Every week Committee Meetings breaks down some top storylines from the league's most head-scratching backfield committees in hopes of gaining some clarity for fantasy owners. If you're wondering about a backfield that's not discussed below, feel free to Tweet @MattFranchise for some additional advice.
Your top six fantasy running backs from Week 13 are as follows: Javorius Allen, T.J. Yeldon, Matt Forte, David Johnson, James White, Bilal Powell. Can't say we saw those names at the top of the list coming. But that's how things roll late in the fantasy season. Hopefully one of those guys helped propel you to a win and earned you a spot in the fantasy playoffs. With the first round of playoffs just around the corner, trying to pinpoint which backfield committee memeber will produce is even more vital to helping you rack up as many fantasy points as possible. So as always, let's dig a little deeper and find out what we learned about the fantasy running back landscape in Week 13.
Ivory becomes victim of game script
Chris Ivory | Bilal Powell // Jets
Despite a lost fumble, Chris Ivory was running hard and looked healthy in the first half against the Giants on Sunday. He was the starting running back, which was no surprise, and got the early down work in the first half. If the Jets hadn't been down 10 points in the second half, it could have been a much bigger day for him. But the game script didn't play out in his favor, which led to usual third-down back Bilal Powell out-snapping Ivory by a count of 43-30 in a game that finished in overtime. Powell has been the third-down back all season, and while he caught four passes for 56 yards and a touchdown on third downs alone which accounted for nearly 70 percent of his fantasy points, he also saw 10 touches on early downs while the Jets played catch-up in the second half.
Ivory didn't see a single red zone touch either. Powell and Stevan Ridley were the Jets red zone backs and while neither was effective, it's something that may raise an eyebrow or two. Still, fantasy owners should remain confident in Ivory as a solid RB2 for the fantasy playoffs and can legitimately chalk this one up to game script. When the Jets are ahead, Ivory is their guy - this was only the third game the entire season where Ivory received fewer than 15 carries. In Week 14, Ivory goes up against a Titans defense that ranks among the top in limiting opposing fantasy running backs this season, but he remains an RB2 candidate based on volume alone.
Forte back on the RB1 radar
Matt Forte | Jeremy Langford | Ka'Deem Carey // Bears
All week long, fantasy managers were wondering how the Matt Forte/Jeremy Langford split would shape up after the duo had pretty close to a 50/50 split on Thanksgiving. Well, against the 49ers on Sunday, Forte led the way with 26 touches for 123 total yards and a touchdown. His 18.3 fantasy points puts him firmly back onto the RB1 radar for the fantasy playoffs, granted this was a great matchup. Still, Forte out-snapped Langford by 20 percent after the veteran saw just seven more snaps than his rookie teammate in Week 12. Don't forget that Forte was coming back from a knee injury two weeks ago, and he looked much quicker and more confident against San Francisco than he did against Green Bay.
Now that he's fully back, fantasy owners should expect Forte to get the bulk of the backfield touches with a little bit of Langford sprinkled in, especially in specialty situations. What does that mean for fantasy usage in Week 14? Well Langford is probably more of a low-end flex play while Forte is locked in as an RB1. Of course, the Bears also had to get Ka'Deem Carey involved for no apparent reason. Carey ended up scoring on one of his two red zone carries. Forte also saw two red zone carries while Langford didn't get any. That's cause for concern. If you're looking for a Langford touchdown, you may have to rely on the big play, which isn't out of the question, but makes for a risky for fantasy proposition.
West, Ware split small workload
Charcandrick West | Spencer Ware // Chiefs
With Charcandrick West coming back from a hamstring injury, and Spencer Ware's success in his stead, fantasy owners were wracking their brains over the West/Ware conundrum ahead of Week 13. It turns out that Andy Reid stuck with the guy listed higher on the depth chart against the Raiders, as West got the start and out-snapped and out-touched Ware by counts of 34-17 and 11-9. Unfortunately, 20 touches split between the two backs wasn't enough to translate to big fantasy output. In the red zone, Ware had three rush attempts, one them he converted a touchdown on from 10 yards out. West had just one red zone carry, and came up just two yards short of the goal line.
The snap count is the best indicator of which back will have the most opportunity going forward and that back is West. The Chiefs take on a Chargers team that has allowed more fantasy points per game to opposing running backs than 28 other NFL teams, so the matchup for West is a favorable one to say the least. Ware still has value in deeper formats as a low-volume flex play with touchdown vulture potential, but I wouldn't bank my fantasy playoffs on that kind of potential.
Murray disappoints again, Sproles shines
DeMarco Murray | Darren Sproles | Kenjon Barner // Eagles
The Eagles need Ryan Mathews back. Without Mathews, Philadelphia's run game has not performed well. More specifically, DeMarco Murray has not performed well. Murray has averaged just 48.3 total yards and 13 touches per game with zero touchdowns in the three games that Mathews has missed. Darren Sproles has out-produced Murray in fantasy mainly thanks to his 100-yard game against the Patriots on Sunday. Sproles out-snapped Murray for the first game all season and, shockingly, even former sixth-round pick Kenjon Barner toted the rock more times than Murray did in the game.
The Eagles coaching staff refuses to admit that there is an issue with Murray, but his usage in a game that the Eagles were winning by a decent margin is telling. I wouldn't feel comfortable rolling Murray out against the Bills in Week 14 based on his consistently low production the last three weeks. If Mathews suits up (he returned to practice on Tuesday) he will have more upside than a grumpy Murray who may be giving up on his team.
Anderson leaves early, Hillman struggles
C.J. Anderson | Ronnie Hillman | Juwan Thompson // Broncos
Week 13 was supposed to be C.J. Anderson's follow up to his snowy Sunday night breakout against the Patriots. He was heating up for his team and for fantasy owners at just the right time. But the fantasy gods wouldn't allow a second straight big game from the Denver running back. Anderson left the game at halftime with an ankle injury and did not return. That left Ronnie Hillman and Juwan Thompson as the Broncos' backs for the remainder of the game. The duo combined for a mere 83 rushing yards against the Chargers -- Hillman had just 56 yards on 19 carries to average a measly 2.9 yards per carry.
Oddly enough, despite Anderson's big game in Week 13, Hillman was still the "starter" against the Chargers, which is somewhat baffling. But the main concern here is the health of Anderson's ankle. Fantasy owners will have to keep an eye on his practice participation as the week wears on. If Anderson can't go against the Raiders, Hillman will get a bump from flex up to low-end RB2 status and Thompson would be a risky flex play for the first round of the fantasy playoffs. No matter the situation, we're avoiding this backfield in DFS play.
Matt Franciscovich is an associate fantasy editor at NFL.com. He can't get Alabama Shakes' "Sound and Color" out of his head. Hit Matt up on Twitter **@MattFranchise** for music recommendations and fantasy advice.
