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Thankfully Week 3 in the NFL was much quieter on the injury front as compared to Week 2. However, there were still a couple of new fantasy related injuries that we’ll have to deal with in Week 3. Bears multi-dimensional RB Tarik Cohen was placed on season ending IR due to a torn MCL. We’ll have to watch as Ryan Nall , Cordarrelle Patterson and the newly signed Artavis Pierce try to carve out a role for themselves as they try to provide depth to the Bears’ backfield. Seattle Seahawks RB Chris Carson suffered a knee sprain and could miss Week 4. If he were to miss time, Carlos Hyde would probably get the bulk of the early down work with Travis Homer filling in as a pass catching specialist.
As for the two teams who were hit hardest by the injury bug last week it looks as if the Panthers have found themselves an adequate temporary replacement for Christian McCaffrey in Mike Davis but the Giants are still working things out. Devonta Freeman (five carries) and Wayne Gallman (four carries) couldn’t get much done against the 49ers defense in Week 3. Dion Lewis only contributed one carry and one catch last week. While Freeman is expected to eventually be the Giants’ lead back it might take another week or two for him to get in full game shape and be able to handle a full work load. Of course, if any Giants RB is going to have any success at running the football their offensive line has to play a lot better.
The following is a closer look at a few other NFL backfields that deserve your attention. We hope that the following will help you to better manage your fantasy football team(s).
Atlanta Falcons
Not surprisingly, Todd Gurley played the majority of offensive snaps (51%) in Week 3. He logged 14 carries for 80 yards, but his backup Brian Hill ’s role increased a bit compared to Week 2. Hill had a modestly effective day in fantasy, rushing for 58 yards on nine carries and he scored a rushing TD. He also added a catch for 22 yards. Hill played 34% of the offensive snaps up from 20% in Week 2. Hill’s usage has been too inconsistent for you to consider using him in fantasy on a weekly basis, but he is Gurley’s clear handcuff. There’s no doubt that the Falcons are carefully managing Gurley’s reps.
Los Angeles Rams
Darrell Henderson is making it very hard for Rams head coach Sean McVay to continue to use a running back by committee approach moving forward. He’s Pro Football Focus’ highest top graded RB on the young season after he rushed for 114 yards on 20 carries (5.70 YPC) and scored a TD on Sunday. With Cam Akers out and Malcolm Brown only gaining 19 yards on seven carries (2.71 YPC) Henderson took control of the Rams backfield, contributing four runs of at least 12 yards. With 241 all-purpose yards over the past two weeks Henderson deserves to be the main guy in Week 4…at least until he cools off. When asked by reporters if Henderson would get the start this week he responded with an “I think so”.
Miami Dolphins
Myles Gaskin has certainly settled in as the primary Dolphins RB. He’s averaged five catches per game and according to Fantasy Football Today he’s RB24 in PPR scoring leagues base on fantasy points scored per game. In deeper leagues, that makes him a lower end RB2 or flex option. Matt Breida hasn’t had much of a role thus far but Jordan Howard is clearly the Dolphins’ goal line back. He has 16 rushes for just 12 yards, but has scored a TD in each game this season.
New England Patriots
With Cam Newton under center, the Pats have become a run first team. However, as any veteran fantasy football player knows figuring out which Patriots RB to put in your starting lineup from week to week can be as hard as guessing the winning numbers of your favorite lottery game. Rex Burkhead was the Patriots RB to start in Week 3. He collected 98 all-purpose yards and scored three total TDs against the Raiders. It wasn’t the first time in his Pats career that Burkhead flashed some fantasy brilliance. There was a four game stretch between Week 12 and Week 15 of the 2017 season where Burkhead rushed for five TDs and added a receiving TD as well. However for the most part, Burkhead’s fantasy production has been inconsistent to say the least. Up until Week 3, Burkhead had only four total TDs in the 23 games since Week 15 of 2017. This week Damien Harris is eligible to be activated from the IR, and the Pats will need to decide if they want to roster five RBs. Can J.J. Taylor come close to getting another 11 carries and playing 22% of the team’s offensive snaps like he did in Week 3? Knowing Bill Belichick and with James White eventually coming back, probably not. If the Pats do indeed decide to keep five RBs on their roster it’s likely that when healthy, Sony Michel would be the safest bet for early down work. White will almost certainly resume his role as pass catching specialist. Other than Michel and White you know that head coach Bill Belichick will use whichever RB he thinks gives him the best chance of winning at any given time.
New York Jets
With Le’Veon Bell still on the IR and not eligible to be activated until Week 5, Jets rookie RB La’Mical Perine has been gradually getting more playing time. After missing Week 1 Perine played 14% of the Jets’ offensive snaps in Week 2 and 33% in Week 3. Is this the week that he unseats the ageless Frank Gore and leads the Jets’ rushing attack? Based on his draft profile and college career stats Perine can get it done on the ground (5.0 career YPC) and through the air (40 catches in 2019). With Jets head coach Adam Gase on the hot seat, why not get Perine even more involved in the offense this week? If he’s available on your league’s waiver wire and you have an empty spot on your bench he might be worth a stash.