• Bucky Irving is primed to be a league-winner in fantasy soccer: Over his final three video games, Irving has delivered elite performances, ending because the RB7, RB3, and RB1 general in weekly fantasy factors. His workload continues to develop, and with a extremely favorable remaining schedule, he’s positioned to hold many groups to championship glory.
• Jonathan Taylor is due for optimistic landing regression: Since Week 10, Taylor has logged the second-most carries and leads the NFL in red-zone carries, but he hasn’t scored a single speeding landing. Given his observe document of discovering the top zone, this drought is extra about dangerous luck than efficiency. Anticipate his landing manufacturing to rebound following the Colts’ bye.
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Estimated studying time: 6 minutes
With so many operating backs splitting their backfield in immediately’s NFL, it’s extra necessary than ever to determine which gamers are receiving probably the most useful snaps and touches on their group and who’s slowly shedding their workload to teammates who’re outproducing them.
Listed here are the highest operating again takeaways over the primary 13 weeks of the 2024 season that might enormously affect fantasy factors in Week 14 and past.
Buccaneers Bucky Irving information career-high touches in back-to-back video games
Since his group’s Week 11 bye, Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie Bucky Irving has recorded 46 touches over the past two weeks. His 240 speeding yards and 337 scrimmage yards over that span each rank second-most within the NFL, behind solely Saquon Barkley.
In Week 12, Irving recorded career-highs in touches (18), racking up 151 scrimmage yards. He then instantly beat these numbers with 28 touches for 185 yards in Week 13. After the bye, Irving has out-touched teammate Rachaad White 46-25, tallying 14 extra carries and 7 extra receptions.
Irving has earned his greater position and has confirmed he can deal with it. This season, he averages 5.5 yards per carry, the fourth-best mark amongst gamers with 100-plus carries, behind solely Barkley, Jahmyr Gibbs and Derrick Henry. During the last two weeks, he has been much more productive regardless of a bigger workload, averaging 6.5 yards per carry within the span.
His end-of-season schedule is unbelievable, with matchups towards the Raiders and Cowboys in two of his subsequent three video games. Then, he’ll cap off the fantasy season with the perfect matchup doable, as he faces the Panthers‘ last-ranked run protection in Week 17.
Upcoming matchups: vs. Raiders, at Chargers, at Cowboys, vs. Panthers
The Cowboys have began to belief RB Rico Dowdle with a big workload
Saquon Barkley (55) and Josh Jacobs (49) are the one gamers with extra touches than Rico Dowdle (47) over the previous two weeks. Dowdle has joined elite firm as certainly one of simply 4 operating backs with 40-plus carries in that span, alongside Barkley, Jacobs and Derrick Henry. He has set career-highs in touches in back-to-back weeks, with 22 in Week 12 and 25 in Week 13.
Dowdle has delivered sturdy fantasy returns when given alternatives, as he has averaged 18.3 fantasy factors in video games the place he has logged 16 or extra touches this season.
Dowdle couldn’t ask for a nicer end-of-season fantasy schedule. This weekend, he faces a Bengals protection that has allowed probably the most fantasy factors per recreation to operating backs over the past two weeks. Then he will get the Panthers, Buccaneers and Cowboys from Weeks 15-17, who’ve allowed probably the most, ninth-most, and sixth-most fantasy factors per recreation to RBs in 2024, respectively.
Upcoming matchups: vs. Bengals, at Panthers, vs. Buccaneers, at Cowboys
Jonathan Taylor has 81 carries however zero speeding touchdowns since Week 10
Jonathan Taylor’s 81 carries since Week 10 rank second within the NFL, trailing solely Saquon Barkley’s 89. He’s certainly one of simply three gamers with 75+ carries throughout that span, alongside Barkley and Joe Mixon. Nonetheless, whereas Barkley and Mixon have every scored 5 speeding touchdowns in that point, Taylor has but to seek out the top zone.
Taylor’s workload has been substantial, particularly in scoring conditions. He leads the league in pink zone carries since Week 10, with Joe Mixon (20) and Josh Jacobs (18) trailing behind. Regardless of their success in changing pink zone alternatives into touchdowns—Mixon and Jacobs have not less than 4 speeding touchdowns every—Taylor’s landing drought is a shocking anomaly that ought to positively regress within the coming weeks.
Jonathan Taylor’s landing luck is primed for a rebound. Traditionally, Taylor hasn’t struggled to seek out the top zone, scoring a landing on 4.3% of his carries over his first 4 NFL seasons (2020-2023). This season, that charge has dropped to simply 2.7%, a transparent outlier for the elite operating again.
Whereas the Colts are on bye in Week 14, Taylor’s playoff schedule offers a chance for a powerful end. Week 15 presents a troublesome matchup towards the Broncos’ stingy run protection, however the street brightens from there. In Week 16, Taylor faces the Titans, who’ve allowed the fourth-most touchdowns to operating backs in 2024. Championship Week (Week 17) presents an excellent matchup towards the Giants’ porous run protection, one of many worst within the league.
Fantasy managers who’ve stayed affected person with Taylor are ready to be rewarded in the course of the playoff stretch.`
Upcoming matchups: bye week, at Broncos, at Titans, at Giants
Chase Brown has dealt with 85% of the Bengals‘ rush makes an attempt since Week 9
Since Zack Moss went down with an damage earlier than Week 9, no participant has seen a better proportion of their group carries than Chase Brown (85.1%). He’s the one participant at over 80% and certainly one of simply 5 gamers with over 70% of their group’s speeding makes an attempt since Week 9 — Bengals’ Joe Mixon (78.6), Rams’ Kyren Williams (73.5), Panthers’ Chuba Hubbard (73.2) and Colts’ Jonathan Taylor (71.8).
Since Week 9, Brown has averaged 24 touches, 123.5 scrimmage yards, and 21.9 fantasy factors per recreation. Saquon Barkley is the one operating again who has averaged extra fantasy factors than Brown in that span. His fantasy manufacturing ought to proceed to thrive as he has favorable matchups in every of the subsequent three weeks towards the Cowboys, Titans and Browns.
Upcoming matchups: at Cowboys, at Titans, vs. Browns, vs. Broncos
