This is the Hitchhiker’s Guide to RB: Week 13! If you are new to the column, this is the place we talk all things running back streaming. Each week we discuss running back usage, matchups, and waiver opportunities to convert the least amount of capital into a playable running back position on your fantasy teams.
With Fournette ruled out in Week 12, it was Rachaad time. He earned 80-percent of Tampa’s RB carries and all their targets. Though not particularly efficient running, his 64 yards on 14 carries were buoyed by a 35-yard gain on his second carry, and his nine catches on nine targets for 45 yards helped him to 19.9 fantasy points. With this a second consecutive 100-yard performance, the Rachaad White genie is officially out of the bottle. Even when Fournette returns, White will get a good share of touches and may have taken a firm grasp of the receiving role.
White stepped in for the enigmatic and ineffective Zach Wilson and was named the starter this week, and boy, did he deliver. He passed for 315 yards and three TDs in the rain as New York dominated The Bears. White also displayed chemistry with Garrett Wilson and Elijah Moore. The Jets’ offense is pointing up, and White is firmly on the streaming radar. He is a must-add in Superflex formats and a consideration in single QB leagues.
This is the Infirmary Report: Post Week 12! The worst part of our beloved game is the frequency of injuries. It’s an unfortunate byproduct of such a fast-paced, contact-heavy sport. It’s something that is important to remember as we approach the first full week of the preseason. Luckily for the NFL players, they have access to some of the best doctors in the world and can usually return to form at least by the next season. Unfortunately for us fantasy players, it’s not always easy to know when a player will get hurt. To another degree, sometimes your roster isn’t big enough to plan ahead for an injury. This series, the Infirmary Report, will give you advice on the injuries that have happened every week during the season. Without further ado, here is the Infirmary Report: Post Week 12 of regular season action.
Alec Pierce saw a team-high 47-percent Air Yard Share in Week 11 and now faces a Steelers secondary that has been repeatedly exposed over the top (No. 2 in explosive pass plays of 20+yards allowed). His Anytime Touchdown scoring prop is sitting at +290 on FanDuel Sportsbook.
Pat Friermuth has been a security target for Pickett. His 22-percent Target Share is No. 3 best at his position just behind Travis Kelce. Friermuth has posted two top-four TE performances in his last five games to boot. To the detriment of his wide receiver team-mates, Friermuth has cleared a 30+-percent Target Share in two straight games.
Rachaad White’s 3.6 true yards per carry is nothing to write home about, and that number is so low in part to how beat up the Bucs’ offensive line has been. But luckily, they get the Browns and the league’s worst run defense according to Football Outsiders’ run defense DVOA metric. White looks like an RB1 option this week if Fournette can’t go. Both would be RB2s in the event Fournette can go.
I sought a correlation between Bengals pass-catchers. My educated guess was Hayden Hurst would eat against a Steelers secondary that would primarily be focused on WR1 Tee Higgins. Instead, Higgins stomped all over the stat sheet in a 37-30 shootout with nine receptions on 13 targets for 148 yards. Hurst logged just two receptions on three targets for 28 yards. We paired this duo with a CeeDee Lamb alpha game, but the Cowboys ran all over the Vikings and didn’t need Lamb to take over to win 40-3. The third-year wideout finished with a season-low five targets, producing five receptions for 45 yards. Blah.
50-percent of Sleeper leagues are starting D.J. Moore with the Carolina Panthers getting ready to face the Denver Broncos and their tough secondary. Moore is top-10 in targets (82) and Air Yards (920), but his season has been hindered by the plethora of pernicious Panthers passers under center.
The New England Patriots played out one of the all-time ugly on-the-eye games in NFL history against the New York Jets in Week 11. Yet, they clearly were enjoying what they were doing and wanted to savor every moment. Why else would their pace of play drop from 1.879 (No. 27) a week ago to 1.843 (No. 31)? Because the Patriots have clearly decided, in the words of the Mandalorian, that this is the way. This is another fantasy offense that we really don’t want too many pieces of.
The Week 12 TNF Showdown features three matchups: Giants at Cowboys, Bills at Lions, and Patriots at Vikings. This year’s fantasy slate is chalk-full of talent. The Buffalo Bills high powered offense travels to Detroit to face a Lions defense giving up big plays at a high rate. The Dallas Cowboys face off against the New York Giants in a divisional matchup as Dak Prescott looks to continue his streak of top-10 performances. Finally, the night will be wrapped up with a sneaky shootout, where the New England Patriots and Minnesota Vikings both look to spark their offenses. This week I’ll be short and to-the-point, giving you the starts, sits, and picks for each of these matchups.
