DFS: Week 8 RB Committee Report
For the second time in three weeks, an injury to one of the league's brightest stars completely changed a team's run game going forward. Get well soon, Arian Foster; here's the Week 8 RB Committee report.
Houston Texans
| NAME | SEASON CARRIES | SEASON TARGETS | O-SNAP% |
|---|---|---|---|
| A. Foster | 63 | 28 | 33.9% |
| C. Polk | 40 | 21 | 26.0% |
| A. Blue | 60 | 4 | 22.1% |
| J. Grimes | 14 | 14 | 15.9% |
If the season-ending injury to the Chiefs' Jamaal Charles was sad, Foster's injury is devastating. It makes one of the league's least watchable teams even less so. Foster had struggled mightily in the four games he played - averaging a brutal 2.6 yards per attempt - but he did offer superior physical tools than anyone else at the position.
Despite being routinely stuffed at the line of scrimmage, Foster was the team's fourth-leading receiver with 227 yards on 22 receptions. That safety-valve option for QB Brian Hoyer will be sorely missed.
For DFS, that means that Foster's high usage - obscured by the fact that he didn't play for the first three weeks of the season - will have to be distributed to other players. Alfred Blue seems likely to return to the starting role he held during Foster's original injury stint but Chris Polk is the better receiving option of the two.
A dark horse candidate to watch is Jonathan Grimes, who has been effective in limited play. He runs about as well as Blue does while catching the same number of passes as Polk despite fewer targets.
In any case, Houston will likely call fewer rushing plays considering the limited skills of their RBs. Look for more targets to the receiving corps; the value of DeAndre Hopkins won't rise much higher but Cecil Shorts III and Nate Washington will be effective match-up based WR2s. That matchup won't be against Tennessee - a stingy pass-defense but a weak against the run.
New York Giants
| NAME | WEEK 7 CARRIES | WEEK 7 TARGETS | O-SNAP% |
|---|---|---|---|
| S. Vereen | 4 | 3 | 43.0% |
| O. Darkwa | 8 | 0 | 26.0% |
| R. Jennings | 5 | 0 | 21.0% |
| A. Williams | 4 | 0 | 9.0% |
The Giants are veering closer and closer to the Titans Zone, with an RB committee so unpredictable that the entire stable of players becomes irrelevant in DFS. The key difference is that some of the Giants' backs actually have talent.
Shane Vereen seems to have the inside edge on the starter's role in the weeks to come. He has yet to start a game for the Giants but has consistently earned a greater piece of the O-snap pie, topping out at 43% against the Cowboys. Vereen's 31 targets and 22 receptions aren't that far off from WR2 Rueben Randle's 37 targets and 26 receptions, emphasizing just how important Vereen has become in the passing game.
Beyond his value as a receiver (huge in PPR formats), Vereen is actually running a lot better than Rashad Jennings, his main competition for usage in the run game. Jennings has had middling success running the ball, averaging just 3.7 yards per carry. Vereen will continue to eat away at Jennings' carries if he maintains a solid 4.8 yards per carry.
No Giants' RB has emerged as a TD hawk yet; the entire position only has three rushing TDs on the season. Still, it was odd to see fourth-string RB Orleans Darkwa seeing important game action for the first time this season, Darkwa led the team in carries and also found the end zone for a TD. It's worth monitoring Darkwa next week against New Orleans to see whether his playing time increases after his finest game as a pro to date.
New Orleans offers the fifth-worst rushing defense in the league. If the Giants can establish their run game, it could be a good day for Vereen. If the Saints surprise and jump out to an early lead, that will help Vereen as well; he's easily their best option among RBs in passing-down situations.