Week 8 is in the books, and it’s time to take stock of the crazy week we just experienced. What better way to do that then with a retrospective of the top stories from fantasy’s favorite position – the running back. Each Wednesday, we’ll look back on studs, busts, breakouts, timeshares, situations to monitor, and all things RB from the past week.

So settle in, partner. It’s time to saddle up for the RB Roundup. Yeehaw.

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Stud of the week: Dalvin Cook (MIN) 47.6 fantasy points
Oh, Dalvin cooked alright. In fact, he roasted Green Bay for the best running back performance of the season by racking up 226 yards and four total touchdowns. Despite playing in only six games, he’s the RB2 and has averaged 25.8 fantasy points per contest, which leads the NFL. He’s the only back to have scored in every game he’s played this season.

DALVIN COOK HAS 4 TDS TODAY 🤯

HE IS SPECIAL.

(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/GCNZrGDLGp

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 1, 2020

Bust of the week: Jonathan Taylor (IND) 4.1 fantasy points
In a smash spot against Detroit, JT was almost universally ranked as a top-5 back for Week 8. Instead, he rushed 11/22 and caught two passes for nine yards. More on him later…

Breakout of the week: Zack Moss (BUF) 20.1 fantasy points
Moss (14/81) and Devin Singletary (14/86) finished with nearly identical rushing lines in this one, though it was Moss who saw the majority of the red zone work and scored twice. Back and fully healthy, Moss appears to have earned a fairly even split with Singletary moving forward, making him a top-30 play ROS.

Zack Moss scores his 2nd TD of the day! @buffalobills

📺: #NEvsBUF on CBS
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app: https://t.co/J6oAb5WnGm pic.twitter.com/BnWN8T1393

— NFL (@NFL) November 1, 2020

Surprise of the Week: Alfred Morris (NYG) 2.8 fantasy points
I considered Nyheim Hines and Jordan Wilkins here, but they’re mentioned frequently in this article, and I’m all about diversification. Plus, it’s my article, and I can write about any player I want. With Devonta Freeman out of action, Wayne Gallman, Dion Lewis, and Morris all played a role on MNF, with Alf mixing in for an 8/28 rushing line. On another note, I was far more amused with the following Alfred Morris-related tweet than I should have been.

pic.twitter.com/HmFBZo6k8A

— Jeff Krisko (@JeffKrisko) November 3, 2020

Committees

Often reviled more than the most despicable four-letter swear, “committee” is a hated word in the fantasy community because it brings with it uncertainty, vultures, capped upside, and plenty of other buzz words that send chills down spines. In 2020, the running back by committee (RBBC) is alive and well. What should we make of them?

Indianapolis Colts: Nyheim Hines, Jonathan Taylor, Jordan Wilkins

With Marlon Mack out of the picture very early in the season, the proverbial gates opened for rookie Jonathan Taylor to cruise to an RB1 season. That hasn’t materialized. Despite a sizable workload, JT is the RB21 and has been a bit of a disappointment. On Sunday, he ceded three touchdowns and 29 touches to the tandem of Hines and Wilkins. Taylor’s usage is worth monitoring moving forward, and it’s officially time to hit the panic meter.

Nyheim Hines does a flip in the end zone 🤯

(via @thecheckdown)pic.twitter.com/rzYzvWF5c6

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 1, 2020

Los Angeles Chargers: Joshua Kelley, Troymaine Pope, Justin Jackson

This backfield situation is coming into focus, as Justin Jackson seems to have emerged as the clear lead back in Los Angeles. Joshua Kelley, who was primed as a threat to take over the backfield, has struggled as of late and was supplanted by Troymaine Pope on Sunday. It’s unlikely Pope’s solid performance (10/67, 5/28) was a one-off, and Kelley’s initials now more accurately represent “Just Kidding” when talking about his fantasy relevancy.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Leonard Fournette, Ronald Jones

This one has been one of the most frustrating fantasy backfields all season long. Fournette burst onto the scene in Week 2 with a massive game before succumbing to injury in Week 3 and missing the next three weeks. With Fourney on the shelf, RoJo piled up three straight 100-yard games, but with the former healthy in Week 7, it was back to timeshare city. In Week 8, Jones was on his way to a solid night before fumbling in Tampa territory and losing almost all of the work to Fournette for the rest of the game. Both backs will have value moving forward, but this committee looks to favor Fournette… at least for now.

Baltimore Ravens: Gus Edwards, J.K. Dobbins, Mark Ingram

With Ingram out in Week 8, Edwards and Dobbins split the workload 50/50 with Edwards taking the slight lead. Both backs had solid performances, with Edwards punching in a short score and Dobbins breaking off big runs against a stout Steelers front. In fact, Dobbins is the only running back to break 100 yards against Pittsburgh. Once Ingram returns, this situation will likely become a bit more muddled, but Dobbins has looked like the most explosive back on the roster, and it’s possible he’s earned more playing time moving forward. Both he and Edwards will be flex options for the length of Ingram’s absence.

At the halfway mark of the season, J.K. Dobbins leads all running backs in yards per carry (6.7), yards after contact (4.2), and missed tackles forced per touch (0.33).

— Graham Barfield (@GrahamBarfield) November 3, 2020

Denver Broncos: Phillip Lindsay, Melvin Gordon

Though Gordon has put together some quality performances this season, some of his production has come at the expense of Lindsay’s health. With Lindsay out from Weeks 2-4, Gordon finished with two of his highest scoring games of the season. With Lindsay back in the fold since Week 6, the two have shared backfield duties, and Lindsay has looked more explosive. Over his last two games, Lindsay has gone 15/162/1 on the ground, while Gordon has gone 25/94/1 – a pretty stark difference. Moving forward, both are in the flex conversation, and each limits the upside of the other.

Volume

Volume has been huge for backs this season, and at the mid-point in the season, there are 16 backs with at least 100 carries. What have those backs done with the workloads? The results aren’t especially encouraging, as half of them are averaging less than four yards per carry. Derrick Henry leads the league in carries and rushing yards with 161/775, but Josh Jacobs isn’t far behind in carries. Unfortunately for Jacobs, he’s turned his 147 totes into just 522 yards. Other notable inefficiencies include Todd Gurley (140/531), Ezekiel Elliott (132/521), David Montgomery (117/442), and Jonathan Taylor (100/389).

While those numbers may seem discouraging, Zeke is third in the NFL with 34 receptions, Gurley is second in the NFL with eight rushing touchdowns, and Montgomery is fifth in the NFL with 27 receptions. Jacobs has buoyed his season-long production with a few massive games, but he’s been unspectacular nonetheless. Taylor hasn’t had those big games to boost his totals, and that may be why we saw him in such a low usage role Sunday. While volume is king in the NFL, not all volume is created equal. You’re going to continue playing the abovementioned players, but there is some obvious risk of bad games when we talk about such pitiful efficiency. That’s the type of uncertainty we’ve come to expect in 2020, which brings us to…

Uncertainty & Keeping Fantasy Football in Perspective

If there’s one thing that’s certain this season, it’s that nothing is certain. For example:

• Clyde Edwards-Helaire (7/-3/0 inside the five-yard line) is now competing with Le’Veon Bell for touches
• Prior to his recent injury, Myles Gaskin was a true workhorse back
• Fantasy’s top-two backs in Christian McCaffrey and Saquon Barkley will not be close to living up to preseason ADP
• Ezekiel Elliott is not a weekly must-start
• San Francisco continues to rotate its backfield
• Due to the constant influx of injuries, guys like DeeJay Dallas and JaMycal Hasty have become household fantasy names

The lack of preseason games and shortened training camps have led to an outrageously high number of injuries, the likes of which we haven’t experienced in as long as I can remember. Unfortunately, COVID-19 has been a cloud hanging over the NFL, and while the league is handling the situation well and keeping its players healthy, we’ve seen schedules altered and notable players held out due to illness.

While playing the waiver wire and keeping up on news is important every season, it’s especially important in 2020. Make sure you’re keeping up to date on the latest news from around the league, because you can’t afford to be ill-informed. Also, remember to enjoy the season. I’m in multiple leagues, and I’m in the top-5 in a couple and in the toilet in a few more. That’s ok. Playing the waiver wire is fun. Making trades is awesome. And learning to laugh at uncertainty is necessary. Appreciate the wins, and chuckle at the brilliant failures. There are few fantasy teams who have gotten it completely right this year, so just trust the process, buckle up, and enjoy the ride.

I realize this isn’t player analysis, but it’s worth talking about as we enter the second half of the season. Fantasy football is a chance for us to come together, laugh, trash talk, engage, and forget about our troubles while we manage an imaginary roster. Don’t lose sight of that. This is a game, and while we all want to win, not everyone can. There will be plenty more ups and downs over the final eight weeks of the fantasy season, but even with all of that uncertainty, I’m certain of one thing – I’m ready and waiting.

Quick Hitters

I’m forgoing the usual quick hitters (sorry to my fellow Mike Davis fans out there) to post a quick graphic of the preseason top-12 running backs and where they rank after Week 8. Even with all of the injuries that we’ve seen thus far, five of the 12 have outperformed their ADP, while two more (Zeke, JJ) have slightly underperformed and still rank inside the top-12. That means that of the top-12, seven are still RB1’s halfway through the season. Not too shabby, all things considered.

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Zachary Hanshew is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Zachary, check out his archive and follow him @zakthemonster.