John Brown, Joe Flacco's Fantasy Outlook After Week 2 vs. Bengals

The Baltimore Ravens' revamped receiving corps is already paying big dividends in fantasy circles. 

While Joe Flacco was forced to work with a ragtag group of wideouts last season, his new targets have allowed him to start the season strong.

Less than a week after Flacco threw for 236 yards and three touchdowns against the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore's signal-caller posted 376 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions in a 34-23 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday night. 

John Brown, who signed a prove-it deal with the Ravens in free agency, accounted for one of those scores and continued to cement himself as Flacco's favorite receiver in the early going. 

Here's a look at how their respective stocks should be appraised moving forward. 

Joe Flacco

Given everything we've seen from Flacco over the past decade, it's fair to say that he won't be on the starting radar unless you need a bye-week fill-in. 

But at this rate, that's a step forward for the 33-year-old. 

Flacco was a complete liability last season as he sputtered his way to 18 touchdowns and 13 interceptions while ranking among fantasy's most unreliable signal-callers.

To this point, though, he looks like a serviceable stopgap at the very least. 

Flacco has nearly accounted for one-third of last year's TD production through two games, and he's attempted 89 passes during that span while averaging 306 yards a game. 

Interceptions remain a concern after he tossed a pair Thursday, but a new complement of weapons will make Flacco a legitimate plug-and-play consideration when fantasy's elite QBs are resting up on bye weeks. 

John Brown 

Through two weeks, it has become abundantly clear that Flacco trusts Brown in a big way. 

The former Arizona Cardinals speedster opened his season with three receptions for 44 yards and a touchdown, and he followed up Thursday with four catches for 92 yards, including a tremendous 21-yard touchdown grab in the fourth quarter: 

The touchdowns are a nice bonus, of course. 

But what's really encouraging is that Brown has racked up 14 targets through two games. The only Ravens receiver with more is Michael Crabtree (16), but he hasn't looked the part of a vertical threat along the boundary. 

Instead, Crabtree has cornered the market on short and intermediate routes as Flacco has started to look to him as something of an underneath safety blanket. 

Brown, then, is entrenched as Baltimore's most dynamic deep threat and a receiver who will carry flex appeal as long as Flacco is intent on stretching the field.