A Look at Running Back Snaps Heading into the Fantasy Playoffs
After week four and week eight, I looked at running back snap counts with the hope of finding some emerging usage patterns that would be helpful when targeting players for the remainder of the season. It led me to target Mark Walton, who was a serviceable RB3 during weeks five-eight, and Jaylen Samuels, who was an RB2 for weeks nine-12. With three-quarters of the season in the rearview mirror, can snap counts point us towards running backs to target for the fantasy playoffs? I certainly hope so, and I hope you find this helpful as a tool to fill out your roster to close out the year as you chase down a fantasy championship.
AFC EAST
New England Patriots
While this is typically a situation to avoid – and it is still hard to trust – Sony Michel has seen a small uptick in snaps and lately. It hasn’t turned into fantasy production as Michel, and James White have nearly amassed the same amount of points over the last four weeks. Outside of bestball, this situation is entirely avoidable, although, with the chaos in the Pats’ receiving corps, White is once again emerging as one of Tom Brady’s few reliable targets.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Patriots | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| White | 47% | 31% | 52% | 40% | 38% | 54% | 41% | 42% | 43% | 30% | 78% | |||||
| Burkhead | 46% | 24% | 74% | 18% | 19% | 36% | 28% | 21% | 5% | |||||||
| Michel | 33% | 49% | 22% | 45% | 49% | 50% | 38% | 41% | 22% | 30% | 51% | 17% | ||||
| Bolden | 1% | 29% | 8% | 14% | 15% | 22% | 4% | 14% | 10% | 1% | ||||||
| Harris | 6% |
Buffalo Bills
Devin Singletary is healthy and has officially taken over as the lead back in Buffalo with Frank Gore being relegated to mop-up duty. He’s been an RB1 since week nine and looks to have secured the top spot going forward. Gore has low-end RB2 potential if Singletary misses time, and Yeldon would be an unrosterable RB4.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Bills | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Singletary | 70% | 33% | 39% | 68% | 66% | 67% | 74% | 71% | 78% | |||||||
| Gore | 28% | 59% | 63% | 46% | 51% | 54% | 29% | 34% | 33% | 26% | 29% | 22% | ||||
| Yeldon | 3% | 7% | 37% | 54% | 49% |
New York Jets
Quietly, Le’Veon Bell was the fourth highest-scoring running back over weeks nine-12. He’s getting the bulk of the snaps and touches and is the only back to own here. Bilal Powell seems to have overtaken Ty Montgomery as Bell’s primary backup and is worth grabbing as a handcuff if you’ve been relying on Bell.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Jets | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Bell | 100% | 90% | 100% | 88% | 82% | 93% | 85% | 90% | 74% | 55% | 57% | 85% | ||||
| Montgomery | 7% | 35% | 16% | 14% | 10% | 11% | 10% | 3% | 8% | 23% | 19% | 5% | ||||
| Cannon | 1% | |||||||||||||||
| Powell | 2% | 3% | 19% | 7% | 16% | 10% | 23% | 23% | 24% | 15% | ||||||
| Adams | 10% | 8% |
Miami Dolphins
What a mess. Kalen Ballage, mercifully, was placed on injured reserve, ending his season, but not before he could make some “bad at football” history. Patrick Laird has seen an uptick in touches, and Myles Gaskin has seen an increase in snaps, but neither player is trustworthy. Laird seems to be the preferred option of the coaching staff, but I think we may see a little more of Gaskin down the stretch, and he may be fantasy-viable to close out the year.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Dolphins | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Drake | 54% | 55% | 64% | 54% | 61% | 41% | ||||||||||
| Ballage | 40% | 34% | 35% | 15% | 5% | 7% | 17% | 30% | 82% | 77% | 38% | 15% | ||||
| Walton | 8% | 16% | 24% | 42% | 52% | 87% | 74% | |||||||||
| Cox | 4% | |||||||||||||||
| Gaskin | 8% | 10% | 25% | 22% | ||||||||||||
| Laird | 12% | 23% | 37% | 60% |
AFC NORTH
Cleveland Browns
We have seen the return of Kareem Hunt, and he has been RB11 since his return. Hunt and Nick Chubb are both fantasy viable, and as the Browns look to be clicking on offense, it’s likely that both are going key pieces for the playoffs. Chubb has been RB10 since Hunt’s return, so his presence isn’t hurting him much.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Browns | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Chubb | 70% | 61% | 97% | 64% | 84% | 86% | 63% | 60% | 81% | 72% | 57% | 59% | ||||
| Hilliard | 18% | 1% | 36% | 8% | 14% | 38% | 40% | 11% | 4% | |||||||
| D. Johnson | 12% | 39% | 1% | 10% | 1% | 1% | ||||||||||
| Hunt | 54% | 55% | 57% | 65% |
Baltimore Ravens
Mark Ingram is a little banged up, and if we assume the Ravens want to keep him healthy for the real-life NFL playoffs, Gus Edwards is the player to target. Seeing an increased workload and snap share over the last three weeks, Edwards has been a flex-worthy RB3.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Ravens | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Edwards | 38% | 20% | 27% | 29% | 26% | 41% | 37% | 40% | 23% | 40% | 41% | 38% | ||||
| Ingram | 32% | 58% | 60% | 46% | 65% | 38% | 51% | 44% | 49% | 46% | 31% | 55% | ||||
| Hill | 30% | 20% | 13% | 23% | 6% | 21% | 7% | 14% | 26% | 11% | 24% | 6% |
Pittsburgh Steelers
With James Conner banged up, Jaylen Samuels failed to take control of the starting gig, and we’ve seen a timeshare between Samuels and rookie Benny Snell. Samuels has been low-end RB3, but Snell seems to be emerging as a steady RB2 in Conner’s absence. Kerrith Whyte has seen a small increase in snaps and is worth monitoring in deep leagues, or possibly picking up as a speculative add if you have roster space.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Steelers | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Conner | 46% | 54% | 68% | 64% | 80% | 50% | 83% | 18% | ||||||||
| Samuels | 33% | 39% | 26% | 46% | 25% | 63% | 55% | 34% | 30% | 55% | ||||||
| Snell | 4% | 6% | 5% | 48% | 14% | 49% | 37% | |||||||||
| Nix | 26% | 24% | ||||||||||||||
| Edmunds | 3% | 27% | 28% | 47% | 16% | 5% | ||||||||||
| Brooks-James | 6% | 14% | 1% | |||||||||||||
| Whyte | 9% | 15% |
Cincinnati Bengals
Joe Mixon. That’s it. Even perennial PPR back Giovani Bernard has been ruined by this horrid team.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Bengals | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Bernard | 62% | 40% | 43% | 33% | 39% | 53% | 47% | 39% | 24% | 52% | 36% | 20% | ||||
| Mixon | 38% | 54% | 57% | 61% | 63% | 48% | 54% | 53% | 76% | 59% | 69% | 79% | ||||
| Perine | 1% | 6% | ||||||||||||||
| Williams | 3% |
AFC SOUTH
Houston Texans
Both Duke Johnson and Carlos Hyde have been reliable bye-week fill-ins and flex-worthy RB3s. They’re not sexy but are both high-floor depth should you sustain some injuries down the stretch. If you’re in a standard league, Hyde has been a shockingly respectable RB19 thus far.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Texans | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| D. Johnson | 63% | 39% | 48% | 65% | 40% | 37% | 60% | 45% | 47% | 59% | 51% | 68% | ||||
| Hyde | 37% | 61% | 52% | 48% | 64% | 61% | 40% | 52% | 56% | 34% | 49% | 38% | ||||
| Gillaspia | 5% | 7% | 1% | 2% | 4% | |||||||||||
| Howell | 2% | 4% | 7% |
Indianapolis Colts
Jonathan Williams cometh, and Jonathan Williams goeth. For a couple of weeks, Williams looked like he was going to be an essential piece of the fantasy postseason puzzle. Now, he seems like a two-week wonder relegated to waiver fodder – and Marlon Mack just started practicing again. If you spent FAAB on him, he’s still worth holding onto, but his trustworthiness took a big hit.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Colts | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Mack | 76% | 68% | 62% | 36% | 67% | 71% | 61% | 55% | 46% | 31% | ||||||
| Hines | 27% | 19% | 25% | 45% | 21% | 12% | 28% | 28% | 43% | 35% | 33% | 43% | ||||
| Wilkins | 15% | 14% | 21% | 15% | 18% | 9% | 10% | 44% | ||||||||
| Williams | 10% | 46% | 67% | 22% |
Jacksonville Jaguars
They may have a quarterback controversy, but they are the Leonard Fournette show at running back with no signs of change coming. If you’ve been relying on Fournette and haven’t already done so, get your hands on Ryquell Armstead as a much-needed handcuff if you don’t have other depth options at the position.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Jaguars | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Fournette | 86% | 97% | 100% | 84% | 92% | 93% | 90% | 79% | 84% | 71% | 95% | 89% | ||||
| Armstead | 14% | 16% | 7% | 3% | 9% | 21% | 13% | 22% | 5% | 11% | ||||||
| Ervin | 3% | 2% | 1% | |||||||||||||
| Ozigbo | 3% | 6% |
Tennessee Titans
Derrick Henry is monster, second to only Christian McCaffrey since week nine, with a quite a gap before we get to the RB3 over that span. It’s hard to imagine Dion Lewis seeing the volume necessary to be rosterable to close out the year, even if Henry were to miss time.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Titans | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Henry | 59% | 50% | 53% | 75% | 61% | 53% | 75% | 66% | 53% | 71% | 75% | 75% | ||||
| Lewis | 43% | 50% | 48% | 28% | 40% | 41% | 27% | 34% | 47% | 29% | 15% | 18% | ||||
| Dawkins | 6% |
AFC WEST
Kansas City Chiefs
I’m a huge Darwin Thompson fan-boy, so if week 13 was any indication of how the Chiefs close out the year, I’m going to need medical attention. The team clearly prefers the Williamses as their top options and do not fully trust an aging LeSean McCoy. Still, both Damien and Darrell Williams have had a difficult time staying healthy, so Thompson could end up being the lead back throughout the fantasy playoffs. An Andy Reid running back during a playoff push? Yes, please.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Chiefs | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Dam. Williams | 65% | 51% | 56% | 38% | 28% | 42% | 72% | 77% | 18% | |||||||
| McCoy | 29% | 41% | 38% | 46% | 22% | 50% | 43% | 39% | 10% | 40% | 36% | |||||
| Thompson | 3% | 7% | 7% | 4% | 3% | 6% | 36% | |||||||||
| Dar. Williams | 5% | 54% | 51% | 22% | 12% | 30% | 15% | 18% | 21% | 43% | 27% |
Oakland Raiders
Josh Jacobs is dealing with a significant injury and missed last week. It’s worth possibly getting your hands on DeAndre Washington if he’s still available.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Raiders | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Jacobs | 74% | 46% | 42% | 54% | 68% | 56% | 55% | 58% | 52% | 64% | 39% | 57% | ||||
| Richard | 16% | 31% | 49% | 28% | 15% | 23% | 30% | 33% | 38% | 23% | 39% | 20% | ||||
| Washington | 9% | 23% | 15% | 19% | 18% | 21% | 16% | 10% | 13% | 27% | 25% |
Los Angeles Chargers
Not much to see here, move along. Austin Ekeler and Melvin Gordon are both in play each and every week.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Chargers | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Ekeler | 75% | 73% | 65% | 72% | 66% | 40% | 59% | 53% | 34% | 45% | 57% | 53% | ||||
| Jackson | 25% | 27% | 21% | 7% | ||||||||||||
| Pope | 42% | 1% | ||||||||||||||
| Gordon | 46% | 60% | 53% | 56% | 63% | 62% | 52% | 65% |
Denver Broncos
This has turned into an ugly RBBC on a lousy team. Even though Royce Freeman and Phillip Lindsay are RBs 37 and 14 on the season, respectively, they’ve seen a downturn in production over the last few weeks. Since week nine, Freeman has been RB58, while Lindsay has been RB35. Those are championship-killing numbers if the downturn holds up over the next couple of weeks.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Broncos | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Freeman | 47% | 52% | 49% | 62% | 54% | 61% | 63% | 51% | 52% | 30% | 56% | 53% | ||||
| Lindsay | 53% | 48% | 56% | 45% | 46% | 47% | 40% | 49% | 46% | 64% | 54% | 44% | ||||
| Booker | 2% | 2% | 6% | 6% |
NFC EAST
Dallas Cowboys
Zeke, Zeke, and more Zeke. Tony Pollard was a worthy handcuff, but he is injured now, and probably isn’t worth the stash at this point with only a few weeks to go.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Cowboys | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Elliott | 54% | 76% | 67% | 97% | 93% | 91% | 79% | 80% | 99% | 89% | 88% | 88% | ||||
| Pollard | 32% | 24% | 32% | 3% | 7% | 9% | 29% | 21% | 4% | 18% | 19% | 14% |
Philadelphia Eagles
Jay Ajayi, welcome back! With Jordan Howard injured, Ajayi has seen an increase in snaps after being re-signed, but rookie Miles Sanders has seen a considerable bump in snaps. Until further notice, this looks to have become Sanders’ backfield, and he’s been RB18 since Howard has been sidelined.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Eagles | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Sanders | 48% | 43% | 34% | 35% | 43% | 29% | 54% | 18% | 40% | 85% | 84% | 87% | ||||
| Sproles | 31% | 35% | 36% | 11% | 15% | 11% | ||||||||||
| Howard | 23% | 22% | 33% | 53% | 43% | 63% | 38% | 73% | 48% | |||||||
| Clement | 4% | |||||||||||||||
| Scott | 6% | 13% | 12% | 19% | 4% | |||||||||||
| Ajayi | 12% | 13% |
New York Giants
As much hate as David Johnson seems to be getting this year, Saquon Barkley has only averaged 1.5 more fantasy points per game than Johnson. The Giants have lost eight straight games, and Barkley has been banged up, so it seems like the smart thing to do would be for the Giants to pump the brakes on his usage. I don’t trust the Giants and Barkley has slowed down considerably since week nine, only amassing enough points to be RB28 over his last four games.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Giants | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Barkley | 80% | 87% | 37% | 86% | 82% | 82% | 82% | 97% | 96% | |||||||
| Gallman | 20% | 13% | 63% | 60% | 9% | 14% | 18% | 18% | 17% | 3% | ||||||
| Penny | 9% | 11% | 5% | 18% | 36% | 40% | 8% | 14% | 7% | 14% | 5% | 9% | ||||
| Hilliman | 35% | 64% | 62% | |||||||||||||
| Walter | 2% | |||||||||||||||
| Allen | 4% |
Washington Redskins
After Derrius Guice’s return from injured reserve, he was RB8 in PPR and RB6 in standard leagues until this weekend’s injury. Even sharing the snaps with multiple other backs, Guice looked like the fantasy stud many owners had hoped he would be over the last two seasons. However, his MCL sprain may see him miss the rest of the year.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Redskins | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Thompson | 64% | 45% | 51% | 53% | 54% | 22% | 36% | |||||||||
| Guice | 36% | 29% | 43% | 30% | ||||||||||||
| Peterson | 29% | 47% | 39% | 27% | 63% | 65% | 72% | 71% | 25% | 33% | 36% | |||||
| Smallwood | 26% | 3% | 8% | 19% | 17% | 35% | 28% | 35% | 46% | 27% |
NFC NORTH
Green Bay Packers
Jamaal Willimas and Matt LaFleur hate you and your fantasy teams. Since week nine the Williams-Aaron Jones timeshare has resulted in both losing fantasy value, just in time for the playoffs. They’ve both been middle-of-the-pack RB3s lately, which in the case of Jones, isn’t going to get it done come playoff time after he posted top-three numbers through week eight.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Packers | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Jones | 59% | 57% | 39% | 84% | 68% | 49% | 57% | 64% | 59% | 50% | 51% | 58% | ||||
| J. Williams | 41% | 47% | 61% | 1% | 53% | 40% | 46% | 44% | 50% | 49% | 42% | |||||
| Vitale | 17% | 25% | ||||||||||||||
| Carson | 32% | |||||||||||||||
| D. Williams | 10% |
Chicago Bears
The Bears laughable offense has started to look better during the last quarter of the season, and both Tarik Cohen and David Montgomery have benefited as a result. Both have posted respectable RB2 numbers and look to be key fantasy playoff pieces to close out the season with top-five matchups in weeks 15 and 16.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Bears | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Cohen | 70% | 38% | 48% | 39% | 53% | 55% | 20% | 36% | 53% | 59% | 55% | 55% | ||||
| Davis | 56% | 25% | 2% | 7% | 14% | |||||||||||
| Montgomery | 38% | 44% | 67% | 69% | 52% | 46% | 74% | 73% | 60% | 46% | 62% | 62% | ||||
| Nall | 4% |
Detroit Lions
I hope the Lions can drag two more bodies off the street before the year is over so they can get ten running backs snaps throughout the season. Through attrition alone, Bo Scarbrough of all people has emerged as the lead back to close out the Lions 2019 campaign. He’s been an RB3 since he emerged as the Lions’ top options at the position, and although he brings nothing to the table in the passing game, he has a safe floor if you are desperate and is in the RB2 conversation in standard leagues. Gross. Welcome to the 2019 season folks.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Lions | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| K. Johnson | 57% | 54% | 75% | 70% | 73% | 14% | ||||||||||
| Anderson | 30% | 20% | ||||||||||||||
| Bawden | 25% | 16% | 30% | 13% | 9% | 3% | ||||||||||
| T. Johnson | 9% | 21% | 20% | 14% | 3% | 64% | 39% | 62% | 14% | 29% | 36% | 33% | ||||
| McKissic | 7% | 9% | 35% | 24% | 25% | 26% | 70% | 23% | 15% | 22% | ||||||
| Perkins | 10% | 4% | 18% | |||||||||||||
| Carson | 31% | |||||||||||||||
| Scarbrough | 49% | 51% | 47% |
Minnesota Vikings
Dalvin Cook has been a stud this year, but his recent injury concern should have Alexander Mattison on everyone’s radar. Given Cook’s injury history going back to college, it is probably ok to overpay the Mattison owner if you’re Cook owner and want to get your handcuff.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Vikings | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Cook | 68% | 72% | 60% | 79% | 66% | 63% | 70% | 71% | 80% | 75% | 81% | 44% | ||||
| Ham | 42% | 38% | 41% | 15% | 30% | 48% | 53% | 31% | 31% | 37% | 14% | 20% | ||||
| Mattison | 23% | 12% | 30% | 10% | 23% | 30% | 29% | 26% | 8% | 18% | 6% | 49% | ||||
| Abdullah | 8% | 11% | 2% | 11% | 23% | 8% | 1% | 4% | 13% | 8% | 13% | 5% | ||||
| Boone | 4% | 8% | 4% |
NFC SOUTH
New Orleans Saints
In a “down” year for Alvin Kamara, he is still RB11 after missing two games. Latavius Murray has managed to maintain an RB2 ranking, built mainly on the time Kamara was out. Obviously, you’ll be riding Kamara throughout the playoffs, and Murray is worth lineup dart throw if you don’t have other options.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Saints | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Kamara | 76% | 65% | 88% | 77% | 69% | 59% | 78% | 61% | 67% | 82% | ||||||
| Murray | 27% | 35% | 21% | 25% | 33% | 42% | 83% | 84% | 25% | 41% | 39% | 26% | ||||
| Zenner | 10% | |||||||||||||||
| Washington | 1% | 8% |
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Roll the dice each week here. Once it looks like the Bucs are ready to hand the reins over to Ronald Jones, then they pivot and feature Peyton Barber. This is – and has been – an untrustable disaster for fantasy owners. Relying on anyone here in the playoffs will likely result in an untimely end to your season.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Buccaneers | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Ogunbowale | 39% | 25% | 25% | 28% | 32% | 58% | 33% | 27% | 26% | 43% | 21% | 30% | ||||
| Barber | 36% | 65% | 36% | 26% | 34% | 24% | 35% | 14% | 26% | 18% | 23% | 39% | ||||
| Jones | 31% | 12% | 30% | 49% | 34% | 16% | 26% | 53% | 47% | 31% | 50% | 28% | ||||
| Logan | 1% | 1% | 2% | 3% | 5% | 1% | 11% | 7% |
Carolina Panthers
The Christian McCaffrey show continues. One possible concern: The Panthers just fired head coach Ron Rivera, and offensive coordinator Norv Turner was removed from his position too. The offense has run through CMC, but this shakeup could potentially change his usage as the season draws to an end. If you have McCaffrey, you’re confidently rolling him out as long as your team is alive, but temper any lofty expectations until we see how the new staff uses him.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Panthers | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| McCaffrey | 100% | 100% | 92% | 100% | 86% | 97% | 78% | 86% | 100% | 93% | 100% | 99% | ||||
| Armah | 18% | 9% | 27% | 15% | ||||||||||||
| Bonnafon | 8% | 17% | 5% | 17% | 11% | 9% | 1% | |||||||||
| Scarlett | 6% | 4% |
Atlanta Falcons
The Brian Hill experiment was no good. Devonta Freeman is back, relatively healthy, and is the only fantasy option here.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Falcons | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Freeman | 50% | 62% | 90% | 62% | 54% | 72% | 56% | 79% | 38% | 67% | ||||||
| Smith | 50% | 38% | 5% | 38% | 47% | 26% | 5% | |||||||||
| Barner | 5% | 7% | 7% | 14% | 22% | 15% | 26% | |||||||||
| Hill | 31% | 14% | 51% | 60% | 59% | 26% | ||||||||||
| Ollison | 18% | 26% |
NFC WEST
San Francisco 49ers
It is looking like Raheem Mostert might be emerging as the back to own here for the next three weeks. The team has employed a committee all season long, but Mostert has looked good when he’s been given more opportunities. Even with the imminent return of Matt Breida, Mostert might be the player to target for the remainder of the year.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| 49ers | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Breida | 44% | 29% | 41% | 34% | 36% | 27% | 18% | 39% | 28% | |||||||
| Mostert | 29% | 47% | 30% | 32% | 9% | 21% | 3% | 22% | 49% | 29% | 74% | |||||
| Coleman | 26% | 34% | 55% | 66% | 48% | 55% | 50% | 49% | 60% | 18% | ||||||
| Wilson | 21% | 27% | 12% | 4% | 3% | 1% | 10% | 9% |
Seattle Seahawks
Chris Carson kept fumbling, and Rashaad Penny kept excelling when given more touches as a result. The Seahawks were rolling with a two-headed monster, and both were top-15 scorers at the position over the two weeks as the snaps evened out, with Penny averaging nearly 23 PPR points over his previous two games. He was looking like a league-winning acquisition but this weekend tore his ACL – it will be all Carson from here on out.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Seahawks | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Carson | 77% | 54% | 44% | 76% | 84% | 80% | 89% | 68% | 85% | 96% | 54% | 52% | ||||
| Penny | 26% | 33% | 16% | 20% | 3% | 30% | 15% | 4% | 46% | 47% | ||||||
| Prosise | 13% | 55% | 22% | 8% | ||||||||||||
| Bellore | 6% | 1% | 1% |
Los Angeles Rams
The Rams fooled us all: drafting Darrell Henderson and featuring Malcolm Brown early in the year, only to lean heavily on Todd Gurley when it matters to close out the season. That’s good news for fantasy owners who stuck with Gurley, who has been RB13 since the Rams returned from their buy and are trying to push for a playoff spot.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Rams | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Gurley | 70% | 65% | 74% | 76% | 93% | 61% | 53% | 74% | 75% | 96% | 68% | |||||
| Brown | 27% | 36% | 26% | 24% | 4% | 68% | 16% | 20% | 4% | 23% | ||||||
| Henderson | 3% | 32% | 34% | 47% | 10% | 5% | 8% | |||||||||
| Kelly | 5% |
Arizona Cardinals
Since week ten, David Johnson has been RB82. Eighty-Two. That’s only good if you’re in a league that starts seven running backs. Kenyan Drake however, has emerged as the Cardinals’ top back, and has been RB35 over that same span. I don’t necessarily trust either one, but Drake is clearly the better option going forward in 2019, but who knows what is going to happen when Chase Edmonds is healthy and returns to the team.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | ||||
| Cardinals | BYE | |||||||||||||||
| Johnson | 87% | 60% | 87% | 86% | 70% | 75% | 4% | 43% | 13% | 23% | ||||||
| Edmonds | 11% | 40% | 12% | 21% | 35% | 29% | 94% | 61% | ||||||||
| Zenner | 10% | 39% | 2% | |||||||||||||
| Drake | 84% | 64% | 88% | 80% | ||||||||||||
| Morris | 5% |
After weeks four and eight, I felt like this exercise helped point me in a few directions that were helpful for fantasy owners. I am less confident after weeks 12 and 13. Myles Gaskin, Raheem Mostert, and Gus Edwards seem like the only slightly under-the-radar types you may be able to use for the playoffs.
Other more known names who look to be emerging come playoff time include Benny Snell and Bo Scarbrough. I hope you’re able to get something out of this data, good luck in the fantasy playoffs. I’ll be updating the spreadsheet weekly and feel free to check it out here. The late-season usage of some players may give us a glimpse into some teams’ plans in 2020 and give us some offseason trade targets as well.
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