Kenneth Dixon appears to be the RB to own in Baltimore

“Hey, Jonathan. Do you want to write a weekly article that analyzes snap counts and the impact it has for fantasy?”

“…umm, let me think. YES!”

There may have been a word or two in there that would have given this article a PG-13 rating, but let’s not focus on that. Instead, let’s focus on this awesome, new weekly article series that delves into the wonderful world of snap counts. Snap counts are the number of snaps that a player was on the field for, and these numbers can help us identify trends and players to target because more snaps means more opportunities. And through some complex mathematical property, more snaps boils down to more fantasy points. So let’s take a look at snap count trends from Week 12.

Check out our snap count report to see where all players check in

Devonta Freeman 56% / Tevin Coleman 46%

Freeman had a nice stretch where he was the featured back, but it looks like those days are over with Coleman healthy. The nice thing is that both RBs were able to score last week so they both still hold value and should continue to moving forward. What you need to look for is that with Coleman injured and the Falcons bye week, there is a chance that Coleman might be available in your league. Go pick him up if you can. Seriously. Right now.

Kenneth Dixon 46% / Terrance West 34%

Dixon had more snaps than any other Ravens’ RB for the first time this season, and it looks like he’s taken another step towards the starting job in Baltimore. Dixon did not finish with great stats, but he out-snapped and out-touched West last week, and he should do so again next week. Dixon also has the most upside of any of the Baltimore RBs moving forward. At only 27.1% owned, now is the time to grab Dixon.

Rex Burkhead 51% / Jeremy Hill 49%

Yes. You read that correctly. Burkhead actually out-snapped Hill, but he was out-touched by Hill. Jeremy Hill is still the RB1 in Cincinnati, but if you’re looking for a flex play with upside then you can do worse than Burkhead. He’s a talented, athletic RB that will have a bigger role in an offense missing A.J. Green and Giovani Bernard.

Denard Robinson 46% / T.J. Yeldon 34% / Chris Ivory 22%

Look, I’m definitely not advocating that you pick up and play any of these three because Jacksonville’s offense is struggling and they have one of the worst ROS schedules. However, it is worth noting that Robinson out-snapped and out-touched Yeldon and Ivory for the first time this season. That being said, he did not post a great stat line, but he’s getting the opportunities. Ivory was the best back out of the three last week because he scored. Just keep an eye on this situation and if you are in a deeper league and in need then you can take a shot on one of them.

Jerick McKinnon 63% / Matt Asiata 39%

If you just look at the snap counts then you’d think that McKinnon is the back to own, but you’d be mistaken. Asiata has scored once in each of his last three games. Just imagine what he could do with more snaps. Asiata is owned in roughly half of leagues, so if you need a weekly flex play with TD upside he’s your guy.

LeGarrette Blount 37% / James White 36% / Dion Lewis 32%

This is probably one of the most confusing backfields in the NFL right now. Lewis has been gaining snaps since last week and he had six rushing attempts compared to White’s zero in Week 12. Blount is still the RB1 in New England, but Lewis is trending up and is worth grabbing as a flex play. White is a droppable asset except in deeper PPR leagues.

Darren Sproles 53% / Wendell Smallwood 37% / Kenjon Barner 10%

Most people, included myself, expected Smallwood to be the lead back this week, but we were wrong. Sort of. Sproles saw more snaps, but Smallwood had more rushing attempts. Both RBs actually had the same amount of touches with roughly the same amount of yards. Sproles looks to be the back to own, especially in PPR leagues, but Smallwood could still hold value.

Mohamed Sanu 89% / Julio Jones 80% / Taylor Gabriel 50%

Gabriel now appears to have a stranglehold on the WR3 spot in Atlanta, and he should continue to gain value as long as the Falcons keep finding ways to get him the ball. His speed is just too much for defenses to handle.

Marquise Goodwin 78% / Brandon Tate 53% / Sammy Watkins 45% / Walter Powell 35%

Watkins seeing almost half of the team’s snaps during his first week back from injury is a great sign. Of course, Watkins catching all of his targets for 80 yards is a great sign too. Watkins should quickly overtake the WR1 spot in a struggling passing offense. Grab him if he’s still available.

Cameron Meredith 86% / Marquess Wilson 59% / Josh Bellamy 58% / Deonte Thompson 53% / Eddie Royal 15%

With Jeffery out, it looks like Meredith has taken over as WR1. However, the big surprise is from Marquess Wilson. Wilson looks to have locked down the WR2 spot, but has some excellent chemistry with Matt Barkley that led to 125 receiving yards and a TD. Wilson is definitely worth a pickup.

Brandon LaFell 89% / Tyler Boyd 73% / James Wright 65%

It was tough to determine who would become the WR1 in Cincinnati after Green’s injury. To make matters even more confusing, both LaFell and Boyd had nine targets last week. LaFell did see more snaps, but I still like Boyd’s upside as a more talented athlete. However, LaFell might be the safer play based on opportunities.

Allen Robinson 97% / Allen Hurns 79% / Marqise Lee 75%

I know a lot of people are down on Robinson, especially with his ROS schedule. But don’t you dare drop someone who sees this many snaps every week and especially someone who sees as many targets as he does. He’ll still have value based on volume alone.

Adam Thielen 95% / Cordarrelle Patterson 58% / Laquon Treadwell 58%

With Diggs ruled out, Thielen saw a huge uptick in snaps as well as targets. Thielen will be a PPR monster moving forward if Diggs continues to miss time. Meanwhile, Patterson is still getting worked into the game in some creative ways and could be worth a pickup in deeper leagues.

Chris Conley 100% / Tyreek Hill 68% / Albert Wilson 68%

Hill had himself a record-setting day and was definitely the main beneficiary of Maclin’s absence. Hill was already worth a pickup, but now even more so especially if Maclin continues to miss time.

Well, there you have it folks! Keep an eye out next week for another snap count breakdown, and find our full report here. Good luck this week!

Subscribe: iTunes | Stitcher | SoundCloud | Google Play | TuneIn | RSS

Jonathan Stone is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Jonathan, check out his archive or follow him @JEStone904.