Another week and more injuries at running back. For this week’s article, I’m going to focus on backfields that have had injuries or guys currently banged up and what value can be found in their replacements. Will they just be a bye-week fill in or will some of these newly crowned starters be viable starters the rest of the season.

This article is all about watching how a backfield is being used for every team. Snap counts are very useful, but I want to know what a player is doing when he has the ball in his hands. Anytime a running back gets a touch, what is being done with that touch?

Watching a trend with touches for running backs will not only let us know their usage for any given week or period, but how effective they are with the ball. High volume plus high effectiveness is always the best outcome. High volume with low effectiveness can be great and low volume with high effectiveness can be streaky at times. Let’s dive into our Week 8 preview.

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RB Touches and Efficiency Breakdown

Week 7 Report



Buffalo Bills

LeSean McCoy is currently in the concussion protocol and even though he’ll get an extra day to rest up since the Bills don’t play New England until Monday night, there is no guarantee he will be ready to go. The good news for the Bills, who don’t have many offensive weapons, is that Chris Ivory has been serviceable in his role this season.

After McCoy left the Bills Week 7 matchup with only two carries, Ivory stepped in with 16 carries, passing McCoy for the team lead this season. Ivory and McCoy both have a 42% touch share this season and Ivory is averaging 4.5 yards per touch compared to McCoy’s 4.4 yards per touch. The Patriots are currently giving up 19.07 fantasy points per game to opposing running backs. Due to the lack of offensive weapons for the Bills, they must lean on the run game, even in a scenario where the Patriots may run away with the game. If McCoy is out and you need a running back this week, Ivory could be a flex play in PPR leagues.

Denver Broncos

Royce Freeman is going to miss some time with an ankle sprain and all of a sudden Devontae Booker has some fantasy relevance again. Phillip Lindsay has led the Broncos backfield with 46% of touches through seven weeks, so he will continue to be the lead back, but the Broncos still won’t want to increase his workload much.

Booker only has 29 touches this season, good for 15% of the touches. In that limited action though, Booker has averaged six yards per touch. The Broncos have a matchup with the Chiefs in Week 8, who is giving up 25.71 fantasy points per game to opposing running backs, second worst in the league. There is a chance Booker could handle some pass-catching work in Week 8, making him a streaming option for deeper leagues. I wouldn’t fully bank on it though as it’s tough to trust a guy with less than 30 touches on the season.

Minnesota Vikings

It appears Dalvin Cook is going to be missing for a few more weeks so it’s time to fire up Latavius Murray, right? Maybe not this week. Murray averaged 4.9 yards on 17 touches last week, but this week he will be in the middle of an offensive shootout, playing a defense that can stuff the run. For as bad as the Saint have been containing opposing quarterbacks and wide receivers, they give up the third lowest points per game to running backs (12.70). If these two teams put up a lot of points, Murray probably won’t see enough volume to be a reliable play in Week 8.

New England Patriots

The promising rookie, Sony Michel, escaped disaster last week. What appeared to be a bad knee injury that could threaten his season turned out to be a scare that may only keep him out a few weeks. For the time being, Kenjon Barner will get some playing time but fantasy football owners don’t need to rush and grab him. James White will continue to be an RB2 with RB1 upside in PPR league and Barner may only see 10-15 touches a game. He would need to be extremely efficient to help return any value and it’s not worth the risk having him in your lineup. After Michel went out last week, Barner had 10 carries and 36 yards. Even if he was able to find the end zone once, those numbers won’t even be worthy in your flex. Look for higher upside options.

New York Jets

Isaiah Crowell takes over as the RB1 in New York after Bilal Powell saw his season come to an end with a neck injury. Crowell has been a roller coaster this season, but he is averaging 5.9 yards per touch, so the upside has been there every week. Unfortunately, the match with the Bears this week doesn’t look good for fantasy production. If you are in a pinch and need a guy, Crowell will see plenty of volume to potentially give you enough points to make it worthwhile. Want to get bold in PPR leagues?

Trenton Cannon had six touches for 73 yards last week and did much of his damage in the passing game. Cannon will more than likely serve as the pass-catching back again and if this game heads into a negative script for New York, Cannon could be the running back with the most points this week. If it’s a PPR league and you need a higher ceiling than what Crowell will offer, Cannon is a sneaky start for me in Week 8.

Oakland Raiders

This one is pretty cut and dry for me. Don’t trust Doug Martin. Oh, but Jon Gruden said Martin was poised to be the featured back? Yeah, that’s the same guy that traded Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper. Don’t trust him either. Play this one safe and run Jalen Richard out in PPR league. Richard has averaged 6.8 yards on 42 touches this season and has been featured the most in the passing game. Expect more of the same this Sunday.

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