Fantasy Football Week 2 Running Back Start/Sit: Kenneth Walker, David Montgomery and More

When deciding which running back to start on your fantasy football team, always remember one key rule: follow the volume. Of course, that's harder early in the season, and especially in Week 1, when we don't yet know how each NFL team plans to split their backfield.

Perhaps that explains why my results from last week were mixed. I feel pretty good about my sit picks: Nick Chubb had only six half-PPR points, and Kaleb Johnson literally finished in the negatives. Jacory Croskey-Merritt had a solid outing, so that's a miss, but I still think the risks with him at the time of writing (before Chris Rodriguez Jr. was announced as a healthy scratch) were high. 

However, my picks on the start side were brutal. Austin Ekeler's mediocre 7.2 half-PPR points easily led the group, as both Isiah Pacheco and Jerome Ford were less involved than I expected and provided brutal stat lines. Apologies if you started them and they cost you the week. 

This week, with a game's worth of data under our belt, we should do better. Without further ado, here are my takes on the running backs to start and sit for fantasy football in Week 2.

For more help with your toughest Week 2 Start/Sit decisions, check out FantasySP's NFL Start/Sit tool!

Running Backs to Start Week 2

Omarion Hampton, Los Angeles Chargers

I would have thought this one would go without saying. But Hampton was one of the trending players in FantasySP's Start/Sit Tool, so I'll say it: the rookie should be started in all leagues. 

Yes, Hampton's 7.1-point final total in Week 1 was nothing to write home about. But that was against a Chiefs defense that was the second-worst matchup for running backs last year. And his usage was elite, with an 81% snap share, a 54% route participation rate, and all but one of the team's RB carries. In a softer matchup against the Raiders in Week 2, Hampton is an absolute must-start.

D'Andre Swift, Chicago Bears

Swift is another player who had a mediocre fantasy outing in Week 1 despite excellent usage. He played 79% of Chicago's offensive snaps, handled every single carry, and even saw five targets out of the backfield. That's genuinely elite usage, and it took an excellent Vikings defense to hold him to eight half-PPR points. 

Swift's Week 2 matchup is with another tough NFC North opponent, as the Bears head to Detroit. But that usage is simply too good to ignore. Especially if Roschon Johnson is once again inactive, Swift is a borderline must-start as a true bell-cow RB … even if his efficiency leaves a lot to be desired. 

Kenneth Walker III, Seattle Seahawks

Unlike the previous two backs, Walker's Week 1 usage wasn't at all encouraging. Expected to be Seattle's clear RB1, he was outsnapped, outcarried, and frankly, outplayed by Zach Charbonnet. So why am I willing to give Walker another chance? 

Well, I'm already on the record saying that Walker's usage last week maybe wasn't quite as bad as it looked. He was injured coming into the week, and he actually appeared on far more of the Seahawks' drives than Charbonnet — it just so happened that the drives Charbonnet played on were much more successful (this might not be a coincidence, but it probably is in such a small sample).

At worst, Walker should still see roughly 50% of the Seahawks' opportunities against the Steelers this week. With his explosive ability, that's not a terrible proposition. If you've got other safe options, feel free to bench Walker. But if you spent an early-round pick on him, your other options probably aren't any better, so I recommend giving him one more chance.    

Bonus: Tyrone Tracy Jr., New York Giants

Since it felt like cheating to include Hampton (honestly, all three of the above backs could be no-brainer starts depending on your league size), here's an extra pick. Once again, Tracy's Week 1 was a tale of great usage not turning into elite production.

The sophomore RB played 73% of the Giants' offensive snaps, handled 66% of their running back carries, and saw three targets on a 58% route participation rate. This week, he gets to face a Cowboys' defense that is a lot less intimidating with Micah Parsons in Green Bay. If you're searching for a flex or RB2 candidate, don't overlook Tracy based on his 4.5 points from last week. 

Running Backs to Sit Week 2

David Montgomery, Detroit Lions

It's only been one week, but the 13 points the Lions scored last week would have been their lowest output of the entire 2024 season. In fact, they only scored below 20 points once and averaged an absurd 33 points per game. Perhaps Ben Johnson really did earn all that hype.

If Detroit's offense is indeed taking a step back this season, Montgomery's fantasy value may be the first to go. With Jahmyr Gibbs as the team's clearly preferred receiving back, he relies heavily on rushing volume and red zone TDs to provide fantasy value. Those things are much harder to come by when your offense isn't historically efficient. 

And, although his role looked mostly intact in Week 1, I'm not so sure how much longer the Lions will keep giving Montgomery more carries than the hyper-explosive Gibbs if there aren't as many touches to go around. He's not a must-bench against the Bears this week, but Montgomery isn't the locked-in RB2 he was last year.

Isiah Pacheco, Kansas City Chiefs

As a big believer that this could be a bounce-back year for Pacheco, I was disgusted by his Week 1 usage. He saw exactly the same amount of carries (five) and targets (three) as Kareem Hunt. Thanks to rookie Brashard Smith playing on a handful of passing downs, he also finished below a 50% snap share. 

This would already be a pretty big issue, but Pacheco becomes a must-sit once we consider the Chiefs' opponent this week: the Philadelphia Eagles. No team allowed fewer rushing yards or fantasy points to opposing backs last season. Even without Jalen Carter, they held Javonte Williams to 54 yards on 15 carries last week — Pacheco would be very lucky to see 15 carries on Sunday. Hopefully, his usage improves going forward, but let that improvement happen on your bench this week. 

Dylan Sampson, Cleveland Browns

Sampson's NFL debut was very encouraging, as he racked up eight catches and also doubled Jerome Ford with 12 carries. However, it was also weird. The veteran Ford still played more snaps than the rookie, 37 to 32. 

Even stranger, given those eight targets, Ford ran nearly twice as many routes. Sampson's eight targets came on just 14 routes. And it's not like this was because of a concerted effort to get him involved in the passing game, as only three of those eight looks came on first-read targets. Meanwhile, the Browns also used a third back, Raheim Sanders, a UDFA who came in only in short-yardage situations and punched in a goal-line TD. 

So heading into Week 2, Sampson can probably be expected to lead this backfield in carries. But he is very unlikely to see that number of targets again, nor is he likely to see goal-line work. That's not a recipe for success on a Browns team that is a massive 11.5-point underdog against the Ravens this week. Even in full PPR formats, don't chase those juicy targets and move Sampson to your starting lineup prematurely. 

Ted Chmyz is a fantasy football contributor for FantasySP. Find him on Twitter and Bluesky @Tchmyz for more fantasy content or to ask questions.