As we head into Week 5 of the NFL season, injuries to widely rostered fantasy football running backs (RBs) continue to be an issue for fantasy managers. Injuries to Jonathan Taylor, Javonte Williams and Cordarrelle Patterson will once again task fantasy football managers with seeking out replacements at the RB position whose potential snap counts, receiving targets, and carries will potentially make them more fantasy relevant this week whether it be Mike Boone, Tyler Allgeier or maybe even Deon Jackson. We’ll identify a few such RBs who’ll likely see increased opportunities this week and also take a closer look at some backfields and analyze their recent and potential future RB usage in an attempt to project how their backfields will be managed and utilized moving forward.

 

NFL Week 4 Running Back Usage Report

Bears

David Montgomery’s ankle and knee injuries might be serious enough to keep him out of multiple games, but as this article is being written he’s not yet been placed on the IR, and there’s a chance he may suit up for Week 5. If Montgomery is inactive again this week, Khalil Herbert will again be the Bears’ primary RB with Trestan Ebner filling the change of pace role and also occasionally being targeted in the Bears’ passing game. Darrynton Evans, the other RB on the Bears’ roster, was used exclusively on special teams in Week 4.

Lions

As this article is being written, D’Andre Swift’s status for Week 5 is uncertain but there is a chance that he may be inactive once again. As expected, Jamaal Williams was the Lions’ lead back in Week 4. He played 50% of the team’s offensive snaps, rushed for 108 yards and scored two TDs. Craig Reynolds played 32% of the Lions’ offensive snaps and had two carries for 30 yards and added a reception for twelve yards. Justin Jackson, who we mentioned here last week, played his first nine offensive snaps of the season and scored a receiving TD. Reynolds and Jackson should be on your watch list, but if Swift is inactive in Week 5, Williams will once again be the Lions’ primary back.

Rams

Darrell Henderson has consistently played a higher percentage of offensive snaps than Cam Akers this season but the two RBs have had a similar overall workload through Week 4. Akers has 38 total carries, seven of which were from within the red zone, and Henderson has had 34 total carries, five of which were from within the red zone. However, the Rams activated Malcolm Brown from the practice squad before their Monday night matchup against the 49ers. He only played two snaps, but you have to wonder if the Rams plan to expand his role as the season progresses and if one or both of the previously mentioned Rams RBs have their snap counts affected.

Broncos

With Javonte Williams lost for the season after tearing his ACL and LCL, Broncos offensive coordinator Justin Outten told reporters that Melvin Gordon is set to take over as the team’s  primary back moving forward with Mike Boone backing him up. Gordon has 37 carries on the season and a sub-par 3.8 average YPC. Unfortunately, he already has four fumbles on the young season. In his three career games with at least 11 carries, Boone is averaging 5.65 YPC. In addition, although he’s only had 78 total carries in his career, he’s never fumbled. The Broncos added additional depth to their backfield when they signed veteran RB Latavius Murray off the Saints’ practice squad on Monday. Murray was highly effective for the Saints this past Sunday (11 carries for 57 yards, 5.18 YPC, TD). With the inherent volatility at the RB position, he might carve out a role for himself before the season is over.

Colts

Keep an eye on the Colts’ backfield as their Thursday night matchup against the Broncos approaches. Jonathan Taylor’s ankle injury doesn’t appear to be as serious as originally feared but he’s got a short work week and has already missed Tuesday’s practice. Nyheim Hines is Taylor’s presumptive handcuff, but he’s only had four career games with 10 carries or more. He’s had good overall success in those games, posting a 4.625 YPC (48 carries for 222 yards, 1 TD), but should Taylor be forced to miss multiple games, Deon Jackson, who has been primarily used on special team coverage, could eventually have a larger role in the Colts’ backfield. 

Ravens

With Justice Hill (hamstring) likely out “for a little bit” according to head coach Jim Harbaugh, J.K. Dobbins will look to build upon last week’s mini breakout game (50% offensive snaps played, 41 rushing yards and 1 rushing TD, and 22 receiving yards and 1 receiving TD). Gus Edwards is eligible to be activated off the IR in Week 5 but with Mike Davis and Kenyan Drake still on the active roster there are still many mouths to feed in the Ravens’ backfield. This backfield is still hard to trust.

Falcons

The Falcons placed Cordarrell Patterson on the IR (knee) which means he’ll miss at least the next four games. With Patterson hampered in Week 4, Tyler Allgeier and Caleb Huntley virtually split carries in the fourth quarter, but Huntley got all of the red zone work. Huntley had four fourth quarter red zone carries  and converted one of them into a TD. Allgeier was productive in Week 4 (10 carries for 84 yards and one catch for 20 yards) but if the Falcons continue give Huntley most of their red zone work, he’ll obviously cut into Allgeier’s fantasy production. The fact that Damien Williams is eligible to be activated from the IR after Week 5 is going to make it even tougher to figure out which Falcons RB will have the most potential fantasy relevance over the next few weeks. As of Tuesday, Williams was rostered in just 1% of Yahoo! fantasy football leagues.

Commanders

According to Commanders head coach Ron Rivera, Brian Robinson, who is eligible to be activated from the reserve/non-football injury list, might see some game action in Week 5. Robinson might not see enough playing time to warrant putting him in your starting lineup this week but it’s an obvious huge step in the right direction both from a human and fantasy football standpoint. Antonio Gibson’s snaps played percentage has decreased for three straight weeks and although he has seemingly taken care of him fumbling problem (he hasn’t fumbled yet this season), his 3.3 YPC leaves much to be desired. Robinson seemed set to open the season as the Commanders’ primary back and if Gibson continues to struggle, Robinson could quickly leapfrog over Gibson on the Commanders’ depth chart.

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