RashodBateman

News: 11 hours agoBateman (ankle) doesn't have a designation for Sunday's contest versus the Steelers.

Spin: Bateman sandwiched full sessions around a limited practice Thursday due to a lingering ankle injury that sidelined him Weeks 11 and 12. In his return to action last Thursday against the Bengals, he logged a 73 percent snap share but was targeted only one time, which he couldn't corral. In 10 appearances overall this season, Bateman's 16-194-2 line on 33 targets hasn't afforded him much sway in the fantasy realm.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Bateman is entering his fifth season (all with Baltimore) following a big leap forward in 2024. Bateman appeared in all 17 regular season games for the first time and, though his 15.4% target share was the second lowest of his career, he posted career-best marks in yardage, touchdowns and fantasy points. Targets remained inconsistent, however, and led to extremely boom/bust production (eight single-digit fantasy point games and a 47th-place finish in PPG, the latter of which is a career best). The 25-year-old is a capable situational deep threat (he's ranked top 12 in aDOT two years in a row), but he's a good bet for touchdown regression to the mean (4.6 expected TDs last season) and his usage is too volatile to allow weekly flex consideration.