The Detroit Lions offense that the league had grown used to in 2024 returned in 2025 to put up 52 points against the Chicago Bears in Week 2.
In Week 3, the Lions take on the Baltimore Ravens on the road for Monday Night Football. While last time the Ravens were in primetime they allowed the Buffalo Bills to put up 41 points and for Josh Allen to score nearly 40 fantasy points, fantasy managers carrying Lions players shouldn’t be expecting the same performance.
The Lions last played the Lamar Jackson-led Ravens in 2023 in Baltimore and only mustered six points on offense. The teams should be more evenly matched now, but that doesn’t mean we’ll see the same fantasy performances from Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown, and Jameson Williams as we did last week.
That being said, St. Brown and Jahmyr Gibbs are automatic starts no matter the matchup.
Detroit Lions Start/Sit for Week 3 at Baltimore RavensSit: Jared Goff
In 2023, Goff was coming off of back-to-back 20+-point performances heading into Baltimore and only managed to reach 9.4 points. He is 0-3 in his career against the Ravens, with three interceptions, no touchdowns, and an average of 237 yards.
Fantasy managers with a better matchup at quarterback should lean away from Goff in Week 3, perhaps reaching for a Sam Darnold (vs. Saints) or Geno Smith (vs. Commanders) matchup as those two are likely still available in one-QB leagues.
Start: Sam LaPorta
Tight end Sam LaPorta had the lone quiet afternoon among Lions pass catchers against the Bears, but he could be a key contributor for the Lions in Week 3.
The Ravens have been tough on opposing wide receivers, potentially opening the door for more looks for LaPorta. The Ravens allowed 18.8 combined points to Bills tight ends Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox in Week 1, and 17.8 combined points to Browns tight ends David Njoku and Harold Fannin in Week 2.
LaPorta caught six of his nine targets in Week 1 against the Packers for 79 yards on a day when Goff couldn’t seem to get the ball consistently to anyone else. A similar game script could mean a solid day for the Lions tight end.
Start: David Montgomery
Despite what could be a boat race type of game, the Lions should still be able to carry over some success from their run game in Week 2 into Baltimore.
Week 2 showed how badly the Lions needed to be able to run the ball to unlock the rest of the offense, and they’ll do it early and often with both Gibbs and David Montgomery against the Ravens. In Week 2, three different Browns running backs put up 10 fantasy points against the Ravens despite the lopsided score for much of the game.
There may be better options than Montgomery for Week 3, but he’s still a low-end RB2 option for those that have him.
Sit: Jameson Williams
Wide receiver Jameson Williams hit big on only two catches in Week 2 against the Bears, but fantasy managers shouldn’t expect the Ravens secondary to be so forgiving.
The Ravens have the second-best Pro Football Focus grade for coverage (78.8), behind only the Packers, who held Williams to 6.6 points in Week 1. Goff will have to be quick and accurate to get him going against the Ravens, and that may not be an option for him in this situation.
Williams is a flex start at best, but could be left on the bench in favor of your favorite waiver wire pickup this week.
Sit: Isaac TeSlaa
It’s not time yet, but soon.