Richardson took the initial hit on a scramble where he landed awkwardly on his hip. He exited briefly after that but was able to return before getting popped on another late slide that ultimately sent him to the locker room. He was ruled out with the hip injury after that, but early reports after the game indicate that the injury is minor and that he could be back on the field as early as next week. QB Joe Flacco did his usual job of filling in admirably, tossing a pair of touchdowns while elevating WRs Josh Downs and Michael Pittman to their best fantasy finishes of the season through four weeks. The recommendation all week for Richardson in fantasy land was to bench him after two finishes outside the top-20 at the position in Weeks 2 and 3, and fantasy managers who followed suit were spared the injury-induced dud against the Steelers. The matchup for Richardson is much better next week with a date against the Jaguars in Week 5, where he can likely be safely returned to lineups (assuming he’s good to go). If he doesn’t go, Downs and Pittman will likely receive a significant bump to their floor should Flacco end up taking snaps in Jacksonville. Fantasy managers should pay attention to injury reports during the week, but the expectation should be that Richardson will be ready to go come next Sunday.
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