For the 93% of you who started Tom Brady in fantasy, congratulations! You put your trust in a man who has been the definition of mediocre this season.

All jokes aside, Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers faced off against Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night to kick off week eight. After a rough first half by both teams, the second half was more entertaining as the score was quite respectable for a Thursday night game.

Even though Brady had a respectable outing, the win went to Lamar Jackson and his squad as the score was 27-22 in favor of Baltimore. The Ravens improve to 5-3, while Tampa Bay loses their third straight and falls to 3-5.

But, we’re not here to analyze these teams. We’re here to see who helped kick off our fantasy week right, and who will walk the plank. Let’s get into it!

Studs Of The Game, One Being a LIKELY Candidate

Out of all the Baltimore Ravens that could’ve gotten hurt, it had to be tight end Mark Andrews. With the star leaving the game at halftime with a shoulder injury, he only scored 6.3 fantasy points for those who started him.

But, someone had to pick up the slack right? Look no further than backup Isaiah Likely.

Projected to just score 2.5 PPR fantasy points due to lack of involvement, the rookie had a career day against Tampa Bay’s suspect defense. He paced Baltimore’s receiving corps with six catches for 77 yards and a touchdown.

ISAIAH LIKELY IS HERE ????
pic.twitter.com/UlYrjwBlyY

— PFF (@PFF) October 28, 2022

The former Coastal Carolina product made a statement on Thursday, and it goes to show the potential Baltimore’s weapons have for quarterback Lamar Jackson to depend on. The star of the game finished with 19.7 fantasy points and gave fantasy owners who threw a dart at starting him something to smile about.

It’s been a slow season to start a career for Likely, but he made the most of his opportunity. With Mark Andrews likely to be okay for week nine, it is to be determined how much Likely will be involved in this offense. But, he caught the eyes of many including his coaches with his performance. Have a day, young man.

Lamar Jackson led all players with 21.82 fantasy points. Kenyan Drake outscored his projection of 3.1 fantasy points. He finished with 16.7 thanks to a receiving touchdown in the third quarter. As for Tampa Bay, wide receiver Mike Evans led the team with 18.3 points (six catches for 123 yards). His Teammate Tom Brady had 17.1 fantasy points. This is something fantasy owners expect from QB1 compared to his previous performances.

Fantasy Duds Of The Game

There were a couple of players who were disappointing on Thursday. Mark Andrews is one of them since he was projected to score almost 16 fantasy points. But, you can’t predict injuries and it was unfortunate to see him go down.

But, Rashod Bateman: what are you doing? In his second game back from injury, he recorded zero catches for zero yards. This isn’t conditioning practice, young man.

Guys like Demarcus Robinson and James Proche stepped up in place for Bateman’s lackluster performance. Projected to score 11 fantasy points, he put up a goose egg.

Yes, he had a foot injury that was nagging him and left in the third quarter. But regardless, he was in the game wasn’t he? Step up, do your job, and catch the football.

I will blame Lamar Jackson a little, as he only targeted Bateman once. After all, the quarterback loves his tight ends in Andrews and Likely in this instance. But, Bateman is another example of a receiver that his quarterback cannot rely on. Ditto for fantasy owners, who need to search for better options immediately.

Thank you for reading! If you want more player spotlight articles or fantasy football Studs and Duds, make sure to visit Belly Up Sports every week and follow me on Twitter! Check out my last article here. Thank you for your continuing support, and be on the lookout for more quality content! Also, check out my podcast here!