Baltimore Ravens' wide receiver Rashod Bateman missed last week's game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Thankfully, though Bateman returned to practice this week as a full participant and seems to be on the verge of returning ahead of Week 16's showdown with the New England Patriots.
Bateman has had a relatively down season, posting 217 yards and two touchdowns. This comes after a stellar year where he posted 756 yards and caught nine touchdowns. Nevertheless, getting another receiving option back will be a huge boost against a formidable Patriots' defense.
Zay Flowers made up for Bateman's absence last Sunday, recording 68 yards and a touchdown. Flowers is a great receiver who will still get his, but it's fair to expect that he will demand a significant amount of coverage from the Pats. As a result, having another weapon alongside Flowers will open things up for him and the Ravens' offense as a whole.
Bateman's return could be significant for the Ravens
Bateman's blend of size and speed makes him an explosive, deep threat. He is averaging 12.1 yards per reception this season, and last year he averaged 16.8 yards per reception. Even though he hasn't maintained his production from last season, Bateman's abilities as a deep threat take attention away from other Ravens players and thus open up the field for his teammates.
For Lamar Jackson, having as many targets as possible could be a game-changer. While Lamar has missed practice on Wednesday and Thursday due to an illness, all signs point to him playing on Sunday.
Flowers has dominated the Ravens' targets, earning 100 out of 350 the team's targets. Bateman's 35 targets rank third on the team and second among wide receivers.
It's been a while since Bateman has had a signature game. In fact, we'd have to go back to Week 3 against the Detroit Lions when he had 63 yards and a touchdown. Bateman's only other game with more than 25 yards came in Week 7 with 51 yards. However, that could all change on Sunday.
Bateman is a player who only needs one big play to get going. One deep pass to Bateman could change the momentum of the game for both him and the team. For an offense that has lacked big plays and explosiveness this season, a big Bateman game could change things.
Ultimately, it will be nice to see Bateman back on the field, and he could be poised for a big game.