Editor's Note: Welcome to Week 4, where we begin life without Saquon Barkley. Even if replacing Barkley is the only lineup decision you have to make, you're going to be pulling your hair out trying to figure out how to handle things this week. Of course, everyone has tough running back decisions every week, which is why we're here to help. Dive into Jamey Eisenberg's Start 'Em & Sit 'Em running backs here, and then check out Heath Cummings' RB preview for projections, numbers to know, and more. Come back later in the day for the rest of the positions for Start 'Em & Sit 'Em.
START 'EM & SIT 'EM
Running Backs
Start 'Em
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Mack was initially my Start of the Week in Week 3 before he showed up last Wednesday with a calf injury and missed practice time. I pivoted to Mark Ingram, which worked out well since he scored 35 PPR points, but Mack also had a solid performance with 16 PPR points on 16 carries for 74 yards (4.6 yards per carry) and a touchdown, as well as two catches for 14 yards on three targets. He's now scored at least 16 PPR points in two of three games, and I like that he has two catches and three targets in consecutive weeks. I'd love to see more of him in the passing game, which could happen against the Raiders with T.Y. Hilton (quadriceps) likely out. Mack should be the focal point of the offense, and the Colts should be able to run on the Raiders. He's a top 10 running back for Week 4.
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McCoy is expected to go this week despite dealing with an injured ankle, which he played through in Week 3 against Baltimore but was unable to finish the game. Damien Williams (knee) is out, which means you should plan to use McCoy as at least a flex option. He did well against Baltimore despite limited playing time with eight carries for 54 yards (6.6 yards per carry) and a touchdown, along with three catches for 26 yards and a touchdown on three targets. The Lions have allowed three running backs to score touchdowns (David Johnson, Austin Ekeler and Jordan Howard), along with three guys gaining at least 125 total yards (Johnson, Ekeler and Miles Sanders). Let's hope McCoy scores and hits that total yards mark this week.
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We'll see what happens this week if Rashaad Penny (hamstring) is able to return, which could alter this selection of Carson as a starting running back. But if Penny remains out, I'll buy what Seattle coach Pete Carroll said about sticking with Carson despite his three lost fumbles. Said Carroll, "because we believe in him, we're going to continue to show him that." Hopefully, Carson is done putting the ball on the ground. And hopefully he takes advantage of this matchup against the Cardinals like he did last year in Week 17 when he had 19 carries for 122 yards (6.4 yards per carry) and a touchdown, as well as one catch for 7 yards. If Penny plays, the Seahawks could turn to him and punish Carson for his fumbles. But if Penny is out then Carroll will continue to lean on Carson, and Fantasy players should as well.
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You spent your top waiver claim or plenty of your FAAB budget to get him, and you should be able to start him this week against Washington. He obviously won't perform like Saquon Barkley (ankle), but he could prove to be a competent replacement option. For his career, Gallman has six games with double digits in carries, with most of them coming in his rookie campaign in 2017, before Barkley was in the NFL. In four of those games, he scored at least 11 PPR points. In three of those games, he also had at least five catches. So when he's gotten work, he's been successful, and he should get touches against Washington with Barkley out. Washington is also on the road after playing Monday night, so this could be a tired defense. Gallman should be at least a flex option this week in most leagues, but I expect him to finish in the top 20 running backs in PPR for Week 4.
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I don't need to tell you to start Conner because you already know that. This is a vote of confidence for him as a must play despite his poor start. His best game this season is the one where he didn't finish in Week 2 against Seattle because he injured his knee. He scored 13 PPR points against the Seahawks, but he's yet to top 45 rushing yards in a game or 65 total yards. But the breakout game is coming this week against the Bengals, who have already allowed two running backs to score multiple touchdowns against them (Carson and Jeff Wilson) and five running backs to score at least 14 PPR points (Carson, Wilson, Raheem Mostert, Matt Breida and Frank Gore). In two games against Cincinnati in 2018, Conner had 34 carries for 175 yards (5.1 yards per carry) and two touchdowns, along with seven catches for 48 yards.
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Sleepers
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Burkhead might not be as good as he was in Week 3 against the Jets when James White (personal) was out, but I still like the situation for him against the Bills. We could see the Patriots start to lean more on Burkhead and less on Sony Michel with fullback James Develin out (more on that below), and Burkhead has scored at least 13 PPR points in two of three games this year. He has at least 68 total yards in all three games, along with 13 catches, so Burkhead is at least a solid flex against the Bills in PPR.
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Thompson should be considered a must-start running back in PPR, and he's scored at least 13 PPR points in two of three games this year. He has 16 catches for 195 yards on 23 targets for the season, and he's a valuable weapon for Case Keenum when Washington is chasing points, which happens often. We'll see if that's the case this week, and you can consider using Adrian Peterson this week as a flex in non-PPR leagues. But I like Thompson as the best Washington running back, regardless of format, but he's a quality starter in PPR in Week 4.
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Freeman has been surprisingly good the past two weeks against Chicago and Green Bay, and he's doing a nice job working in tandem with Phillip Lindsay. Against the Bears, Freeman had 14 PPR points with 102 total yards and five catches on seven targets. Then against the Packers, Freeman had 73 total yards and four catches on five targets, which resulted in 11 PPR points. I like Freeman as a flex option against the Jaguars this week at home.
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I know, trusting a member of the Dolphins sounds risky, and it is. But in deeper PPR leagues, Drake might not be a bad play. He had a season-high 12 carries in Week 3 at Dallas in what was a competitive game in the first half, and he also has six targets in each of the past two outings against the Patriots and Cowboys. Against Dallas, Drake had 72 total yards, so hopefully things are starting to improve for him. The Chargers defense is good against the run, but I can see Drake scoring 10-14 PPR points this week, which would make him a flex option to consider.
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Williams is worth using as a flex option with Damien Williams (knee) out, and I like what he did in relief of LeSean McCoy last week against Baltimore. He had nine carries for 62 yards (6.9 yards per carry), as well as five catches for 47 yards on five targets. McCoy would still be the better Fantasy option if he plays as expected, but if something happens to him between now and Sunday, Darrel Williams could be a star.
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Sit 'Em
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I hope at some point we see Cohen get on a hot streak and start producing like the running back we saw last season, especially in PPR. But he's been hard to trust this year, especially the past two games. While he scored 12 PPR points in Week 1 against Green Bay, he's combined for just seven PPR points in the past two games against Denver and Washington. Last year, in two games against Minnesota, he combined for 12 carries for 51 yards (4.3 yards per carry) and one touchdown, along with five catches for 31 yards. The Vikings have already allowed four running backs to catch at least three passes in a game this season, which could help Cohen, but he still has to contend with David Montgomery and even Mike Davis stealing touches. Cohen is a must-sit running back in non-PPR leagues and a flex at best in PPR.
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I'd stay away from Barber and Ronald Jones if you can this week, but Jones has slightly more appeal given what we've seen through three games. While Barber has the best Fantasy performance of the two running backs this season with 15 PPR points in Week 2 at Carolina, Jones has looked better in Week 1 against San Francisco and Week 3 against the Giants. And in Week 2, Jones was dealing with an ankle injury, which limited his playing time. We'll see what happens this week against the Rams, but I expect Tampa Bay to be chasing points and abandoning the ground game early. We also could see more of Dare Ogunbowale on passing downs, which makes it even more messy for the Buccaneers backfield.
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We touted Gore quite a bit last week with Devin Singletary (hamstring) out against the Bengals, and he delivered with 14 carries for 76 yards (5.4 yards per carry) and a touchdown, as well as two catches for 13 yards on two targets. Singletary could be out again, but Gore should still get the majority of the touches against the Patriots. I doubt we'll see Gore score at least 15 PPR points for the third week in a row, and New England's defense has already shut down Conner, Kenyan Drake and Le'Veon Bell in three games this year. Gore is at best a flex option in most leagues, although I would plan to sit him if you can against the Patriots.
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Johnson is like Cohen in that he's impossible to play in non-PPR leagues, and he's been frustrating in PPR formats as well. After he scored 12 PPR points in Week 1 at New Orleans, Johnson has combined for seven PPR points in his past two games against Jacksonville and the Chargers. Carlos Hyde played more snaps than Johnson, and he's the better running back for the Texans now, especially in non-PPR leagues. The Panthers are among the league leaders in fewest receptions allowed to running backs this year with 10, although six of them came last week from David Johnson. Still, given what Duke Johnson has done of late, he's not someone to trust in Week 4, especially in non-PPR leagues.
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Sanders is coming off his best game of the season in Week 3 against Detroit with 13 carries for 53 yards (4.1 yards per carry), along with two catches for 73 yards on four targets. He did lose a fumble, which hopefully won't hurt him long-term, and he still shared snaps evenly with Jordan Howard and Darren Sproles. That likely won't change, especially this week if the Eagles are chasing points as expected against the Packers and continue to use Sproles. I'm confident Sanders will continue to see his role expand in the future, but I wouldn't plan on using him as anything more than a flex option this week.
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Bust Alert
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The Boston Globe did a great breakdown of what losing fullback James Develin (neck) means for Michel. As Ben Volin wrote in the story, "Michel's instructions were clear: just run behind Develin, and hit the same hole that he hits." The story also indicates that Michel doesn't get much playing time without a fullback, and we'll see what the Patriots do with Develin's replacement in Jakob Johnson. This is bad news for Michel, who has little involvement in the passing game and is sharing playing time with Rex Burkhead and James White. Michel has scored in each of the past two games against Miami and the Jets, but he's struggled against the Steelers in Week 1 (one PPR point) and against the Jets (seven PPR points). He's still a threat to score, which keeps him in play as at least a flex in non-PPR leagues. But in PPR leagues, I would bench Michel this week at Buffalo if you can.
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So who should you sit and start 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.
