Dependable Running Backs to Rely On When Facing the Bye Week Dilemma

All season long, I’ll be looking back at the week to see how we can best leverage what took place on the field at the running back position to our advantage. This weekly article will hone in on weekly snap shares and highlight a few players who could benefit from their team putting them on the field more in the coming weeks.

The running back position was dealt a massive blow in Week 6, with several players exiting with injuries. Additionally, several other running backs sidelined in Week 6 are no lock to return in Week 7. Here’s a short list of players currently dealing with injuries at the running back position:

With six teams also out on bye this week (CAR, CIN, DAL, HOU, NYJ, TEN), finding serviceable running backs gets more challenging.

As always, below are some players whose performances and situations stood out this past week, and at the end of the article is a table of every player to see 20 percent or more of their team’s snaps in Week 6.

NOTE: Snaps and route data courtesy of FantasyPoints.com and PFF.com.

Najee Harris/Jaylen Warren (PIT)

You won’t find Najee Harris or Jaylen Warren on the below snap report as the Steelers were on bye, but here’s a look at their snaps and opportunities through their first five games.

In a week where so many key running backs will be sidelined via either injury or bye, Harris and Warren are both very much in play. Warren’s pass-catching upside has given him the advantage over Harris throughout the season. However, the Steelers face a Rams defense that’s allowing the ninth-most rush yards per game (122.2) and yards before contact per attempt (1.45), along with the 11th-most YACO/ATT (2.47) on the season — putting Harris in prime position for a strong week as well.

I take no pleasure in reporting Harris might be the preferred back in this matchup, but I’ll be starting Warren in various spots regardless.

My concern for Warren comes from the lack of backfield targets the Rams have allowed this season. Per the Fantasy Points Data Suite, the Rams have only allowed 19 targets to players out of the backfield — the second-fewest in the league. Of the 23 targets Warren has seen this season, 21 have come out of the backfield. He also risks losing targets in Week 7, with Diontae Johnson (hamstring) possibly from his stint on injured reserve.

If you’re desperate at running back this week, Warren should still have fringe RB2 upside, but Harris, despite the inefficiencies he’s shown this season, could be in a get-right spot against the Rams.

Craig Reynolds (DET)

Lions head coach Dan Campbell was somewhat vague when speaking about David Montgomery (ribs) this week. Campbell said Montgomery would be out “a little bit,” which leads us to believe he’ll miss at least Week 7’s contest against the Ravens.

Jahmyr Gibbs, who has missed the last two games with a hamstring injury, will presumably be back this week, but we may not have clarity on his situation until closer to the weekend.

Things could be setting up for Craig Reynolds to have a busy Week 7 against the Ravens.

Reynolds hasn’t been great this year, rushing 24 times for 89 yards (3.7 YPC) and one touchdown, but the Lions backup out-snapped Devin Ozigbo 43-6 — as Kyle Dvorchak pointed out in his waiver wire article — and could benefit from a potentially thin backfield.

The Ravens have been stout against the run, allowing the 10th-fewest rushing yards per game while ranking seventh in stuff rate (50.4 percent). However, they’ll be tested by a Lions line ranked top-15 in both stuff rate (48.3 percent) and YBCO/ATT (1.28).

Reynolds is much more of a volume-based play than a bet on talent. Facing a stout Ravens defense on the road could make life tough for him and the Lions’ offense as a whole, but if Gibbs is unable to play, a path to fantasy success could exist for the former UDFA.

Kareem Hunt (CLE)

Jerome Ford is rostered in 88 percent of Yahoo leagues, but Kareem Hunt, who rushed 12 times for 47 yards and a touchdown last week against the 49ers, is rostered in only 40 percent of those leagues.

Ford led the Browns with 17-84 on the ground in last week’s upset win, but Hunt had his busiest week coming off the bye since the Browns signed him ahead of Week 3.

Hunt doesn’t look any more efficient than last season, averaging a pedestrian 2.64 YACO/ATT and 3.3 YPC. Pro Football Focus has credited him with exactly one missed tackle forced on his 22 rush attempts.

However, the shoulder injury that has left Deshaun Watson sidelined for the Browns’ last two games could keep him out in Week 7 against the Colts, leading to another high-volume day for the Browns’ backfield.

Hunt and the Browns get a Colts defense that’s allowing the 14th-most rushing yards per game (113.5) and that recently lost starting defensive tackle Grover Stewart to a six-game PED suspension. The Browns’ feast-or-famine rushing attack, which ranks near the bottom of the league in stuff rate (47.2 percent) but 10th in explosive run rate (5.5 percent), could be in for a productive day in a game that should feature a positive game script.

The Colts are fresh off getting trounced by the Jaguars in Week 6 and now face an elite Browns defense that embarrassed the 49ers last week. When leading by three or more points, the Browns are rushing at a 52 percent clip. They’re a rare 2.5-point road favorite on the Bet MGM sportsbook but have an outside chance to run away with this if Gardner Minshew plays like he did last week.

While I wouldn’t expect Hunt to step into a lead role against the Colts, a high-volume backup role behind Ford could put him in the RB2 mix this week.

Jordan Mason (SF)

Fantasy managers will be watching Christian McCaffrey’s (oblique) practice reports throughout the week. The No. 2 running back in fantasy points per game (25.0) is at risk of missing Week 7 with his injury but benefits from an extra day of rest thanks to the 49ers not playing until Monday night.

If McCaffrey misses this week, the running back situation in San Francisco will be a hard one to predict, but I’m throwing all my chips in on Jordan Mason.

For starters, Elijah Mitchell’s injury history throughout his three-year career is well-noted. While he hasn’t been on the fantasy radar this season, those who stashed Mitchell early on know he missed Weeks 4 and 5 with a knee injury he suffered in practice just days before Week 4’s contest against the Cardinals. With Week 6 being his first game back from injury, it’s possible Mitchell playing behind Mason was the team easing him back into action. That said, Mason is listed behind McCaffrey on the team’s unofficial depth chart.

I won’t put too much stock into the team’s depth chart, but what Mason showed on the field was encouraging. The second-year back rushed for 5-27-1 in relief of CMC but played well ahead of Mitchell in several key aspects.

The risk in banking on Mason is his Monday night matchup. If McCaffrey plays, Mason will, in all likelihood, be rendered useless unless Kyle Shanahan decides to limit his snap count. However, a potential top-15 PPR week could be in store for Mason if CMC sits, as he and the 49ers take on a Vikings defense that ranks among the league’s worst. Volume fueled by a positive game script would be enough to give Mason what he needs to succeed in a spot start for the Niners and fantasy managers.

His biggest threat is CMC and his Week 7 status.

Roschon Johnson (CHI)

We still need Roschon Johnson to clear concussion protocol, which he could do in time for the Bears’ matchup against the Raiders.

With Khalil Herbert (ankle) and Johnson both sidelined in Week 6, the Bears leaned heavily on D’Onta Foreman and practice squad running back Darrynton Evans. Foreman rushed 15 times for 65 scoreless yards on the day, proving relatively effective on the ground, but I’d expect Johnson to take hold as the Bears’ RB1 when he returns.

Fantasy managers in need of running back help could look to Johnson, who is currently rostered in 56 percent of Yahoo leagues, likely because of his injury.

In limited action this season, Johnson has totaled 25 carries for 122 yards and one touchdown while adding another 11 receptions for 58 yards on 12 targets. If the Bears opt to lean into Johnson’s versatile skillset, we could have a high-end RB2 on our hands against a Raiders defense that’s ranked 13th in YCBO/ATT (1.24) but 25th in YACO/ATT (2.67).

Things look even better when you consider that the Bears, who are targeting their running backs 5.8 times per game, face a defense allowing the seventh-most targets per game (6.0) to opponents out of the backfield.

Foreman was just good enough in last week’s loss to the Vikings to create some concern for those hoping to play Johnson this weekend, but the rookie back has been active every game when healthy, while Foreman was a health scratch in four of the Bears’ first five contests.

Monitor his status throughout the week, but we could be nearing a potential RB1 workload for Johnson once he returns.

Week 6 Snap Share