent of the team's snaps in Week 3.

Forsett owners are frustrated, and it's understandable.

This is the week!

Projections: 16 carries, 65 rushing yards, 1 TD; 5 receptions, 30 receiving yards

Pittsburgh Steelers Starter: Le'Veon Bell

It certainly didn't take the Steelers long to get Bell worked back into the offense, now did it?

In Week 3, Bell played in 60 of the teams 63 offensive snaps and had a total of 26 touches (19 rushing, seven receptions).

There's really no need to analyze this further. You're starting Bell, and the fact that Vick is starting under center only makes Bell that much more appealing.

Projections: 28 carries, 140 rushing yards, 1 TD; 5 receptions, 40 yards

Wide Receivers

GAIL BURTON/Associated Press

Baltimore Ravens: Steve Smith Sr.

It's almost sad knowing Smith is retiring after this season. By far one of the most entertaining players to watch, Smith will get to showcase his fountain-of-youth self and trash talk on national television—how great is that?

Let's be honest, the Ravens have almost no weapons whatsoever.

As noted before, the Ravens will be without tight end Crockett Gillmore, leaving Smith as the clear-cut No. 1 option in this passing attack (as if he wasn't before).

Over his last two games, Smith has received 16 and 17 targets, respectively. That's one more target than Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones.

Smith is in a similar situation as Jones—there's no one else to catch the ball.

Look for quarterback Joe Flacco to force-feed Smith.

Projections: 8 receptions, 100 receiving yards, 1 TD

Pittsburgh Steelers: Antonio Brown

Now, you probably saw the big board and thought, "How the heck can Brown be fourth on the big board?"

Trust me, it was weird to place him there.

The injury to Roethlisberger is really unfortunate for Brown from a fantasy perspective. Obviously, Vick is no Big Ben.

Heading into Thursday night, Brown holds a streak of 36 straight games (including last year's Wild Card Game) in which he's had five or more receptions—that's incredible.

Don't worry, stat guys—Brown will maintain his streak this week.

Projections: 6 receptions, 75 receiving yards, 1 TD

Tight Ends

Nick Wass/Associated Press

Baltimore Ravens Starter: Maxx Williams

As noted enough times that you should know by now, fellow tight end Crockett Gillmore has been ruled out for Thursday night's game.

The one piece of information we can't ignore any longer is the fact that this guy has more than one "x" in his name—don't mess with anyone with more than one "x" in their name.

In all seriousness, Williams will be the No. 2 target for Flacco, behind only Steve Smith Sr. In relief of Gillmore in Week 3, Williams caught three pass for 44 yards. Yeah, decent line, whatever, but what's really eye-opening are his targets—seven.

Seven targets. That, my friends, is why Williams is scoring his first NFL touchdown Thursday night—he'll get a healthy amount of targets. He's worth starting this week.

Projections: 6 receptions, 60 receiving yards, 1 TD

Pittsburgh Steelers: Heath Miller

Heath Miller is perhaps the member of the Steelers offense most affected by Big Ben's absence.

Over the first two weeks of the season, Miller was averaging 13 fantasy points per game in points-per-reception formats. In Week 3, Miller finished with just four fantasy points in PPR formats.

Now, Roethlisberger played a decent amount of the game, but backup quarterback Michael Vick didn't look his way once.

The passing volume just isn't going to be there with Vick at the helm. Look for other options (like Williams).

Projections: 3 receptions, 20 receiving yards

Defense/Special Teams

Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

Baltimore Ravens Defense/Special Teams

The Ravens defense is absolutely atrocious.

Even though the team is going up against Michael Vick, it's hard to foresee multiple turnovers coming from this unit. Neither one of these defenses are great options going into Week 4, but if forced to choose between these two, the Ravens defense is your best bet.

Hopefully cornerbacks Jimmy Smith and Lardarius Webb can build up some confidence again.

Projections: 17 points allowed, 2 sacks, 1 INT, 1 FF

Pittsburgh Steelers Defense/Special Teams

Like the Ravens, this defense isn't great either.

Heading into Week 4, cornerback Cortez Allen is questionable and linebacker Ryan Shazier is out.

Shazier is rated as a top-10 inside linebacker, according to Pro Football Focus, so it's never good to lose a guy of his caliber—especially when the defense isn't very good to begin with.

Expect the Ravens to be relatively turnover-free this game. Look elsewhere.

Projections: 24 points allowed, 2 sacks

Best Sleeper Add

Nick Wass/Associated Press

Maxx Williams, TE, Baltimore Ravens (Owned in 2.2 percent of ESPN Leagues)

After almost spitting my coffee out and checking back to make sure I wasn't absolutely losing it, it's true—Williams is owned in just over 2 percent of ESPN leagues. What is going on?

Now, it's understandable if you're in a smaller league, but generally speaking, Williams needs to be owned.

Williams is a supreme streaming option in a week where tight ends like New England's Rob Gronkowski and Tennessee's Delanie Walker are on byes.

Williams will pay dividends for your fantasy team Thursday night.

Injury Report

Billy Hurst/Associated Press

Baltimore Ravens

Player		Status
Crockett Gillmore	TE	Out
Breshad Perriman	WR	Out

The Ravens will have to wait at least one more week before the debut of first-round draft pick Perriman. 

Pittsburgh Steelers

Player		Status
Ben Roethlisberger	QB	Out
Cortez Allen	CB	Questionable
Ryan Shazier	LB	Out
James Harrison	LB	Probable

With Roethlisberger and Shazier out, can the Ravens take advantage and get their first win of the season?

Injury reports courtesy of ESPN.com.

Start or Sit?

Patrick Semansky/Associated Press

Joe Flacco, QB, Baltimore Ravens

While the team as a whole has been performing terribly, Flacco has still been putting up some pretty good numbers. In a game that's not expected to be a shootout, look for Flacco to still post a solid fantasy day against a weak Pittsburgh Steelers defense.

Verdict: Start

Justin Forsett, RB, Baltimore Ravens

Don't hit the panic button just yet.

This game is a perfect opportunity for Forsett to see a few more carries while staying involved in the passing game. If he doesn't meet expectations, reassess for Week 5. For now, Forsett is a solid running back option in Week 4.

Verdict: Start

All advanced stats courtesy of Pro Football Focus and Pro-Football-Reference.

Follow me on Twitter @RichardJanvrin.