Committee Report: Which non-starting RBs are worth a look?

The term “handcuff” has become a dirty word in fantasy football circles. Many fantasy players scoff at the notion of wasting two precious roster spots on one usable player for insurance sake. With backfield committees having become the norm, that argument certainly holds water. Still, there are a handful of workhorse backs out there, on productive offenses, and with quality backups capable of carrying the load if called upon. So if you used one of your final draft picks this summer on someone like James Conner or Alfred Morris or Marlon Mack, well, I’m right there with you. And whether or not you also own Le’Veon Bell or Ezekiel Elliott or Frank Gore, each of the aforementioned backups represents the type of low-risk upside pick that wins leagues every year.

For me, one of the great thrills about fantasy is paying attention to the right cues and getting in on the ground floor with a running back before the breakout, before the waiver wire scramble when he gets promoted to take over for an injured or ineffective starter. And with that, welcome to the weekly RB Committee Report.

Because every backfield situation is fluid, every Thursday I’ll go through and update each backfield with the key volume and efficiency notes. Think of it as a one-stop shop to help you stay on top of every team and keep tabs on which backups may be subtly moving on or off the fantasy radar. Using PFF data, we’ll monitor usage and performance trends to get a jump on which starters may be on a short leash.

Going back to Mack, last year the Colts generated the sixth-most yards before contact (2.07) and yet Frank Gore averaged only 3.9 YPC. Despite an electric preseason, Mack was owned in less than two percent of ESPN leagues in Week 1 when he matched Gore with 10 carries and should have had a second touchdown. The goal of the Committee Report is for you to be that person who cashes in on a FanDuel tournament because you had enough evidence to throw a dart with Mack in one of your lineups – and because Chuck Pagano threw the challenge flag like he should have, of course.

Arizona Cardinals

Fantasy Starter	Backup to Own
Kerwynn Williams	Chris Johnson

With David Johnson out 2-3 months due to a wrist injury, the Cardinals’ backfield is in a state of flux, to say the least. Williams has been a popular waiver add this week, but fantasy owners would be wise not to expect Johnson-esque usage (or production). For one, the Cardinals have some work to do up front after generating only 0.5 yards before contact and allowing pressure on 45 percent of Carson Palmer’s dropbacks. Game script also saw Arizona throw the ball 74 percent of the time. Williams wound up with five carries for 10 yards and a touchdown, while Andre Ellington got two touches but did double up Williams with 20 snaps (19 of which came on passing plays). Further complicating matters is the re-signing of veteran Chris Johnson, who previously served as the team’s featured back before David Johnson burst onto the scene but did not make it through final cuts this preseason. ESPN Cardinals reporter Josh Weinfuss believes Johnson will emerge as the lead back.

Atlanta Falcons

Starter	Backup to Own
Devonta Freeman	Tevin Coleman

Freeman played 61 percent of the Falcons’ Week 1 snaps compared to 41 percent for Coleman, with Freeman holding a 14-12 edge in touches. Given what we saw last year, that should not come as a surprise. In the 12 games that Coleman started and finished in 2016, Freeman saw 53 percent of the snaps while Coleman was on the field for 43 percent. Neither back particularly separated himself, although both rank inside the top-26 PPR RBs after one week. Freeman was more productive on the ground and logged the only carry inside the 5, while Coleman averaged a healthy 3.5 yards per route run and drew six targets. With Freeman allowing two pressures in seven pass-blocking snaps, Coleman has the inside edge on passing downs and remains one of – if not the – most valuable “backups” in the league. He’ll be in play as a weekly flex option in PPR.

Baltimore Ravens

Starter	Backup to Own
Terrance West	Javorius Allen (12+ teams)

Danny Woodhead was carted off the field with a hamstring injury after catching three passes on the Ravens’ opening drive, and he is expected to miss a month or more. It was Allen, and not West, who logged most of the snaps after Woodhead went down. Allen finished with 71 yards on 21 carries, although it should be noted that all but five of those carries came in the second half with the Ravens nursing a big lead. Allen posted only an 8.4 elusive rating, while West (35.7 rating) forced three missed tackles on his 19 rushes, which he turned into 80 yards and a TD. Allen is certainly worth a speculative add, but it won’t be every week that Baltimore sees two RBs get 20 carries apiece. Those in PPR leagues will want to keep an eye on Michael Campanaro as a candidate to possibly step into Woodhead’s role.

Buffalo Bills

Starter	Backup to Own
LeSean McCoy	Mike Tolbert (12+)

No Jonathan Williams, no problem for the Buffalo Bills so far. McCoy played 70.1 percent of the snaps (46.3 percent of run snaps) and put up 20.9 fantasy points on 27 touches (110 rushing yards, 49 receiving yards). Tolbert was in for 30 percent of the offensive snaps and produced 42 yards and a score on 12 carries, finishing with 12.4 fantasy points. Tolbert actually ranked 11th out of 37 qualifiers in elusive rating (55.8), eight spots ahead of McCoy’s 36.2 elusive score. He also had two carries inside the five to McCoy’s one such carry. Is Tolbert a threat to McCoy’s heavy workload? No. A year ago McCoy played 65.5 percent of the snaps and 37.2 percent of the run plays across 15 games. Still, with his early involvement in arguably the league’s most productive ground game, Tolbert is worth a bench stash in deeper leagues, and he’d become a must-add in the event of a McCoy injury.

Carolina Panthers

Starter	Backup to Own
Christian McCaffrey	Jonathan Stewart

Rookie McCaffrey played 47 snaps (70.1 percent) to Stewart’s 29 (43.3 percent), although Stewart turned in the better fantasy day with a team-high 20 total touches for 82 yards and a TD reception. He also forced six missed tackles. McCaffrey had 18 touches and matched Stewart with a 3.6 YPC average, as he finished with 85 total yards on the strength of five catches. This was essentially the very kind of backfield split that was expected going into the season. The Panthers ran the ball 58 percent of the time, although the O-line generated only 0.9 yards before contact against San Francisco. Coach Ron Rivera said this week that he doesn’t want to “wear the batteries out” on the rookie, but that may be easier said than done.

Chicago Bears

Starter	Backup to Own
Jordan Howard	Tarik Cohen

Howard had a solid, if unspectacular, opener on the ground, as he turned 13 carries into 52 yards and a TD while averaging 3.0 yards after contact. He also saw five targets, including a drop in the end zone. But the big story to emerge from the Bears opener was the debut of electric rookie Cohen, who actually led all Bears players (and all Week 1 RBs) with 11 targets and finished with 25.3 fantasy points. While Cohen did play 42 percent of the offensive snaps, it bears mention that 22 of his 28 snaps came on pass plays. Still, with Kevin White and Cameron Meredith both lost for the season, Cohen will remain involved in the passing game and, as such, carries some standalone PPR appeal moving forward.

Cincinnati Bengals

Starter	Backup to Own
Joe Mixon	Giovani Bernard (PPR)
	Jeremy Hill

Bernard allowed pressures on two of his four pass-blocking snaps, which made him the least efficient pass-blocking RB out of 29 qualifiers in Week 1. Still, he showed some big-play ability, turning seven carries into 40 yards and one catch into a 39-yard gain. With Cincinnati playing from behind for most of the game, Bernard wound up leading the backfield with 29 snaps, compared to 22 for rookie Mixon and 10 for “starter” Hill. Hill is the most gamescript-dependent (he had only two second-half carries), and with the Bengals seemingly intent on rotating in a different RB for each series, he can ill-afford for the team to fall behind early. He does not need to be owned outside of deep leagues. Mixon had a quiet debut, finishing with nine yards on eight carries to go with three catches for 15 yards.

Cleveland Browns

Starter	Backup to Own
Isaiah Crowell	Duke Johnson (PPR)

Crowell averaged only 1.6 yards on 17 carries but did turn two catches into 33 yards. While Crowell’s usage is encouraging, he did allow four pressures on 11 pass-blocking snaps. That’s not going to help his case to fend off Johnson on passing downs. Speaking of Johnson, he did not log a single carry and caught 2-of-5 targets for 20 yards. He lined up in the slot for virtually all of his 50 snaps while Matthew Dayes spelled Crowell as a runner. For what it’s worth, during his Monday presser coach Hue Jackson denied that Johnson is strictly a wide receiver and said that his usage was due to the game plan. However, even in PPR formats or DFS, it’s hard to deploy Johnson as a running back who doesn’t get a chance to run the ball.

Dallas Cowboys

Starter	Backup to Own
Ezekiel Elliott	Alfred Morris

Morris managed only one yard on four carries, but the main takeaway here was that Darren McFadden was not even active. With Elliott’s suspension still up in the air, Morris is worthy of a bench stash in virtually all formats. Should Elliott miss time due to suspension and/or injury, Morris would vault into the RB1 conversation behind the Cowboys’ O-line. For what it’s worth, he was PFF’s second-most elusive RB in the preseason, and was one of my favorite value picks this preseason. Elliott was his usual dominant self in Week 1.

Denver Broncos

Starter	Backup to Own
C.J. Anderson	Jamaal Charles

Anderson remains atop the depth chart and produced 81 yards on 20 carries on Monday night. He also got four of Denver’s six carries inside the 5-yard line. However, Charles was just as productive on 10 carries as he finished with 40 yards in his Broncos’ debut, even logging a couple of goal-line opportunities. The blemish was a costly fourth-quarter fumble when he was trying to make something out of nothing. And don’t forget about Denver’s leading rusher from a year ago, Devontae Booker, who recently returned to practice from a wrist injury and could be activated as soon as Week 3. Of course, another solid showing by Charles would likely keep Booker buried on the depth chart. Jonathan Williams is another name to monitor should he earn a promotion from the practice squad.

Detroit Lions

Starter	Backup to Own
Ameer Abdullah	Theo Riddick (PPR)

It was tough sledding for Abdullah against the Cardinals’ stingy run defense, as he managed only 30 yards on 15 carries to go with 11 yards on three catches. The Lions OL did him no favors, generating -0.15 yards before contact on the day. Riddick picked up where he left off last year as a PPR weapon, catching 6-of-7 targets for 27 yards and a nifty score, although he logged only one carry on the ground. All told, Abdullah saw 35 snaps to Riddick’s 22. Muddling the picture is Dwayne Washington, who also played 14 snaps and had six carries for 22 yards. Even with Zach Zenner inactive, Abdullah finds himself in more of a timeshare than fantasy owners would like.

Green Bay Packers

Starter	Backup to Own
Ty Montgomery	Jamaal Williams (12+)

Montgomery played all but eight of the Packers’ 82 offensive snaps and had 19 of the 21 RB carries. Last year, he eclipsed double-digit carries only once. Even after the Packers drafted three running backs in this year’s draft, it appears Montgomery will indeed be the bell cow. Williams notched six snaps and produced nine yards on two carries, although he only saw the field when Montgomery was knocked out for a few plays. Williams was an exceptional pass-blocker in college – an area where Montgomery struggled last year – although it should be noted that Montgomery did not allow a pressure on seven pass-blocking snaps. Aaron Jones never sniffed the field.

Houston Texans

Starter	Backup to Own
Lamar Miller	D’Onta Foreman (12+)

Miller produced 96 yards on 19 touches, averaging 2.12 yards after contact and forcing a couple of missed tackles. He was Week 1’s biggest workhorse, occupying 97 percent of Houston’s HB snaps. Rookie Foreman had only one carry for four yards and operated behind Tyler Ervin, who recorded three rushes and four catches. Alfred Blue’s impending return from a back injury could cloud things a bit with Foreman, but Miller appears locked into a workhorse role for the foreseeable future.

Indianapolis Colts

Starter	Backup to Own
Frank Gore	Marlon Mack

Mack matched Gore with 10 carries, although game script played a part as Gore saw limited action in the second half with the Colts trailing big. Robert Turbin had two carries, one of which was a 1st-and-goal from the five. However, Mack – my favorite late-round sleeper pick this summer – wound up scoring from three yards out on the next play. In fact, Mack should have had two TDs if it weren’t for coach Chuck Pagano failing to challenge a 21-yard reception in which Mack clearly crossed the pylon. All told, Mack logged three carries inside the five in addition to averaging 3.3 yards after contact, ranking second among Week 1 RBs with a 90.0 elusive rating.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Starter	Backup to Own
Leonard Fournette	Chris Ivory (12+)

Thanks to a dominant defensive effort, Fournette saw his optimal game script as the Jaguars played frontrunner and wound up with a 65/35 run/pass ratio. The rookie finished with 100 yards and a TD on 26 carries and caught 3-of-3 targets for another 24 yards, averaging an impressive 3.43 yards per route run. He also got four of Jacksonville’s five carries inside the 5. Change-of-pace back Ivory played 39.1 percent of the offensive snaps and was in on an equal number of run and pass plays. Ivory turned nine carries into 42 yards, forcing a couple of missed tackles and averaging 3.56 yards after contact to place fifth out of 37 qualifiers in Week 1 elusive rating. Ivory will have a hold of the No. 2 role when T.J. Yeldon returns from his hamstring injury this week.

Kansas City Chiefs

Starter	Backup to Own
Kareem Hunt	Charcandrick West (12+)

You guys, Hunt is really good. His 246 total yards from scrimmage were the most ever in an NFL debut, as he averaged a ridiculous 4.0 yards after contact while his 145.5 elusive rating was nearly double that of the next-closest player in Week 1. His average of 5.76 yards per route run trailed only Danny Woodhead for the week. Those are two metrics in which Hunt stood out in this year’s RB draft class, as he ranked top-six in both elusive rating and YPRR. Perhaps most impressive, however, is that Hunt did all of this on only 57.4 percent of the Chiefs’ offensive snaps in the opener. West was in on 33.8 percent of the snaps but touched the ball only twice, although one of those touches went for a 21-yard touchdown run. C.J. Spiller is also in the fold and could potentially form a tandem with West if Hunt were to miss time.

Los Angeles Chargers

Starter	Backup to Know
Melvin Gordon	Branden Oliver (12+)

Gordon managed only 54 yards on his 18 carries Monday night against Denver, although he salvaged his fantasy day with 25 yards and a receiving TD on five catches to finish with 18.9 fantasy points. The Chargers did not have any rushing opportunities inside the 5, but we can expect Gordon to be called on in those opportunities after scoring 12 TDs a year ago. After Gordon’s 23 touches, Oliver was next in line with four. Oliver makes his living on third downs and does not need to be owned in standard leagues.

Los Angeles Rams

Starter	Backup to Know
Todd Gurley	Malcolm Brown (12+)

With the Rams sitting on a big second-half lead, Gurley managed only 40 yards on 19 carries and was our fourth-worst-graded RB in Week 1, although he salvaged his fantasy day with a TD to go with five catches (on six targets) for 56 yards. His breakout rookie season in 2015 feels more and more like a distant memory. Brown did get some run after the Rams went up big, turning seven carries into 16 yards and a score. He’s not a threat to Gurley’s job at this point, but given the kind of volume that Gurley needs to be a fantasy factor in the Rams’ offense, his involvement is notable for Gurley’s owners.

Miami Dolphins

Starter	Backup to Know
Jay Ajayi	Kenyan Drake (12+)

Minnesota Vikings

Starter	Backup to Know
Dalvin Cook	Latavius Murray (12+)

Once thought to be a dreaded three-way timeshare, the Vikings’ backfield clearly belongs to rookie Cook. The second-rounder out of Florida State dominated with 127 yards on 22 carries as he played 79 percent of the snaps. Even more encouraging: Minnesota’s O-line generated an average of 2.5 yards before contact after struggling mightily in 2016. Jerick McKinnon (11 snaps) and Murray (three snaps) were used sparingly, combining for eight touches to Cook’s 25. That will continue to be the case as long as Cook is getting the job done. Still, McKinnon will earn his keep on third downs; he averaged six catches over the final five games last season and caught 3-of-3 targets for 32 yards against the Saints. Even with an injury to Cook, McKinnon’s role would likely remain unchanged, with Murray taking over on early downs.

New England Patriots

Starter	Backup to Own
Mike Gillislee	James White (PPR)

Gillislee headlined the Patriots’ backfield in his debut, piling up 22.5 fantasy points on the strength of three rushing scores. He had a league-high seven attempts inside the 10, and it should be noted that Rex Burkhead (four touches) was not involved down near the goal line. Still, Gillislee was on the field for only 29.6 percent of the offensive snaps as the Patriots were in catchup mode for much of the game. That led to passing-down back White playing a team-high 53.1 percent of the snaps, 74 percent of which were on passing downs. Of his 14 touches, White did get three carries inside the 10. Dion Lewis had two carries for nine yards, playing just six snaps total.

New Orleans Saints

Starter	Backup to Own
Mark Ingram	Alvin Kamara (PPR)
	Adrian Peterson (12+)

Somewhat surprisingly, rookie Kamara was in on the opening series and paced the Saints’ backfield with 31 snaps in Week 1, although he managed only 18 yards on seven carries to go with four catches for 20 yards. Peterson got the “start” against his former team but wound up playing only nine snaps and was even seen barking in coach Sean Payton’s ear at one point. The future Hall-of-Famer will be an afterthought whenever there is a negative game script like there was on Monday night. Ingram (26 snaps) had six carries for 17 yards but was a garbage-time factor in the passing game, catching 5-of-5 targets for 54 yards. For now, Ingram remains the back to own in New Orleans, but Kamara looks like he could have a bigger role than what many were expecting.

New York Giants

Starter	Backup to Know
Paul Perkins	Shane Vereen (PPR)

Even though Perkins remains the “featured” back, Sunday’s performance was a reminder that consistent fantasy success will be tough to come by behind the Giants’ offensive line. Perkins managed only 16 yards on seven carries, while Vereen came on in the second half and logged nine catches for 52 yards with the Giants’ in catchup mode. The Giants wound up with a 77/23 pass/run ratio. Orleans Darkwa continued to rotate in, finishing with 14 yards on three carries. Darkwa’s involvement warrants monitoring, if only to gauge his impact on Perkins’ fantasy value for now.

New York Jets

Starter	Backup to Own
Bilal Powell	Matt Forte

Powell and Forte were both held under 10 fantasy points, as the Jets ran the ball only 27.3 percent of the time with the O-line generating just 0.27 yards before contact. Forte out-snapped Powell by a 35-30 count, although Powell held a 12-9 edge in touches. It’s the precisely kind of 1A/1B timeshare that was anticipated, and that caps each player as a flex option unless one is able to separate himself.

Oakland Raiders

Starter	Backup to Own
Marshawn Lynch	Jalen Richard (12+)

Lynch captained the Raiders’ ship, turning 18 carries into 76 yards while forcing five missed tackles and averaging 3.2 yards after contact. Lynch was Week 1’s third-most elusive runner and No. 20 fantasy RB. He was on the field for 47 percent of the offensive snaps, and that serves to illustrate just how effective Lynch needs to be on a weekly basis in order to justify his ADP as an RB2. At 31 years old, it’s fair to wonder how his body will hold up all season given his punishing running style. DeAndre Washington was the first back to spell Lynch, although both he and Richard saw time on the Raiders’ opening drive. While Richard held a slight 6-5 edge over Washington in touches, neither did anything to set himself up for a larger piece of the pie in Week 2. Lynch also got both of the Raiders’ carries inside the 5.

Philadelphia Eagles

Starter	Backup to Own
LeGarrette Blount	Darren Sproles (PPR)

Going by what we saw in the preseason and in Week 1, the Eagles’ backfield certainly looks like one to avoid for fantasy purposes barring an injury. Sproles played 34 snaps, Blount played 24, and Wendell Smallwood was on the field for 16. Blount had 14 carries (including Philly’s only attempt inside the 5) and led the way with 46 rushing yards to go with a receiving touchdown, while Sproles was his usual PPR self with five catches for 43 yards but only two yards on two carries. The O-line generated only 0.54 yards before contact, and the Eagles ran the ball on just 34.4 percent of their offensive snaps. Blount was fantasy’s RB20 in Week 1, while Sproles was the RB26. Smallwood would become fantasy-relevant and take over early-down work if Blount were to miss time.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Starter	Backup to Own
Le’Veon Bell	James Conner

Bell had a career-low 47 yards from scrimmage in what was expected to be a dream matchup. While some may want to blame Bell’s holdout (13 penalties didn’t help), the fact is he was given only four first-half carries as the Steelers deployed three- and four-WR sets, at times even going empty backfield or double-TE. As a receiver, Bell averaged only 0.71 yards on 21 snaps in route. He was on the field for only 71.7 percent of the offensive snaps – compared to 90.4 percent a year ago and 81.2 percent in 2015. What’s more, rookie Conner ended up with four carries to Bell’s 13. All in all, given Bell’s historical usage, for the time being we can consider this a blip rather than a red flag. Given how coach Mike Tomlin has used his running backs over the years, Conner is one of the league’s top handcuffs and would be the featured back of a potent offense if something were to happen to Bell.

San Francisco 49ers

Starter	Backup to Own
Carlos Hyde	Matt Breida

Aside from injuries, negative game scripts are Hyde’s kryptonite. He averaged 5.0 YPC in Week 1 but finished with only nine carries as the 49ers were in comeback mode in the second half. Hyde did also catch all six of his targets for 32 yards, including a couple of goal-line looks. Perhaps most notably, he played 78 percent of the offensive snaps. No. 2 RB Breida played 12 snaps and had four carries for 11 yards. Breida is no threat to Hyde’s starting job at the moment, but he’s a solid stash in deep leagues. Kyle Shanahan has been known to use multiple running backs and won’t hesitate to lean on an undrafted rookie free agent if the need arises.

Seattle Seahawks

Starter	Backup to Own
Thomas Rawls	Chris Carson
	C.J. Prosise (PPR)
	Eddie Lacy (12+)

Rawls returns from his ankle injury this week, but there are no assurances that he’ll retain his starting job, which only clouds this backfield further. Rawls did finish 42nd out of 53 qualifiers last year in elusive rating. Pete Carroll could very well continue riding the hot hand in rookie Carson, who played a team-high 26 backfield snaps and went for 39 yards on six carries. Carroll did say this week that he was “anxious” to see how Carson grows and if his role can expand. He may be fourth on the depth chart, but Carson has a legitimate shot to take over the starting gig. Prosise (16 snaps) and Lacy (seven) both had a minimal impact in Week 1, with Prosise failing to even draw a target in the passing game.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Starter	Backup to Own
Doug Martin (suspended)	Jacquizz Rodgers

Tennessee Titans

Starter	Backup to Own
DeMarco Murray	Derrick Henry

Negative game script saw the Titans throw the ball 68.3 percent of the time, and that’s obviously not their M.O. after dialing up the fourth-most run plays in 2016. Tennessee never got down around the goal line, but the good news for the ground game is the O-line generated 2.5 yards before contact. Murray (8.0 fantasy points) and Henry (2.5) left fantasy owners in the lurch, with Murray logging 14 carries to Henry’s six. Henry was more productive on his carries, averaging 4.2 yards compared to 3.7 for Murray. Other than the disappointing outcome, there’s not much to take from this game that we didn’t already know as far as the backfield split.

Washington Redskins

Starter	Backup to Know
Robert Kelley	Samaje Perine (12+)

The Redskins fell behind early and wound up airing the ball out 77 percent of the time. That effectively turned starter Kelley into an afterthought, as he managed only 30 yards on 10 carries. Chris Thompson filled his expected role as the passing-down back, catching 4-of-5 targets for 52 yards, including a 29-yard TD scamper. While he just about matched Kelley in total snaps, all but three of Thompson’s 30 snaps came on pass plays. While his role won’t change, rookie Perine could eventually earn a shot at early-down work at if Kelley falters. However, Perine did not see the field on offense in the opener and does not need to be rostered at the moment.