Welcome to Week 5 of the 2024 Footballguys Roundtable. Our intrepid panel of fantasy pundits discusses and debates four topics every week. We split the conversation into separate features.
This week's roundtable features these four topics:
- Running Back Rank'em (see below)
- Dynasty Values of Great But Aging Players
- What to Do with the Dolphins WRs?
- Waiver-Wire Strategy
Let's roll.
Running Back Rank'Em
Matt Waldman: Rank the following RBs on this list against each other for their rest-of-season value.
Joseph Haggan: I'm ranking them this way: Ken Walker III, Josh Jacobs, Chase Brown, and Bucky Irving. I would say that Bucky Irving is a big sell-high candidate. He is averaging almost double the number of yards per carry as his running mate, Rachaad White.
Also, White just had his most efficient game of the season in Week 4. I do not think that either of those players will take a dominant role. It will be a 1A/1B situation, with White getting the majority of passing down work. There is plenty of discourse over White's inefficiency. Take advantage of that with how well Irving is playing and sell Irving.
I'm buying low on Josh Jacobs. He has been quite efficient with his touches this season and has seen plenty of volume. Jacobs is averaging 17.75 carries per game at 4.6 yards per carry. That includes a nine-carry Week 4 contest where they played behind all day.
Though his carries were down, he did receive six targets. Jacobs is a true three-down running back, no matter the game script. Due to his potential volume alone, I am buying him.
Corey Spala: My order is Ken Walker III, Josh Jacobs, Bucky Irving, and Chase Brown. I would sell high on Chase Brown coming off his Week 4 performance. The game script was positive (and on a short week) for Brown as Cincinnati controlled the second half of the game. They had the lead for the entire fourth quarter. Zack Moss is the running back playing on pass downs and is trusted in pass protection over Brown.
The running back to buy low on will be Josh Jacobs. Ken Walker III returned from his injury and had three touchdowns and Bucky Irving is highly considered to take over Rachaad White’s RB1 role.
Jacobs is accumulating the opportunities to succeed (20.25 per game); he just has yet to score a touchdown. Emmanuel Wilson has recently come into consideration for a waiver wire pickup. In other words, there may be a league mate who is contemplating selling Jacobs because of Wilson’s perceived emergence. Jacobs is receiving the opportunities to succeed and acquire low before his fantasy performances boost due to touchdown production.
Justin Howe: For me, it's Walker, Jacobs, Irving, and Brown in this order.
I would buy in on Walker if possible. I’m generally not interested in penalizing RBs who get injured a lot. Why? Because most RBs get injured a lot.
And, no, he doesn’t catch that many passes, but he also doesn’t crush you in that department. After all, he caught four balls Monday night, thanks to negative game flow. And when the Seahawks’ game flow is positive and Walker is healthy, you want him in your lineup. Since the start of 2023, when given 10+ touches, he’s averaged 95 scrimmage yards and a full touchdown per game.
Ryan Weisse: I would rank them Ken Walker III, Josh Jacobs, Bucky Irving, and Chase Brown. Walker showed this week that he is the clear lead back in Seattle. If he's healthy, he will handle a solid workload, even in a close, high-scoring game that lent itself to the passing game.
Jacobs is still more talented than the other two on the list, but his workload is getting cut, and that could get worse when rookie MarShawn Lloyd comes off IR. Even still, his 71 carries are almost 40 more than anyone else on this list, and you have to think the touchdowns will come now that Jordan Love is back.
The big debate for me was Irving vs. Brown, and I'm leaning toward Irving. My decision was based on workload. We've seen what the Bengals plan on doing for the season, splitting the work evenly between Brown and Zack Moss. Irving is playing far better than Rachaad White, and I think we will see his workload grow in the following weeks.
Jacobs is easily my favorite buy-low candidate here. His volume is still outstanding, and he won't have zero touchdowns for much longer. If your league is scared off by that RB28 ranking, pounce on that opportunity. He will finish the year as a top-15 running back. I'll sell Brown high right now. He is in a true 50/50 split, and he doesn't get to play the Panthers every week.
Dan Hindery: Walker is a top-10 running back for the rest of the season. Over the last two games, he has racked up 225 total yards and four touchdowns. The Seahawks offense looks dangerous, and the team appears committed to feeding Walker regardless of the game script.
With offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb at the helm, the offense currently ranks 5th in yards per game, 9th in points per game, and 2nd in rushing touchdowns per game. As long as this level of production continues, Walker's fantasy outlook remains bright.
Jacobs is my No.2 option on this list. He has yet to get into the end zone, which has led to his middling fantasy production (RB28) through four weeks.
However, the underlying usage points to better fantasy days to come. Jacobs has the seventh-most carries in the NFL. In Jordan Love’s two starts, Jacobs has also averaged 4.5 targets per game (versus just 0.5 targets per game in Malik Willis' starts).
The Packers look like one of the most dangerous offenses in the NFL, and Jacobs is the clear lead back. His fantasy production will pick up soon.
Brown’s share of opportunities in the Bengals backfield has steadily increased each week. Last week, he had a season-high 18 touches (15 carries and three targets) and continues to make the most of his chances. His 6.3 yards per carry leads all NFL backs with 20+ carries.
He's my No.3 option on the list. While Brown is the most explosive back on the Bengals' roster, there are still areas where his inexperience shows. In the win against the Panthers, he made a great run to pick up a first down with less than four minutes left but ran out of bounds, stopping the clock. Less than a minute later, Zack Moss demonstrated his veteran savvy by sliding along the sideline to keep the clock running.
Because of this reliability, Moss will likely remain the more trusted option, handling 50-60% of the backfield touches in the short term. However, that split could flip by season's end, as Brown looks like the more talented playmaker.
Predicting that Rachaad White would end up in a true committee with Irving was one of my better calls this offseason. As a pure runner, Irving continues to outshine White. While White remains an excellent pass catcher, Irving, despite his smaller frame, has proven to be the more powerful back on a down-to-down basis. Similar to Brown in Cincinnati, I expect Irving to potentially emerge later in the season as the lead committee back, handling 50-60% of the backfield touches. Still, he's No.4 on my list.
I like Josh Jacobs as a buy-low candidate. His receiving usage has been skewed due to the two games with Malik Willis. Plus, Green Bay has only scored two rushing touchdowns this season, one by Willis and the other by wide receiver Jayden Reed. No Packers running back has scored yet this season. Jacobs is due for some positive touchdown regression.
Waldman: Thanks for reading. Check out the links below for all of this week's roundtable topics:
- Running Back Rank'em
- Dynasty Values of Great But Aging Players
- What to Do with the Dolphins WRs?
- Waiver-Wire Strategy
Good luck!