What a whirlwind of a week - both leading up to the games and during. Trade rumors, injuries, personal issues, you name it! With injuries mounting and the trade deadline looming, it’s more important than ever to know who the “next man up” will be. So let’s take a look at some interesting usage numbers this week!
As a reminder, this year we have a brand new tool that lets you not only look at this week's snaps but the total snaps on the year and percentage played by each player. On top of that you can sort by team or position to see how your guy stacks up!
The best way to consume this article is to have that tool open in another window and then sort by “team” which will automatically sort the players from most to least snaps. Then in this article I'll give an explanation as to what happened as well as some additional underlying stats (slot snaps, pass blocking snaps etc.) and what sort of actionable data we can extract to help us win our leagues.
49ers
WR: The box score will tell you that it was one again a Deebo Samuel day but the snap numbers actually show that Brandon Aiyuk played a full role this week - he even ran 29 routes out of 30 while Deebo only ran 26.
RB: This backfield scares fantasy gamers because of the coach but the reality is that the offensive line is amazing. Trent Williams was the 3rd highest graded run blocking lineman last year and he’s number one this year. Elijah Mitchell seems to have a handle on that job so he’s a tremendous asset.
TE: Charlie Woerner is being used for his blocking though Ross Dwelley is the better pass catcher. Until George Kittle gets back, this team does not have a fantasy relevant TE.
Bears
WR: Same as usual - huge snap shares for Allen Robinson and Darnell Mooney with high route participation. Now they just need someone to reliably deliver them the football.
RB: There is no doubt - Khalil Hebert has been a beacon of hope with David Montgomery out. This wasn’t his best game by any means but his usage makes him an every week starter.
TE: Same issue plaguing the WRs. Kmet played a huge snap share, ran a good number of routes, even got six targets. Just needs a little higher quality of targets.
Bengals
WR: As we’ve come to expect, Ja’Marr Chase led in snaps and routes run (38). They deployed a lot of 11 personnel so Tee Higgins (34) and Tyler Boyd (33) weren’t far off this week. Boyd is the hardest one to trust.
RB: Mixon owners have to be pleased with the turn of events this week. After nearly splitting snaps last week, Mixon played 42 to only 14 for Samaje Perine. And that’s with Chris Evans out.
TE: The deployment for Uzomah has never been the problem. He played 47 snaps, ran 32 routes and pass blocked five times. It’s his spot on the target pecking order that caps his upside.
Bills
WR: The box score doesn’t paint the picture but the Bills still did what they usually do. Emmanuel Sanders and Stefon Diggs played a full snap share out wide, Cole Beasley in the slot, and Gabriel Davis was the 4th man in. Manny just didn’t catch any of his targets.
RB: Zack Moss is clearly the lead guy at this point despite Devin Singletary “starting”. Moss played more pass snaps and more run snaps. It didn’t help Singletary that he blew a pass blocking assignment for the second game in a row. In week 6 they split pass snaps evenly but this week Moss played double (34) what Singletary played (17).
TE: Tommy Sweeney played a full snap share and actually ran 39 routes which was only two fewer than Emmanuel Sanders. Which proved something we already knew - if you want a one-for-one production substitution it needs to be close in terms of talent.
Browns
WR: Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. led in routes run - next highest was Rashard Higgins. Sometimes it feels like Odell isn’t even out there though.
RB: We talked about this on the Fantasy Alarm NFL Podcast - this team likes to use two running backs when they have them so why wouldn’t they use D’Ernest Johnson after he looked really good? And they did with Johnson getting 14 pass snaps, Chub getting 17. Chubb is the guy but Johnson has dart throw/desperation play appeal.
TE: This has been the same story all year. 17 routes for Hooper, 19 for Njou, 10 for Bryant. Out of 37 possible. No one is quite getting enough work.
Buccaneers
WR: As we discussed, when Antonio Brown is out, Tyler Johnson gets that role and that’s how it went down once again with a serviceable effort. Chris Godwin and Mike Evans plays the whole game, per usual.
RB: Leonard Fournette is the guy here though we have known that for weeks.
TE: Cameron Brate ran 28 routes to only 17 for OJ Howard which is what we’ve been seeing. Gronk left the game early with back spasms.
Broncos
WR: Jerry Jeudy returned but still in a bit of a limited capacity. Tim Patrick led the team in snaps (50) followed by Courtland Sutton (46) and Jeudy (38). For fantasy purposes, we’d like to see Patrick come off the field for two WR sets, not Jeudy. But he just got back from injury.
RB: Melvin Gordon once again got more pass snaps and carries. And this week he was more productive too.
TE: Albert Okwuegbunam returned and he contributed right way - Fant ran 21 of 31 routes, while Albert O ran 12 of 31. Could get crowded over there.
Cardinals
WR: DeAndre Hopkins got banged up here but neither Christian Kirk or Rondale Moore moved to the outside. Antoine Wesley actually came in to play an outside role playing 25 snaps out wide (Kirk and Moore played only 8 each out wide).
RB: Chase Edmonds continues to play both pass and run downs while James Conner is the preferred guy for short yardage plays.
TE: Zach Ertz is getting ramped up so the only question that remains is how high that snap count actually goes. The Cardinals do like using four WR sets at times but, if DeAndre Hopkins were to miss time, you’d expect more TE usage.
Cowboys
WR: business as usual - Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb every snap with Cedrick Wilson coming in to play slot for three-WR sets. Will be interesting to see what Michael Gallup’s role looks like when he is back.
RB: Zeke played 55 snaps and Tony Pollard played 19. All you really need to know there.
TE: Dalton Schultz is still the guy you want of the two TEs running 37 routes to 16 for Blake Jarwin. The problem for Schultz has always been the other options on the team which reared its ugly head this week. He did get seven targets but just couldn’t really connect with the backup QB.
Chargers
WR: Keenan Allen has had good deployment all year which is why we were touting him as a buy low candidate. He and Mike Williams play pretty much all the relevant pass snaps - this week Keenan ran a route on all 40 pass plays.
RB: Austin Ekeler is the only RB that matters in this group.
TE: This is the Jared Cook you signed up for. He either catches a touchdown or he doesn’t. This week he did not.
Chiefs
WR: Interesting news - Josh Gordon played the most snaps he’s played all year with 32. Tyreek Hill is now the only WR playing a full snap share. I think it’s worth monitoring.
RB: It certainly FELT like Derrick Gore played a ton but he actually only played 16 snaps while Darrel Williams played 52. Williams has a clear hold on the pass down work but Gore made himself known on the run down side of things.
TE: Travis. Kelce.
Colts
WR: Michael Pittman has developed into a focal point of this offense and he’s being deployed that way. TY Hilton continues to be used sparingly so Zach Pascal is playing a fairly large snap share.
RB: Jonathan Taylor is another guy who has fully arrived. He got virtually all the carries while also playing more pass snaps than Nyheim Hines.
TE: Jack Doyle has now run more routes than Mo Alie-Cox in every single week except week 4. That’s 7 to 8. Doyle isn’t exciting either.
Dolphins
WR: Jaylen Waddle and DeVante Parker played the whole game then Mike Gesicki was essentially the third WR, per usual. The question isn’t really about these games but what happens when Will Fuller returns.
RB: Myles Gaskin got the bulk of the work both in running and passing plays. Malcolm Brown is on IR so we can likely expect that to continue for a couple weeks.
TE: Mike Gesicki played 53 snaps at WR but did play 14 in-line which is the most he’s played all year. In fact, he hasn’t played more than 4 in-line snaps all year. Possibly preparing for life when all the WRs are healthy.
Eagles
WR: Jalen Reagor left the game early which led Quez Watkins to play a massive snap share. DeVonta Smith is always pretty heavily involved. Greg Ward played some additional snaps based on the injury.
RB: Not the split most of us were hoping for. Kenneth Gainwell, Jordan Howard, and Boston Scott all split the carries. Boston Scott technically led in pass snaps but Gainwell is the more interesting pass catcher.
TE: After his great deployment last week, Dallas Goedert only played four snaps at WR and played 40 in-line. Likely game script dependent but still disappointing.
Falcons
WR: Calvin Ridley is taking some time to work on his mental health - in his absence, Kyle Pitts ran 33 routes and no other WRs ran more than 23. The next highest were Russell Gage and Tajik Sharpe.
RB: They split the carries but Mike Davis played 25 pass snaps to 18 for Patterson. That said, Davis spent 10 of those pass blocking so technically Patterson ran 16 routes to his 15. Patterson did line up at WR for 13 snaps so they may be able to do-exist.
TE: Kyle Pitts played 36 of his 44 snaps at WR so, much like the Dolphins set up, Hayden Hurst is the real tight end.
Giants
WR: What a mess this has been. Sterling Shepard is now banged up. Kadarius Toney was in and out of the game. Shepard is set to miss time so expect Kenny Golladay, Kadarius Toney, and Darius Slayton to be the guys.
RB: Devontae Booker has taken on the full RB role which is great for fantasy football. As long as Saquon is out, he’s a guy you can start.
TE: With all the injuries to the wide receivers, Evan Engram continues to play a sizable role and be a serviceable though less than exciting play.
Jaguars
WR: They so far have stuck with the shift of Laviska Shenault to an outside role - three consecutive games he has played drastically more snaps outside than he has in the slot. Jamaal Agnew is in the slot role now along with tight end Dan Arnold.
RB: With James Robinson dealing with an ankle injury, Carlos Hyde was clearly the next man up. This is why teams were hesitant to trade their running back depth at the deadline.
TE: This is the big on from this team. Dan Arnold played 74% of the snaps and he played 78% of those snaps at WR. The targets showed us why that is important. Grab him where you can.
Jets
WR: With Corey Davis out it was Denzel Mims who slit into that role yet Keelan Cole still played a big outside role over Elijah Moore. Jamison Crowder saw his typical slot share. Running out of time for Elijah Moore to be fantasy relevant this year.
RB: Michael Carter played a huge snap share here but Ty Johnson still mixed in for some some pass plays and gave you something there.
TE: There is no fantasy relevant tight end here.
Lions
WR: Khalif Raymond played a full snap share on the outside but this time Trinity Benson got his chance opposite him. Amon-Ra St. Brown played his usual slot. As I mentioned, it’s likely this team runs pseudo-tryouts moving forward
RB: With Jamaal Williams scratched, Swift got the full role. He’s a start every week.
TE: TJ Hockenson is a rock solid start in any week as well.
Packers
WR: The tight end injury could mean a bigger role for some options here - namely, Allen Lazard who has even played some in-line snaps. When Davante Adams gets back it should be a lot of Adams, MVS, Lazard and Cobb with no pass catching TE.
RB: The trend continues - Aaron Jones gets all the pass work but he splits the run work with AJ Dillon.
TE: Robert Tonyan got hurt here and they didn’t address it via the trade deadline. Marcedes Lewis will likely play a bigger role though Josiah Deguara should get some action in a pass down capacity.
Panthers
WR: Terrace Marshall remains out with a concussion so it’s DJ Moore and Robby Anderson every snap, Keith Kirkwood and Shi Smith working in the slot. Only the first two play enough for fantasy
RB: Chubba Hubbard got the bulk of the work though Ameer Abdulah did play 11 pass plays (13 for Hubbard). CMC should be back soon so it won’t matter.
TE: Same as always - Ian Thomas playing more snaps than Tommy Tremble, neither of them relevant.
Patriots
WR: Jakobi Myers has constantly played 8 or 9 more pass plays than any other WR week to week - he is the favorite. Nelson Agholor usually plays the second most. Kendrick Bourne has been the third fiddle but N’Keal Harry actually got some work this week - likely for his run blocking.
RB: Damien Harris is the run down guy, Brandon Bolden in the pass down guy. That’s how they like it.
TE: Hunter Henry continues to run more routes than Jonnu Smith. They both played roughly 50 snaps but Henry ran 26 routes to 17 for Smith.
Raiders
BYE
Rams
WR: With DeSean Jackson and Tutu Atwell now out of the picture, the Rams are essentially running three WR sets most plays with Cooper Kupp, Robert Woods, and Van Jefferson.
RB: Darrell Hendeson continues to dominate snaps.
TE: Tyler Higbee has pretty good deployment though he’s still low on the target totem pole. If he didn’t do much vs the worst TE defense in the league last week, when will he?
Ravens
BYE
Saints
WR: Michael Thomas is now officially done for the year. So is Jameis Winston. It’s Marquez Callaway and Tre’Quan Smith on the outside with Ty Montgomery in the slot. Make what you will of that.
RB: Mark Ingram immediately hopped into his old role which Latavius Murray had been occupying in previous years. Second fiddle to help spell Alvin Kamara.
TE: Worth noting that, over the last couple weeks, Adam Trautman has played more WR snaps. He averaged 7.5 per game over the first four weeks but has played 17, 19, and 18 the last three. Could be a deep league stash just to see what he’s like with the new QB.
Seahawks
WR: Same as always - Lockett and Metcalf on the outside, Swain in the slot.
RB: The snaps were split up once again but not as evenly - Alex Collins is clearly the best bet when healthy.
TE: Gerald Everett is running far more routes (25) than Will Dissly (9). It’s not an ideal situation, more like a DFS dart throw.
Steelers
WR: Chase Claypool and Diontae Johnson are the every down outside guys. James Washington and Ray-Ray McCloud share the slot with the tight ends.
RB: Najee Harris is the guy. That is all.
TE: Pat Freiermuth had been chipping away at Eric Ebron and this week with Ebron hurt he got to flex a bit. He’s a great dynasty stash but his upside is still a little bit capped for redraft by the other pass catchers and Ebron’s pending return.
Texans
WR: Brandin Cooks is the only one playing a full snap share. Nico Collins and Danny Amendola played 39 snaps apiece.
RB: We thought it would be David Johnson or possibly even Phillip Lindsay so of course Rex Burkhead played a massive snap share. Maybe they were showcasing him for a trade? Who knows.
TE: Jordan Akins ran 27 routes but it was the rookie Brevin Jordan on only 10 routes that scored. Akins still preferred in redraft, Brevin in dynasty.
Titans
WR: AJ Brown has finally played a full snap share. Julio Jones is still banged up but no one really played enough - Marcus Johnson was the next closest.
RB: The King finally got hurt for once. They added Adrian Peterso and Devante Foreman to the roster to handle the early work, Jeremy McNichols should have a role on pass downs.
TE: They prefer the blocking tight ends to the pass catching ones. Shame.
Vikings
WR: Old reliable. Adam Thielen and Justin Jefferson most snaps. KJ Osborn not playing enough.
RB: Dalvin Cook is the guy once again.
TE: Tyler Conklin is involved but he continues to block on a ton of pass plays. He’s at 18% on the season and no other tight end in the top 30 for fantasy blocks that much on pass snaps.
Washington Football Team
WR: Until Curtis Samuel gets back, it seems like they want it to be Terry McLaurin and DeAndre Carter on the outside with Adam Humphries in the slot.
RB: Nightmare situation rolls on with the split between these two backs. More run work for Gibson, more pass work for McKissic.
TE: Same as it ever was - as long as Logan Thomas is out, RSJ is an interesting start.