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More Week 8: Waiver Wire — Trade Values — Streaming Options — Rankings — Start 'Em and Sit 'Em (Wednesday) — Cheat Sheet (Wednesday) — Busts (Thursday)

Marshawn Lynch's suspension for shoving a referee last week was upheld Monday upon appeal, so he won't be on the field when the Raiders take on the Bills in Week 8.

That isn't a huge loss for Lynch's Fantasy owners, who have received just one double-digit scoring effort from the veteran, even in PPR leagues. Lynch just hasn't made the impact either the Raiders were hoping for, and they won't likely miss him this week; neither will you.

Of course, that doesn't mean his absence won't have Fantasy ramifications. Every absence on the field leads to an opportunity, and this could be a good one. The Raiders' offense as a whole has disappointed, but this is still an opportunity for a young, talented back to run behind one of the best lines in the league, in an offense that should produce plenty of opportunities to score.

There's just one catch: Which young, talented running back should you go grab? DeAndre Washington and Jalen Richard have both shown flashes of brilliance in limited work over the past two seasons, but it's not clear which one will benefit most from Lynch's absence.

Lynch played his last snap early in the second quarter last week, and from that point on, the split was pretty even: Richard played 21 snaps, while Washington played 18. Both received nine carries and four targets. For the season, Richard's 47 touches outpace Washington's 37, but Washington missed time with an injury, which could explain some (or most) of the disparity there.

Since the start of last season (including preseason), the split is pretty clear as well: Richard has run the ball 137 times, with 45 receptions; Washington has 156 carries, with 41 catches. If we can say anything with certainty at this point, it is that DeAndre Washington and Jalen Richard are likely to split work pretty evenly.

Both are widely available in CBSSports.com leagues, which brings up an obvious question: Which one should you add? With six teams on byes in Week 8, everyone has a hole in their lineup. Here are Jamey Eisenberg's thoughts on the situation from Tuesday's Waiver Wire article:

This is the spot to add both Raiders running backs, and I like Washington better in standard leagues and Richard (19 percent) better in PPR, although it's close for both. There is still the chance Lynch wins his appeal of his one-game suspension and can play this week at Buffalo, but we don't expect that to happen. And with Lynch out, look for Richard and Washington to split touches. After Lynch was ejected in Week 7 against Kansas City, Richard played more snaps, but Washington got the goal-line opportunity and scored. Richard was better in the passing game. Both are worth about five percent of your FAAB dollars but expect an even split and potential disappointment since you might guess on the wrong guy.

I think that's a fair reading of the situation. When it comes to Fantasy, predicting workload is the first thing you should try to do, and as we've already seen, neither player has an obvious edge there. In all likelihood, they will split time.

But I want to give Richard some deserved shine. If you only have room for one on your roster, he should get the edge. Why? Well, he's just been the better player of the two.

Neither has a huge workload individually this season, and both split time as backups in 2016 too. However, they both have at least 180 touches since the start of 2016 when you include the preseason, and Richard has clearly been the better player. He has the edge in yards per carry after contact (3.0 to Washington's 2.7), and has forced 41 missed tackles on 182 touches, to just 24 missed tackles for Washington on 197 touches (All numbers come from ProFootballFocus.com).

Richard has been the team's highest-graded player this season, per PFF, just as he was last season.  He has also averaged more Fantasy points per touch (0.78) than Washington since the start of last season (0.62). We're dealing with small sample sizes all around here, but every single indicator points to one conclusion: Richard is the better player. Fantasy owners should approach Oakland's backfield with that in mind this week.