There's nothing good about the postponement of the Titans and Steelers Week 4 game, but running back may be the position where it causes the most trouble. Derrick Henry and James Conner are must-start running backs and this position isn't exactly deep right now. Complicating things even more is the fact that some of our top waiver wire adds from earlier in the week don't look nearly as appealing as they did on Tuesday.
Rex Burkhead will likely have to contend with James White, who returned to practice for the first time since the tragic car accident that took his father's life. Burkhead and any Patriots back would only be options if the Patriots and Chiefs play as now expected Monday night. However, any additional positive COVID cases could postpone that game. Stay as flexible as possible.
Likewise, Jeff Wilson saw Jerick McKinnon practice in full on Wednesday. McKinnon was dominating touches before he got hurt in Week 3. Carlos Hyde looked like the most likely starter on the waiver wire, but now Chris Carson is expected to play Sunday in Miami.
I have more replacement options below.
More Week 4 Previews: QB | RB | WR | TE
Week 4 RB Preview
Who's Out
The following player is not being projected to play Week 4 at this time. Here's what it means:
David Montgomery could get just enough extra work in the passing game to propel him into the top 15 running backs.
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Numbers to know
- 6.65 -- Sony Michel leads the NFL at 6.6 yards per carry. All of the buzz is around Rex Burkhead (and stashing Damien Harris), but Michel has quietly been very good.
- 13 -- Josh Jacobs has 13 targets already this season. He's almost halfway to last year's total in three games.
- 209 -- Adrian Peterson is 12th amongst running backs with 209 rushing yards. He's also averaging 4.9 yards per carry.
- 9% -- D'Andre Swift player 9% of the snaps in Week 3, a season low.
- 15 -- Austin Ekeler has 15 targets in two games with Justin Herbert. He saw one target in Tyrod Taylor's lone game.
- 11 -- Kareem Hunt has 11 red-zone carries, which is one more than Nick Chubb. They both remain must-start running backs.
Matchups that matter
We're going through every matchup on the schedule for Week 4 on the Fantasy Football Today podcast. Subscribe at Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts:
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Waiver Wire Targets
Assuming McKinnon is active, that still makes Wilson a nice flex. But he'll be touchdown-dependent just like he was last week. Thankfully he plays for the 49ers, whose running backs have scored more Fantasy points this season than any other team.
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I'm not totally convinced Harris will ascend to relevance as soon as he's healthy, but this offense is good enough to roster him just in case.
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DFS Plays
This could change if Michael Thomas is able to return, but Kamara without Thomas is basically Christian McCaffrey, only better. He's averaged nine catches per game and more than 10 yards per catch. He's averaging two touchdowns per game. If Thomas misses Week 4 against Detroit I'm not sure any of those averages are going down.
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It was a gut punch for Singletary managers when he got stuffed at the goal line but it may have been a blessing to those who want to use him in DFS this week because it hid how good he was without Zack Moss. He had 17 touches for 121 total yards including four catches. Even if Moss returns, the Raiders have been so bad against running backs that I'll still start Singletary. Better yet, fewer people will play him.
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Heath's Projections
So who should you start and sit this week? And which surprising quarterback could lead you to victory? Visit SportsLine now to get Week 4 rankings for every position, plus see which QB is going to come out of nowhere to crack the top 10, all from the model that out-performed experts big-time last season.
