Week 15 Running Back Starts & Sits: Cam Akers, Brian Robinson, Raheem Mostert, And More!
In case you’re new to the column, here’s a quick explainer of what we’re trying to do here (skip down if you’ve been here before). We’re here to wrestle with the decisions that are keeping us up at night. Do you bench a struggling player you took in the second round? Do you take a chance on the guy who has seemingly been playing over his head? Do you sit the high-floor/low-ceiling player for the low-floor/high-ceiling player? We won’t know the “correct” answers until the games are over. But we’re going to do our best to talk through it.
With quarterbacks in the books, let’s dig into the Week 15 running back start/sit decisions that are keeping us up at night.
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START OF THE WEEK: Cam Akers, Los Angeles Rams
What a strange year it’s been for Akers… But none of that really matters for Week 15 purposes. All we need to know is Akers looks to be the RB1 for the Rams and has now carried the ball 29 times over his last two games and he’s turned that into 102 total yards and three rushing touchdowns. While his usage in the passing game leaves something to be desired (just two receptions), he’s facing a bad Packers run defense this week and should be startable as an RB2/flex option.
Brian Robinson, Washington Commanders
I’ve been up and down on Robinson all season, but I’m going to stick with him for now. While his efficiency leaves a lot to be desired, his volume does not as the Commanders have fed him the ball as of late. He’s averaging 20 carries a game over his past four and has even gotten more involved in the passing game with five total targets over the past two weeks. After rushing for 96 yards against the Giants two weeks ago, a fresh-off-the-bye Robinson should be able to do damage against them again this week.
Jerick McKinnon, Kansas City Chiefs
McKinnon isn’t running the ball much (he hasn’t had a game with more than eight carries all year), but he’s doing enough through the air to warrant a look. While I think last week (seven catches for 112 receiving yards and two touchdowns) was a bit of an anomaly, McKinnon has found the end zone three times in his last two games and has become a nice safety valve for Patrick Mahomes. If you’re struggling to come up with a flex option, look no further than McKinnon against the Texans this week.
SIT OF THE WEEK: All Texans running backs
I started writing this paragraph about Dameon Pierce before the news came out that he’ll miss this week’s game. And I’m going to expand the advice to everyone on the Texans backfield. Rex Burkhead, Dare Ogunbowale, and whoever else you think might carry the ball for the Texans. The Texans will be facing a Chiefs offense that can put up points so Houston will likely be playing from behind for most of the game (and that means less running the ball). The game script just screams AVOID on this one.
Raheem Mostert, Miami Dolphins
While Mostert may get most of the touches this week if Jeff Wilson sits, that probably doesn’t mean much for fantasy purposes. Mostert only has 74 total yards (including receiving yards) over his past two games and has seen his fortunes go along with the Dolphins recent struggles on offense. This week doesn’t provide much of a respite as the Dolphins head to Buffalo to face a tough Bills run defense. If you have anything close to another option this week, I’d take it.
Devin Singletary, Buffalo Bills
Singletary is in the weird territory of being somewhat useful for fantasy purposes, but not useful enough to make him a must-start. He’s seen his touches drop over the past few weeks with the emergence of James Cook and has only carried the ball 21 times for 90 yards total over his last two games. His fantasy performances over that span have been RB24 and RB38 (and the RB24 finish includes a touchdown). Though he’s not an automatic bench against the Dolphins this week, Singletary is far from a must-start.
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