Erik Smith’s RB Rankings
- The Detroit Lions backfield has been the league’s most reliable source of touchdowns on the season, even with D’Andre Swift battling injuries. Despite his struggles and lack of playing time, Swift has 3 or more catches in 7 of 9 games and has scored a TD in 6 of 9 games. He survived his lack of usage to surge to a 51% snap share last week as he exited the injury report for the first time since Week 1. Sure, he popped back up on the injury report on Wednesday, so we aren’t out of the woods yet, but a healthy Swift remains a strong option.
- And then, of course, there is Jamaal Williams. Williams has scored 14 touchdowns in 12 games on the season, though Swift’s return has caused him to fade a bit down the stretch. Williams took just 30% of the snaps last week and has shockingly not been targeted since Week 8. He has just two games over 12 PPR points since the Week 6 bye, and he’s settling into more of an RB2 role going forward. But with 6 touchdowns in his last 4 games, Williams remains a solid option even on playoff rosters.
- What happened to Jeff Wilson Jr.? Raheem Mostert returned from a one-week injury absence to play San Francisco on Sunday, and Wilson promptly had his lowest snap share since joining the Dolphins at 37%. I’m not sure what changed, but this is a worrisome development for Wilson managers. Miami plays a Chargers defense still allowing 5.6 yards per carry to opposing running backs, however, so while handicapping this backfield is as difficult as ever, they both do have upside and are worthy RB2 plays with six teams on a bye.
- Buffalo is suddenly trending towards a committee, as Devin Singletary played a season-low 44% of the snaps last week. James Cook played 43% of the snaps with a higher rush share than Singletary and an 18% target share, and even Nyheim Hines played 31% of the snaps. Cook in particular is surging, as he has produced three of the four highest target shares in this backfield since Week 9. Singletary is still the more trustworthy option for now, but Cook should be rostered in all leagues and provides some nice boom potential outside of the RB2 range of rushers.
Green=Strong Starter, Yellow=Solid Starter, Red=Look for Better Options
RB Rankings