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RBBC Review: Week 11

RBBC Review: Week 11
Will Jeremy Hill (left) cede more touches to Giovani Bernard (right) this week?

Will Jeremy Hill (left) cede more touches to Giovani Bernard (right) this week?

The 2015 season has been close to the worst yet for the running back by committee (RBBC). There are not too many lead backs who carry the ball 20-30 times a game anymore. Fantasy owners are stuck with running backs who share carries, so they have to gamble each and every week.

Injuries, poor performances and the emergence of new backs are the main cause for RBBCs, but don’t worry because we’re going to be able to tell you which backs to start, sit, add, and drop to never pick up again. Here is a summary of all RBBC coming into Week 11.

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Cincinnati Bengals – Jeremy Hill/Giovani Bernard
The Bengals put on a very disappointing offensive performance on Monday night against the Texans. They could not establish a solid run game, due to no offensive production, so neither RB had a good game. Bernard had eight carries for 36 yards and five catches for 43 yards, while Hill had seven carries for 15 yards and three catches for five yards.

Once again, Bernard out produced Hill and also he received more touches. There is not too much to say about these two performances last week, so I would just tell you to look to next week. Look for Bernard to continue receiving more touches because of his solid 5.5 YPC and Hill’s poor 3.2 YPC.

I would start Bernard with confidence this week against the Cardinals. I feel he is going to accumulate a lot of touches due to Dalton’s poor performance last game. Bernard will make the most of the touches he receives this week by giving his fantasy owners his best performance this season.

Cleveland Browns – Isaiah Crowell/Duke Johnson
This was yet another awful week for the Browns’ RBs. First of all, Manziel had more rushing yards then Crowell and Johnson combined. Second of all, Crowell ended the game with NEGATIVE RUSHING YARDS.

Lastly, do not start any of these backs either. Like I’ve been saying for most of the season, the only Browns’ RB who should be on your bench is the rookie out of Miami, Duke Johnson Jr., and that is only if your league is a keeper league or dynasty league. Johnson might also be a good late season pick up because the Browns will most likely be missing the postseason yet again, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Johnson starts to see more snaps to see if he can handle a bigger workload. So for right now, Crowell and Johnson do not deserve starts even if they’re playing the worst run defense in the NFL (which happens to belong to the Cleveland Browns).

Denver Broncos – Ronnie Hillman/C.J. Anderson
Even though Peyton Manning threw four interceptions and the Chiefs destroyed the Broncos, Hillman still managed to salvage a solid fantasy day. Hillman recorded 11 carries for 42 yards and a touchdown, along with two receptions for nine yards. Anderson had a rough day, on the other hand, logging just two carries for nine yards.

Hillman is still listed as the starting RB, so you have to keep rolling with him out of the two in the Broncos’ backfield. This week against the Bears, Hillman is a great start, but Anderson is still a solid FLEX play this week. The Broncos are playing a weak Bears’ defense and have their backup QB in Brock Osweiler starting, so they will most likely rely on the running game. Start both of the Broncos RBs this week when they take on the Bears at Soldier Field.

Detroit Lions – Ameer Abdullah/Joique Bell
The Lions released a statement last week that Abdullah was going to see a bigger role in the offense going forward, and that statement came straight from OC Jim Bob Cooter.

Are five carries for 15 yards and one reception for seven yards supposed to be a bigger role for Abdullah? If it is then, drop him immediately. The only reason Bell is fantasy relevant right now is because he is logging the most touches out of any Lions’ RB since he returned from injury.

Riddick gets some work in the passing game but not enough to make him relevant. Bell had his most carries of the season (14) on Sunday against the Packers, which is good news if you have him. Oakland has not been very good against the run this season, being ranked 23rd in the league, so Bell could be a sneaky good flex play this week.

Green Bay Packers – Eddie Lacy/James Starks
I never thought that this backfield would make it in this review, but Eddie Lacy’s nightmare season continues. James Starks has been named the No. 1 back in Green Bay again for this week’s matchup against the Minnesota Vikings. Lacy has been dealing with a lingering ankle injury since Week 2, which has hindered his play.

But here’s an interesting stat, Lacy’s YACO/ATT (yards after contact per attempt) this year is only 2.17 when last year it was 2.85 and his YBCO/ATT (yards before contact per attempt) this year is 1.54 and last year was 1.84. So, his regular run up the middle isn’t working as well as last year due to his offensive line and health issues. Starks has been having success this year and will look to continue that success as the Packers’ lead back on Sunday against an average Vikings’ run defense.

New England Patriots – LeGarrette Blount/Brandon Bolden/James White
There is no committee here, Blount is the starting RB for the Patriots. Blount had 19 carries for 66 yards and a touchdown, while White and Bolden combined for two carries for two yards. Belichick obviously has faith in Blount because of his downhill running style and scarce number of turnovers. Blount will be a solid low-end RB1/high-end RB2 at least for the rest of the season.

New Orleans Saints – Mark Ingram/C.J. Spiller/Tim Hightower
It was a weird week in the New Orleans’ backfield as Tim Hightower logged the most carries. Hightower had 11 carries for 46 yards, Ingram had five carries for 77 yards and Spiller had eight carries for 24 yards. Hightower came in to replace Khiry Robinson, who is on IR, and will be a good change of pace back for Ingram. Don’t worry, Ingram will still get his 15 carries a game after they come back from their bye week to play the Texans.

New York Giants – Rashad Jennings/Shane Vereen/Andre Williams/Orleans Darkwa
The Giants have no starting RB and no run game – it’s as simple as that. Last game against the Patriots, Jennings had 11 rushes for 39 yards and had two catches for 12 yards, Vereen had four carries for 14 yards and two catches for 12 yards and Williams had two carries for two yards.

Do any of those numbers look remotely good? They added a somewhat new RB to the mix in Orleans Darkwa, and he had five carries for 15 yards. Another bad running day for a Giants’ RB. Do not even think about trading/picking up any of these players. Stay away from all four of these RBs for the rest of the season, please and thank you.

Houston Texans – Alfred Blue/Chris Polk/Jonathan Grimes
I think this is the same type of situation that the Titans were in before they fired Ken Whisenhunt – they have too many bad RBs. Alfred Blue is a pretty good RB, but when there are two other mediocre RBs taking his carries, he won’t be able to put together solid fantasy numbers.

Look at last week against the Bengals. Blue had 12 carries for 22 yards, while Grimes had six carries for 33 yards and Polk had four carries for 14 yards. They were playing a tough Bengals’ defense but even off 12 carries, Blue will not be able to produce good fantasy numbers.

Don’t even think of starting any of these RBs this week against the Jets, which are currently the best defense against the run. Keep Blue stashed for now because he can be a sleeper for when playoffs come around.

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Ryan Sura is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Ryan, check out his archive and follow him @RyanSura18.

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