Week 9 Fantasy Football RB Rankings: Derrick Henry, Bucky Irving, Blake Corum & Ashton Jeanty (Ep. 2316)
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
50 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Nov 4, 2026
Published
Wed, November 4, 2026
34
Player insights
19
Players mentioned
Topics
Bucky IrvingBlake CorumOllie Gordon IITyler AllgeierChristian McCaffreyKenneth Walker IIIMike Washington Jr.Ashton JeantyBaker MayfieldChuba HubbardD'Andre SwiftDerrick HenryDylan SampsonJames Cook
Player analysis
Player insights
Ashton Jeanty
PositiveProjection39:06
Jeanty is ranked at 21 this week, dramatically higher than Mike Washington at 33, despite their usage being on completely different planes; the source defers detailed discussion to a separate Mike Washington conversation but signals Jeanty's ranking reflects his elite production and role.
Insight pageBaker Mayfield
NegativeProjection7:00
Baker Mayfield has been historically inefficient as a passer over a two-game span, completing just seven passes across two full games, which appears to be one of the lowest completion markers in NFL history; this extreme run-heavy approach by the Buccaneers limits passing volume and may constrain the fantasy upside of pass-catchers on the team.
Insight pageBlake Corum
PositiveValue33:09
Corum is ranked at 22 by Erickson (moved up from 24) and 20 by Fitzy, both higher than ECR of 25; the source believes he deserves to be started everywhere this week and that his elite efficiency should lead to more touches, especially with the Rams' commitment to the run game and Matthew Stafford's sore arm limiting downfield passing.
Insight pagePositiveProjection33:09
Corum is RB10 in half-PPR over the last two weeks without Devontae Adams; the Rams have run the ball on 53.4% of offensive snaps in their last two games; he's scored a TD in four straight games, averaging 5.2 yards per attempt and 0.94 rushing yards over expected per carry this season—nearly a full yard over expected.
Insight pagePositiveRole33:54
Corum has 40 touches over the last three weeks for 234 total yards and three TDs, nearly splitting the backfield with Kyron Williams (48 touches, 247 yards, 2 TDs), but Corum is more efficient; his EPA per touch of 0.36 leads all RBs with 40+ touches; he's had 13+ fantasy points in each of the last four games with a 60% touch rate, and Kyron's receiving has declined four straight weeks as the Rams lean more on straight rushing.
Insight pageNegativeProjection47:00
Corum was ranked as an RB2 a day prior to this episode but moved back in the rankings as more experts submitted their rankings; the source notes that ECR (Expert Consensus Ranking) changes throughout the week as new ranker submissions come in.
Insight pageBucky Irving
NegativeProjection4:30
ECR ranks Bucky Irving at RB8 for Week 9 facing the Bears, a four-star matchup on FantasyPros matchup grades; however, there is notable the source disagreement with one ranker placing him at RB7 and another at RB11, reflecting uncertainty about his role in the Buccaneers' run-heavy offense.
Insight pageNegativeRole5:20
One the source projects Bucky Irving at RB11 for Week 9, citing concerns that the Buccaneers will need to throw more if the Bears' defense can score; this contrasts with the run-heavy game script from recent weeks (no completions vs. rainy conditions, weak Carolina Panthers run defense). the source emphasizes that Jeffrey Simmons' impact on the Bears defense is significant—when on field, Simmons held opponents to 3 yards per play with 25% success rate and 5 tackles for loss across 48 of 56 defensive snaps, compared to 13.3 yards per play and 63% success rate when off field, suggesting the Bears' defense is not the pushover matchup it appears season-long.
Insight pageNegativeProjection6:00
The source is slightly lower on Irving than consensus, baking in regression in the raw amount of rushing attempts he's gotten in the last two weeks; while still ranking him top 12 at running back, the source expects some pullback from the extreme run-heavy approaches of recent games, though Kenneth Gainwell's increased workload in second halves is not expected to significantly eat into Irving's role.
Insight pageNegativeUsage8:00
Irving is fourth in the NFL in rushing behind Jameer Gibbs, B. John Robinson, and Kenneth Walker; the Buccaneers are averaging 5.1 yards per attempt (tops in the NFL) and have 143 more rushing yards than any other team; Irving himself is averaging five yards per carry. However, his pass-catching role has declined significantly: 11 receptions in the Bucs' first two games but only seven receptions in their last six games.
Insight pagePositiveUsage9:17
Irving had 11 receptions in the Buccaneers' first two games but only seven receptions in their last six games, showing declining pass-catching involvement. However, the source is not scared of the Week 9 matchup against Tennessee despite Jeffrey Simmons' presence on the Titans defense, noting that Simmons' presence on Tennessee was not historically a feared matchup for running backs. The source continues to play Irving and feels great about it.
Insight pageChristian McCaffrey
PositiveProjection3:45
Ranked fourth among RBs for Week 9 on the FantasyPros consensus board.
Insight pageNegativeInjury46:00
McCaffrey is dealing with a tender hamstring heading into the 49ers' matchup against the Raiders, which may limit his availability or workload and create opportunities for backup Kalen Black.
Insight pageChuba Hubbard
PositiveProjection4:05
Ranked sixth among RBs for Week 9 on the FantasyPros consensus board.
Insight pageD'Andre Swift
NegativeProjection4:15
Included in the bottom half of the top 12 RB rankings for Week 9 on the FantasyPros consensus board.
Insight pageDerrick Henry
NegativeMatchup11:01
Henry moves down to RB17 due to a bad matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars, who have the worst quarterback situation and will likely stack the box. The Jaguars have given up the fewest rushing yards in the league. Henry has one touchdown run in his last four games, and with Joe Flacco at quarterback for Baltimore, touchdown upside is limited (estimated 50-50 at best for red zone scoring). Per-carry average could look ugly, though Henry is expected to get 20+ carries unless the Jaguars blow out Baltimore and he's pulled early.
Insight pageDylan Sampson
NegativeBust45:00
Sampson's six catches for 62 yards against the Steelers last week was garbage-time production, not meaningful involvement; he played more snaps than Quinshod Judkins only due to game script (Browns trailed 27-6 from early first quarter), while Judkins had 11 carries to Sampson's one. The source warns that starting Sampson this week would be a terrible mistake, ranking him RB 45+ and noting the Browns are only 2.5-point underdogs to the Saints, making a competitive game likely where Judkins will handle the bulk of carries.
Insight pageJames Cook
NegativeProjection4:15
Included in the bottom half of the top 12 RB rankings for Week 9 on the FantasyPros consensus board.
Insight pageJavonte Williams
PositiveProjection3:55
Ranked fifth among RBs for Week 9 on the FantasyPros consensus board.
Insight pageJosh Jacobs
NegativeProjection4:15
Included in the bottom half of the top 12 RB rankings for Week 9 on the FantasyPros consensus board.
Insight pageKenneth Gainwell
NegativeUsage6:30
Gainwell has benefited the most from the Buccaneers' run-heavy approaches over the last two games, accumulating a ton of work in the second halves of these matchups, though this is not expected to significantly cut into Bucky Irving's primary rushing role.
Insight pageKenneth Walker III
PositiveProjection3:25
Ranked second among RBs for Week 9 on the FantasyPros consensus board.
Insight pageNegativeUsage8:00
Walker leads the NFL in rushing attempts and yards, ranking first among all running backs.
Insight pageKyren Williams
NegativeProjection4:15
Included in the bottom half of the top 12 RB rankings for Week 9 on the FantasyPros consensus board.
Insight pageMike Washington Jr.
NegativeUsage39:00
Washington received 25 carries for 83 yards against the Jets last week, averaging 3.32 yards per carry; he had 8 carries inside the 10-yard line and goal-line carries but failed to score. His efficiency with the increased workload mirrored Gentry's early-season struggles, and the source ranks him RB 28 in half-point PPR, suggesting the workload spike may not be sustainable given the Raiders' collective run-game inefficiency.
Insight pageNegativeRole39:06
Washington had 25 carries last week, a significant workload; however, the source questions whether this was punishment for Ashton Gentry's comments about the Jets' tackling or a deliberate shift by Clint Kubiak toward Washington on early downs; before last week, Gentry had averaged 3.1 yards per carry while Washington averaged 4.9 yards per carry, but with the extra workload, Washington's efficiency looked similar to Gentry's early-season efficiency.
Insight pageOllie Gordon II
PositiveProjection23:44
Gordon has seen bell-cow usage since A-Chan got hurt, with 18.6 touches per game over his last five games—higher than Judkins and nearly equal to Derrick Henry; he's been a top-15 RB in four of his last five games played (RB13, RB12, RB14, RB14, RB30 in half-PPR), with 87% and 80% backfield opportunity rates in his last two weeks, making him a strong volume play despite last week's TD-less performance against the Patriots.
Insight pagePositiveMatchup23:44
Gordon faces the Lions, who have lost three linebackers and have two safeties still banged up; the Dolphins like to run at home, and Gordon has had 18+ carries in three straight games with a TD run in four of his last five games, though the Lions' run defense has been solid since week two with only one opponent rushing for more than 81 yards.
Insight pagePositiveRole25:40
Gordon has dominated backfield touches with 20 of 23 opportunities (87%) last week and 80% the week before, with Jalen Wright barely playing; he's described as having a fiery personality and understanding this is his moment as a former day-three pick, driving him to perform as one of the Dolphins' best offensive players.
Insight pageNegativeMatchup27:45
The Lions' run defense has been strong since week two; only one opponent has rushed for more than 81 yards, and three of five opponents have been held to 60 rushing yards or fewer; Detroit is giving up the fifth-fewest rushing yards per game to RBs, and Gordon has only six catches for 14 yards this season with one catch over his last three weeks, meaning he's dependent on rushing success.
Insight pageQuinshon Judkins
PositiveUsage45:00
Judkins received 11 carries against the Steelers despite the Browns trailing heavily from early in the first quarter, demonstrating his role as the lead back; the source expects him to handle the bulk of carries against the Saints, who are only 2.5-point underdogs, making this a competitive game where the run game will be more involved than last week's blowout loss.
Insight pageTyler Allgeier
NegativeMatchup28:24
Allgeier faces Seattle, a nightmare matchup; the Seahawks' defense is built to stop the Shanahan-McVay-LaFleur style of offense, making it one of the worst matchups possible; the Cardinals' offense totaled only 95 passing yards against Seattle in week two, and the Seahawks are coming off a loss looking for a get-right spot.
Insight pagePositiveRole28:24
With Jeremiah Love out for four to five weeks with an ankle injury and Bam Knight in concussion protocol (unlikely to play), Allgeier will have the backfield to himself; he was wildly efficient last week with 16 touches and should see 18+ touches this week, making volume king at the RB position.
Insight pageNegativeUsage30:00
Allgeier has two catches in every game except one this season; an under-the-radar angle is that Seattle allows the seventh-most targets and catches to running backs, which could provide dump-off opportunities from Gardner Minshew in the second half to salvage a game that may start poorly.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
0:00This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed Human. What's up friends and welcome into Fantasy Pros.
0:04Welcome into Week 9. I'm Chris Welsh, we've got Pat Fitzmaurice, Andrew Erickson, and we are talking ranks.
0:10A rank series coming up here today. We are going to be going through the top 36 running backs for Week 9.
0:16Everything in between starts, sits, where the ranks are at, and we're going to be using Fantasy Pros ECR ranks.
0:22So make sure you go and check it out.
0:25FantasyPros.com slash NFL slash rankings. And you can follow along with the half PPR ranks we've got going on here.
0:31You can check out all the different formats for your ranks.
0:34Your leagues. That's what we'll be referencing as we go through all of this in a low-by-week week, which is kind of nice fitzy.
0:41Only two teams on by. Not that running backs are robust or anything, but, you know, clarity is out there as long
0:48as you're not looking at, like, you know, the Seahawks running back situation.
0:52And then we're also looking on the precipice of the trade deadline if anything is going to happen, but not much of an effect necessarily there.
1:00Pretty chalky as I kind of just do the quick scan of what the ranks are looking like this week for RB.
1:06Yeah, Week 9. A little easier to navigate waivers this week with only two teams on by, and you were talking about the precipice.
1:13Week 9. How do we get so far so fast?
1:16It does feel like we're at the top of the roller coaster, and we are, you know, getting ready to throw our arms in the air.
1:24And the last part of it, the downhill drop is going to be fast from here on in, so buckle up.
1:30Yeah, I forget, like, how close we already are, Erickson, to, like, playoff runs, and preparation is becoming even more key.
1:37I mean, so much so, you know, I know, you know, you were a driving force behind the scenes of, like, we
1:43are going to be turning to a lot of, like, playoff content moving up here pretty soon.
1:48And, like, making sure our focuses are, like, getting people prepared for what matchups and waivers and stuff are going to look like into the playoff run.
1:56Like, we're almost there, dude. Yeah, I know it's an 18-week regular season for the real NFL, but we're way past the
2:03halfway point of the fantasy regular season and the fantasy season overall.
2:06So, yeah, you got to buckle up. You got to get ready because the grind has just begun, right?
2:12It doesn't get easier from here on out. It gets tougher, especially because we have the holidays coming up, just more distractions.
2:19And if you want to win your fantasy championship, you got to sometimes say, hey, sorry, kids, can't open presents.
2:25Got to focus on getting my lineup set. So it's a tough life, but that's how you win.
2:30That's how you win. Tough life of a pretend NFL manager.
2:33Sorry, guys. Not going to be available for this week.
2:36You guys are going to have to spend Thanksgiving without me.
2:39I got important roster construction to do. Yeah, I mean, hey, playoff.
2:43It's serious business, right? Serious business. And we're going to get serious about it here.
2:47We're going to go through the top 36. We'll be looking at the big board.
2:52Do want to give some shout-outs, as we always do.
2:55Look at the ranks contest. Every single week, as we are talking, ECR is powered.
2:59I mean, it's powered by all of our great experts.
3:02But then it is turned into our ranks contest, where every single week we are individually ranking who is the most accurate.
3:09And then we've got like the season total. The season total, that's kind of a big dog, you know, that is celebrated at the end of the year.
3:17But every single week, we like to give shout-outs on this show for what the top three look like.
3:23And this week, Brad Beetson from Bandit Football, number one, baby.
3:26Getting that top spot. Sean Corner from the Action Network with number two.
3:30And Nick Mariano from Rotoballer. Those are your top three most accurate rankers out there.
3:35Not any other big shout-outs. I think Mayer finished pretty well, around like 26.
3:39I was top 50. I think you were like top 35 in that general vicinity.
3:43It was an okay week. It wasn't anything super special.
3:46I mean, shout-out to Brad, Sean, and Nick. Those guys are the gangsters for week eight.
3:51They're really ranked really well. But no big shout-outs for us.
3:54But that's what the accuracy looks like. If you guys want to go and check it out, you can find it.
4:00You can just type in Fantasy Pros, Fantasy Football Accuracy.
4:03And you can see each week. And then you can see what the total looks like as that race is going to
4:10heat on as the season moves for the total, the big accuracy season-long contest.
4:14All right. That's over. Again, fantasypros.com slash NFL slash rankings to follow along.
4:18Gentlemen, let's look at the big board for the week.
4:21Our top 36 and our top 12 for 1 through 12 at RB.
4:25We've got Jameer Gibbs with the top spot going up against the Dolphins.
4:29Ken Walker at 2. B. John Robinson at 3.
4:31McCaffrey at 4. Javante Williams at 5. And Chuba at 6.
4:35The bottom half here, Kyron Williams, Bucky Irving, James Cook, DeAndre Swift, Faisal Tootin, Josh Jacobs.
4:40Pretty jock, friends. Those are guys you're not going to give much thought about.
4:44One interesting note is you guys have kind of a bigger gap between Bucky Irving.
4:48Bucky Irving coming off of just, you know, I mean, the whole Bucs running back situation.
4:53Just a wildly, you know, crazy no completion game all running.
4:56He comes in at ECR 8 going up against the Bears, which is graded a four-star matchup on Fantasy Pros matchup grades.
5:03But you guys are kind of split. Fitzy, you've got him at 7, a little bit higher than ECR.
5:08But, Erickson, let's start with you because you're not the negative Nancy, but you have him towing almost outside of an RB1.
5:15You have him at RB11. So, what's bringing you off of ECR for Bucky this week?
5:20I have two main reasons. And that's because, number one, the Buccaneers are going to have to throw a little bit more.
5:26Well, you think that. But look, when the other offense can actually score on your defense, I think that's the scenario.
5:33I mean, last week it was the rainy, wet conditions that really drove the run game for the Buccaneers.
5:38It's how you win a game when you don't complete a single pass.
5:42And then the week before that, it was Carolina Panthers run defense couldn't stop anybody.
5:47So, I know the Bears on paper, season-long, look like a layup matchup for defenses.
5:51But this Jeffrey Simmons impact needs to be highlighted because he made all the difference in the world when they took on
5:58the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night Football on the road.
6:01On the eight plays that Simmons was off the field, this is according to NextGenStats, Bears allowed 13.3 yards per play, 63% success rate, 37.5% explosive play rate.
6:09When he was on the field, they allowed just three yards per play.
6:13So, that includes rushes and pass attempts, 25% success rate.
6:16He recorded five tackles for loss, 48 of the 56 defensive snaps.
6:19So, when he's on the field, like this Bears defense is not a pushover unit like it's been most of the season.
6:26And if anything, I think that their secondary is their weakest part.
6:29I mean, Jalen Johnson, dude, that guy, he can't cover or remove anymore based on the injuries that he's dealt with.
6:36So, that's just why I'm a little bit lower on Bucky just trying to bake in some of this regression in terms
6:42of the raw amount of rushing attempts that he's gotten in the last two weeks.
6:47Again, this isn't really, oh, I expect Kenneth Gainwell to eat into Bucky's workload.
6:51Gainwell's obviously benefited, I think, the most from these run-heavy approaches the last two games because he's got a ton of work
6:58in the second halves of these matchups. But that's just why, a little bit lower, still top 12 running back for me.
7:04But that's why. I was trying to look, by the way.
7:07I was putting all the search engines to a test to see if I could get it confirmed.
7:13I just don't feel confident with it. But I was trying to look, has there ever been a quarterback that's had less
7:19completions than Baker Mayfield over a two-full game span in NFL history?
7:23I couldn't realize. The results popped up saying Baker, but that might be a recency thing.
7:28But seven completions over playing two full games has to be one of the lower markers out there.
7:33I mean, Max Brosmer didn't do it last year?
7:36I feel like he might be. I feel like he might have done that last year.
7:40Over a two-game span? I know he didn't complete any passes on Christmas.
7:44I know that. I'm looking real quick. He had that game against Seattle last year where he threw for like 27 yards or whatever.
7:51Yeah, they threw more interceptions than he had the completions.
7:54Nah, sons. You guys are wrong. Look at this.
7:57He had, in playing two back-to-back full games, he had 19 completions, 7, 9, and 7.
8:02Nothing is exciting there, but one game was the amount that Baker Mayfield put up.
8:06Three games with under 10 completions is pretty noteworthy.
8:09I mean, it's all noteworthy with how bad we're looking.
8:12I mean, I think he had two games of seven completions is not something to be excited about, but Baker, historically bad.
8:19All right. Fitzy, anything on Bucky Irving? You're like slightly higher than consensus at 7.
8:23And I'm not sure how the Bucs, like they don't have a comfort level with Baker Mayfield.
8:28Obviously, with weather conditions, maybe they can actually pass the ball a bit.
8:32But I just, I'm not sure I see a story where you go away from Bucky Irving at this point, unless he's just breaking down.
8:39So that's why I'm kind of with you on like high rankings of Bucky.
8:44Yeah. Oh, ye of little faith, Erickson. I mean, Bucky is fourth in the NFL in rushing behind only Jameer Gibbs, B.
8:50John Robinson, and Kenneth Walker. And the Buccaneers have 143 more rushing yards than any other team in the NFL.
8:56They're averaging 5.1 yards per attempt, which is tops in the NFL.
9:00Only the Chiefs, they're the only other team averaging above five yards per carry.
9:04Um, Bucky himself averaging five yards per carry. I know this has been skewed by their extreme run heaviness the last two
9:10weeks, but the Buccaneers, I think, are happy to run the ball, play really good defense, and maybe put the hands in,
9:17put the game in Baker Mayfield's hands a little less than they have in the past.
9:22I do wish Bucky was more involved as a pass catcher.
9:25He's had 11 receptions, uh, or did have 11 receptions in the Bucs' first two games.
9:30Only seven receptions in their last six. But I'm not really scared of this matchup.
9:34I mean, yeah, Jeffrey Simmons, he absolutely helps this defense, but when Jeffrey Simmons was on the Titans, that was not a
9:41matchup anyone was fearing with running backs. So, yeah, I'm just continuing to play Bucky Irving and feeling great about it.
9:47Yeah, it's pretty chalky overall. Like I said, RB1s, I don't think there's any big questions.
9:52Not that you even have the ability to not start one of these guys.
9:56So I don't think there's a whole bunch more we need to tackle on these.
10:00There was just a slight difference there. We're going to get into the RB2s, more conversation around those.
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10:35All right, getting this next big board up here, 13 through 24 at running backs.
10:40We've got Chase Brown at 13, followed by Jonathan Taylor, Ramondre Stevenson, Jonah Coleman popping up at 16, Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley,
10:46the back half, Quinchon Judkins at 19, Cam Scadaboo, Ashton Gentry, Ollie Gordon, Tyler Algier, and Braylon Allen.
10:52So those are going to be some conversations we're going to be able to have in this grouping here.
10:57So let's start with Derrick Henry. Derrick Henry moves down to 17.
11:01It is a bad matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
11:04And they have, I mean, the worst quarterback situation you could have.
11:07I'm trying to think of like, if there's a way to properly, it's not good.
11:12Like nothing about the quarterback situation is good. And that obviously is going to lead to an already tough defensive matchup that
11:18is probably going to stack the box and say, sure, try to beat us.
11:22So Derrick Henry at 17. You guys are in the general vicinity.
11:26Phytosy, why don't you kick us off? You're at 17.
11:29Erickson, you're at 19. Should we have more hesitation?
11:32Or is the reality we just, you know, this stinks for Derrick Henry owners.
11:36We really don't have the luxuries where Derrick Henry wouldn't be an option, even though we got to all agree like this
11:42is every bit of this is less than ideal.
11:45I feel like I should probably have more hesitation.
11:48And it is a strange feeling to look at a ranking of Derrick Henry at RB 17 and worry that you're way too high on him.
11:56But the Jaguars have given up the fewest rushing yards in the league.
11:59Derrick Henry has one touchdown run in his last four games.
12:03And with Joe Feniano at quarterback, what are the odds that Derrick Henry gets into the end zone?
12:08Like 50-50 at best? You do have to figure, though, that Derrick Henry is going to get a lot of work.
12:14The per carry average could look pretty ugly in this game.
12:18But I would think he's getting 20 plus carries unless the Jaguars get blown out and they pull him early.
12:24What's the odds? Unless the Jaguars blow out the Ravens.
12:27What do you think the odds are he gets in the red zone?
12:30Like the Ravens get in the red zone. Yeah, that's it.
12:34That's, I think, the worry. I think that's the big worry.
12:37So Erickson, you do have a little bit more hesitation.
12:40You've got him at RB19. You haven't pushed him outside the top 20.
12:44Not that there's like, you know, a lot that we can do here.
12:48But where does your hesitation lie in the same vein of what we're talking about?
12:52Should we even be a little bit more worried than what we're sharing?
12:56Well, the thing with Derrick Henry is he hasn't been the same guy.
13:00He's shown signs of the age cliff a little bit.
13:03And I think it's not all his fault. The environmental factors around him.
13:07The offensive line for the Ravens has been really bad this year.
13:10They've been battered with a ton of injuries, especially on their interior.
13:14That's why they had to trade a future second round pick to get Cam Juergens.
13:18They just lost their starting quarterback, Lamar Jackson. They lost their backup quarterback, Stu Puntley.
13:23And we were already seeing the impact of losing Lamar Jackson.
13:26Derrick Henry this year, 3.5 yards per carry without Lamar Jackson, 4.5 yards per carry with Lamar Jackson.
13:31So not having that mobile element under center is a big deal and a big loss for Derrick Henry, who's been hit
13:38behind the line of scrimmage or at the line of scrimmage on 60% of his carry since week six, which is the highest rate in the NFL.
13:46And he's not generating as much yards after contact like he has done in previous years.
13:51Fewest yards after contact in a season 2.6 since 2018.
13:54It's the first time he's been under this number under three yards after contact per carry since 2018.
13:59So teams are stuffing Derrick Henry at a much higher rate.
14:02I do think that the volume play is still the angle that you're looking at.
14:07I don't think that you can afford to still bench Derrick Henry because the one silver lining here with the Baltimore Ravens,
14:13in my opinion, just looking at this from like a larger scope, they are playing at home.
14:19If you're Jesse Minter and you're game planning for this matchup, you have a undrafted rookie quarterback making his first start on Thursday night on a short week.
14:27How do you simplify the game plan? You give the ball to Derrick Henry 30 times.
14:32You play defense. Jesse Minter, you are a defensive minded head coach.
14:35Your defense has to show up and keep you in this game.
14:39You have the home field advantage. Theoretically speaking, the Jaguars are not the same type of team on the road that they are at home.
14:46Like they are an absolute unit. They destroy teams every time they play them in Duval.
14:51But this is only their third true road game that they played this season.
14:55And Trevor Lawrence, as good as he's been this year, he does have a little bit of the Sam Darnold turnover worthy
15:02thing going on where he does do a lot of dumb things.
15:05Sometimes you're pulling your hair out thinking, dude, what are you doing?
15:09So that's how you could get like a cheap red zone opportunity for Derrick Henry to find the end zone.
15:15And then the last point to make about this gaunted Jaguars defense against the run, they lost Devon Hamilton this past week.
15:21Their defensive tackle cannot tell you how big a loss that is.
15:25Here's what it's looked like when he has missed time so far this season when he's not been on the field, the
15:32Jaguars have allowed 6.9 yards per play when he has not been on the field over three yards more than their average
15:38with him on the field yards per carry 3.8 when he's on the field, 8.8 yards per attempt without Hamilton.
15:44So like he matters so significantly in plugging up the run.
15:47And if you were Jesse Minter, if you're Declan Doyle, you're going to look at that and say, okay, this is the
15:54only way this is our path to victory. It has to be Derrick Henry carrying the ball 30 times, breaking more tackles
16:00and taking advantage of a defense that lost one of its best nose tackles.
16:05So again, I say that all while also being lower than ECR and Derrick Henry, because I don't know if this is
16:11the same version of Derrick Henry that can take advantage of this type of matchup because he has been significantly worse and
16:18he doesn't have a mobile quarterback helping create some of his lanes.
16:21So I think that the volume is going to be there.
16:25It could be easily 20 carries for 60 yards and no touchdowns.
16:28And you kind of just like wipe your hands clean, or it could be, Hey, you just need that one big run
16:35in the second half as he wears down the defense and the Ravens keep it a little bit closer.
16:40So that was a lot to unpack, but I just think this is really interesting spot for Derrick Henry.
16:46And I think that in most cases you do want to keep them in your lineup.
16:51Yeah. I mean, I think the ring kind of dictates that it's just 30 for 80 is not going to really do
16:57a whole lot for everybody, especially with any touchdowns.
17:00I'd love to see him get involved maybe a little bit in the past game, a little bit more like if they're
17:07going to have trouble moving the ball deep or having check down stuff or really getting Derrick Henry involved is get him
17:13involved a little bit in open space, you know, on short things.
17:17And I don't know if we'll end up seeing that, but something to keep in mind.
17:22And he's moving down a little bit in ranks.
17:24It's a really rough matchup going to RB 19 on the list.
17:28Quinshon Judkins. He's got a five-star graded matchup going up against new Orleans for running backs, or at least given the four or the five-star grade here.
17:36ECR 19 Erickson, you've got them at 21. So you were lower, but Fitzy, you were quite a bit higher.
17:42So let's jump to you, Fitzy, 15, top 15 running back Quinchon Judkins.
17:46He is, um, he is higher than Derrick Henry for you this week.
17:50Now that doesn't show up in ECR, but that is for you.
17:53Talk to me about, uh, Quinchon Judkins. There are a couple of things to really like here.
17:58Volume check matchup check efficiency. That's the one drawback.
18:01Um, the volume has been really bankable. Judkins is averaging 17.4 touches a game, and he's had at least 13 touches in every game this season.
18:09Um, he's even averaging three catches a game. So obviously the efficiency hasn't been great.
18:13Just 3.4 yards per carry. It's been kind of a problem ever since Judkins arrived in Cleveland.
18:18The offensive line just isn't great, but he gets a Saints run defense that ranks 31st in DVOA, 32nd in EPA per rush.
18:25Saints are giving up 120 rushing yards per game to running backs and 4.9 yards per carry to running backs.
18:31So I know there's some concern about this now being a split backfield with Judkins and Dylan Sampson.
18:36We're going to talk more about Dylan Sampson in a few minutes, I believe, but I do not think Judkins investors should be worried about that at all.
18:45I mean, yeah, it's been kind of, it's a receiving game thing for Samson, if anything, but Erickson, um, talk to us about where you are with Judkins.
18:53You are lower. You've got him at 21, still RB2, nothing crazy.
18:57He's RB19 again. So this is still like the RB2 range, but just a little bit lower than ECR.
19:02So do you have a little bit more worry of what Samson is potentially taking away or efficiency or, or what do you have?
19:09It depends on how the game script plays out, right?
19:12If the Browns go on the road and are trailing in this game against the New Orleans Saints who are coming off
19:19a bye week, then you're going to see more of Dylan Sampson in the past game.
19:24Cause that's, what's been nuked in Judkins role over the last two games.
19:28The receiving role was there when Samson was on injured reserve, but over the last two weeks, it really has disappeared.
19:34So you're not getting that receiving floor. If there's a chance where the Browns fall behind their underdogs on the road.
19:40And there's a chance that it's not Deshaun Watson on our center.
19:44It's just Sanders. Now you can look at that as maybe that's a plus and that they're going to be better without
19:50Deshaun Watson, but still a younger quarterback making us a road start.
19:54Never I necessarily ideal, especially in new Orleans, which is a tough place to play.
19:58So yeah, I get the matchup is really good.
20:01The saints have been the giving up the most or second most rushing arts to running backs this season, most fancy points per game.
20:08So that in itself with Judkins volume overall is yeah, man, he's going to be in the RV to conversation.
20:14I just questioned what the ceiling is for running back.
20:17That has been brutally inefficient again, second worst in success rate only ahead of Pat Fitzmore's favorite running back, JK Dobbins.
20:23So, okay. All right. I'm going to jump over a back because I think the more that I stare at this, people
20:30are going to have a lot of questions about Ashton Gentey, but we're going to save him for a Mike Washington conversation,
20:36which we'll have just a little bit. So don't worry if you see the board and you're like, wait, you just skipped over Gentey.
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23:40Let's talk about these other two guys. Ollie Gordon comes in at RB22.
23:44You guys are both higher, but you guys have got a little bit of a gap as far as one person liking him a bit more.
23:52Ollie Gordon is going up against Detroit. And Erickson, that is you.
23:56You've got him at RB16 this week. So that is higher than Jutkins.
23:59You've got him higher than Derrick Henry. Kind of an all-in on Ollie Gordon here.
24:04So why don't you kick us off with Ollie Gordon versus Detroit?
24:07Yeah, Gordon versus Derrick Henry was one that I looked at for a long time trying to figure out how I felt
24:14about it because I believe that both guys are good volume plays for sure.
24:18Gordon has seen the bell cow usage basically since A-chan got hurt every single week.
24:23And last week was really the only game that he had where he didn't perform up to expectation.
24:28It was just because he didn't score a touchdown, right?
24:31Patriots have a good run defense. So he ended up not finding Pater.
24:35But now you're looking at a matchup against the Detroit Lions who they lost three more linebackers last week.
24:41Two of their safeties are still banged up. I just don't see a scenario where I don't like or where I feel
24:47more comfortable at Derrick Henry with a third string quarterback against the Jags defense than Ollie Gordon, who has seen, if not
24:54equal, if better volume than Derrick Henry has over the past or this season, since Gordon has basically taken over as the
25:00starting running back for the Miami Dolphins, his touches per game, 18.6.
25:04So that's higher than Jutkins. That's right. It's right.
25:06It's not as high as Derrick Henry, but still over his last five games, top 15 running back in four of his
25:13last five games played except for last week. Because again, he did not score the touchdown.
25:18The Dolphins gonna be a shutout against the Lions playing at home.
25:21I don't think so. So Ollie Gordon to me, I think that I think this is where I probably draw the line
25:28where if it's you, it's Gordon versus Derrick Henry.
25:31I think I'm going with Ollie Gordon, right? It just he's been better this year than has been.
25:36He's looked so good. And I think you just mentioned this, but yeah, half PPR, RB 13, RB 12, RB 14, RB 14, and then RB 30.
25:44So four of the last five weeks, he's been a top 15 running back when he's out there.
25:49I mean, he's just looked good. Yeah, last week, 20 of the 23 opportunities in the backfield, 87 percent the week before 80 percent.
25:56So Jalen Wright barely plays. It's all Ollie Gordon is backfield.
26:00I know that. And I he is a very fiery personality, too.
26:03Like he's just like yelling up and screaming because I think that he feels like this is my time, like this is
26:10my moment to be the team starting running back, because as a former day three pick, like he knows this isn't usually
26:16meant to last for these types of players. So he's trying to take advantage of his moment to be a leader on this team.
26:24And he is one of their best offensive players.
26:26So in a matchup that I'm not afraid of with Detroit, just so banged up defensively, the money dolphins like to run the football at home.
26:34Yeah, man. Give me Ollie. Yeah, I think I'm with I'm with you on the higher rank.
26:39Fitzy, you got him slightly higher. You also get to be in this camp.
26:43It's not quite as high, but you're 21. He's ECR 22.
26:47You share a lot of the same sentiment, but maybe just not the aggressiveness and making him a top 20 back.
26:53Yes. And I like the point Erickson just made about like how fiery Ollie is.
26:57It seems like there's been he's been part of almost like a makeover for this Dolphins team and their first three games.
27:04They lost every game by two touchdowns or more 14 or more points in their first three games, their last four games.
27:10They're one in three, but they have not lost a game by more than seven points.
27:15And they've played the Vikings, the Bengals, the Patriots, some pretty good teams in there and then had the one win over the Jets.
27:22So Ollie seems like he's contributing to sort of just an overall better quality of play for the Dolphins lately.
27:28And Ollie Gordon has had 18 or more carries in three straight games, and he's had a touchdown run in four of
27:35his last five games, had his four game TD streak snapped last week.
27:39I guess my only real concern here is that the Lions run defense has been really good ever since they played the
27:45Bills in week two and James Cook and Josh Allen just ran all over them.
27:50Since then, only one of the Lions opponents has rushed for more than 81 yards as a team and three of their
27:56five opponents have been held to 60 rushing yards or fewer.
28:00And Detroit's giving up the fifth fewest rushing yards per game to running backs.
28:04Ollie Gordon only has six catches for 14 yards this season and one catch over his last three weeks.
28:09So if he doesn't run the ball successfully, it's going to have a bad fantasy day.
28:14And I just worry that he might have a bad rushing day against the Lions.
28:19I think a guy we're going to get a ton of questions about this week is Tyler Algier.
28:24Tyler Algier, obviously there's the Gerald Maya Love news and injury that's floating out there.
28:28Algier obviously went off last week. Bam is banged up.
28:31And you hope that the team can make a commitment to even more touches because he was wildly efficient last week, but it was still like 16 touches.
28:40But he comes in at RB 23 against Seattle.
28:42You guys are split. Fitzy, you're the high guy.
28:45Erickson, you're the low guy. So Fitzy, you've got him as a top 18 back.
28:50Talk to us about Tyler Algier. Jeremiah Love's going to be out for a while with an ankle injury, another ankle injury.
28:56Bam Knight is in concussion protocol. And I would be shocked if we saw him this week after he needed help getting
29:03off the field following his concussion last week. Like this is just all about the volume.
29:08I mean, the Seahawks are a nightmare mashup and Tyler Algier might have 18 touches for 42 yards.
29:13But I think there's a really good chance he's going to get 18 or more touches this week.
29:18Like he will have this backfield pretty much to himself against Seattle and volume is king at the running back position.
29:25Erickson, you do not quite agree. He looks like Jeremiah Love's going to be out like four to five weeks here.
29:31Where Algier is relatively the only guy. It's a tough matchup.
29:34I mean, Seattle's a brutal matchup, but you got him at RB 28.
29:38So starkly different as more of a flex option when he is coming in at ECR as an RB 2.
29:44So, you know, concerns. Is it kind of what we laid out?
29:47Like that they still probably won't be comfortable moving up the touches.
29:51He's not going to be as efficient. And it's against Seattle.
29:54Well, he's been inefficient all year except until he played the Dallas Cowboys.
29:58Yeah. So I think that's really important to point out.
30:01Basically, he had all of his explosive runs the entire year against the Cowboys.
30:05So he had three explosive carries in week eight versus Dallas.
30:09More than his two explosive carries weeks one through seven combined.
30:12To the point that Fitz made about 18 carries.
30:15Week six at the Rams, 18 carries with 38 yards.
30:18RB 38 on the week. So even if he gets 18 carries, like he's still not a lock to finish as the top 24 back.
30:25Obviously, you're looking at can he find the end zone?
30:28I think that his saving grace and this is kind of like an under the radar angle with Algier is he's actually
30:35kind of like using the passing game a decent amount.
30:38He has two catches in every game except for one this season.
30:41And I know we've talked about this on the show.
30:44When you're looking at how to attack this Mike McDonald defense, it's the running backs in the passing game.
30:50Seven most targets and catches allowed to running backs this season.
30:53So I think that you don't look at Algier's first half box score because it's probably going to be like 10 carries
31:00for 20 yards and not be good. And you're hoping that in the second half that he can catch a bunch of dump off passes from Gardner Minshew.
31:08So that's really the angle that I'm looking at.
31:11I think I agree with like the volume play with him, but this offense totaled 95 passing yards against the Seahawks back in week two.
31:18McDonald's defense is built to stop the Shanahan McVay LaFleur style of offense.
31:22So it's one of the worst matchups you can draw.
31:25You I would not take anything from Seattle's defense against the Chicago Bears and projected onto what Arizona could do offensively because it's two totally different units.
31:33Ben Johnson had extra time to prepare for the Seahawks defense.
31:36And this is the Fitz. How do you describe it?
31:39The breathing dragon fire fiery dragon that the Cardinals are going to be facing with Seattle coming off another loss.
31:45Like this is, Hey, we need to get, this is a get right spot for the Seahawks defense.
31:51And unfortunately, I'll do your kind of as many carries as he wants.
31:54I still think that the ceiling is not there unless he scores all source and touchdowns around these streets.
32:00I think the breathing dragon is a Welshism. What is the actual phrase?
32:04What is the phrase? Fire breathing dragon. I didn't combine it all.
32:08I didn't land the plane right there. I'm not a judge.
32:11I don't judge because all I do is take like three different analogies, put them together and hope it lands.
32:17But breathing dragon was a funny one. All right, let's jump into our RB threes.
32:2125 through 36. It's not sexy, but there's definitely some big questions that are going to be floating around in here.
32:27Coming into 25 is Blake Corum. 26 Rashad White, followed by Brees Hall, Woody Marks, Zach Charbonnet, Aaron Jones at 30.
32:34Alva Kamara, Jordan Mason, Mike Washington at 33. Jadarian Price, O'Marion Hampton, and Dylan Sampson.
32:38Blake Corum. You know, I feel like I think even a couple people have said it to me.
32:44Like I kind of underplay Blake Corum sometimes. And I don't want to because I've always said this for years, especially the last two years.
32:51When the Rams do their commitment to just every other drive, like Blake Corum looks amazing.
32:56He looks amazing. But things had sided early on in the year on landing more on Karen Williams side.
33:01And it seems like it's starting to turn. And, you know, Blake Corum just gets it done.
33:07Now, the matchup rating doesn't really love this Washington matchup.
33:10He comes in at 25. You guys are both higher than ECR.
33:13But Fitzy, you are the high man. You got him as a top 20 RB.
33:18So that puts him, looking back, that puts him higher than, who did he, than Ollie Gordon?
33:23I guess he didn't quite have him as high as Derek Henry.
33:26But why don't you talk to us about Blake Corum being a top 20 back this week?
33:31The Rams have had to play with no Devontae Adams the last two weeks.
33:35And Blake Corum is RB10 in half point PPR scoring over the last two weeks.
33:40I don't think it's a coincidence. Not counting Matthew Stafford kneel downs, the Rams have run the ball in 53.4% of their
33:46offensive snaps in their last two games. Um, Corum has scored a touchdown in four straight.
33:51And you're right, Walsh. He looks fabulous. He is averaging 5.2 yards per attempt this season.
33:56And he is averaging 0.94 rushing yards over expected per carry.
33:59Almost a full yard over expected per carry this season for Blake Corum.
34:03And, yeah, faces a respectable commander's run defense this week.
34:06But I think Blake Corum should be in lineups.
34:09He was one of my most drafted guys this year.
34:12And I'm starting him pretty much everywhere this week.
34:14I'm going to come back to Corum on a who'd you rather in a couple minutes.
34:19Erickson, you got him at 24. So you did bump him.
34:23He's the last RB2 for you. It's one spot higher than ECR.
34:26Is there any more slight hesitation on Corum? Or does he belong in a tier that people need to maybe stop questioning so much?
34:33And it's like, nah, you get him in your lineup.
34:36Blake Corum is not like Aaron Jones or Alvin Kamara or a Charbonnet.
34:40Like, he belongs at a tier above those guys?
34:43Or is he just the captain of that ship?
34:45So I did move him up before our recording here.
34:48So he's actually at 22 for me now. Liar.
34:51I think that the way Fitz described how well he's playing just is the reason why you should have confidence in just continuing to start this guy, right?
34:59I get that the projection for him on paper is always going to leave you wanting a little bit more because he's
35:06still splitting the backfield with Kyron Williams. However, I do kind of wonder if he was less efficient, he probably would get more touches.
35:13But it's just because he's so good with the touches that he gets.
35:17It's why Kyron always out touches him because Corum has just been more efficient.
35:21And not to say, again, I'm not trying to throw shade at Kyron because he's also been excellent this year as well.
35:28But Blake Corum deserves to get his flowers here.
35:30You look at his EPA per touch 0.36. That leads all running backs this year with 40 or more touches.
35:3660% touch rate. 13 plus fans points in each of the last four games.
35:41Over the last four games between or excuse me, over the last three weeks, Williams, Kyron has 48 touches, 247 total yards, two touchdowns.
35:48Corum has 40 touches, 234 total yards and three total touchdowns.
35:51So it's basically a split right down the middle, except Corrin is not seeing as many touches, but it's because he's getting
35:58a little bit more yardage with the touches that he does receive.
36:01One thing to point about what Kyron is his receiving has gone down in four straight weeks in terms of how much
36:08he's been involved because the Rams have been leaning more on just running the football straight up.
36:13That's how they're feeding their running backs. Corrin wasn't really involved in the passing game anyway, so that hasn't really impacted his fantasy production.
36:20Whereas Kyron, you're starting to see it dwindle just a little bit because he's not catching as many passes.
36:26So I think that this is also a really good matchup for him.
36:29The Eagles could not take advantage of the Deron painless Washington commanders defense last week because they have a broken Saquon Barkley and Elijah Mitchell running the football.
36:38I don't think that would be the case here against the Rams, who I think between this do what they have, they can run on anybody.
36:46Again, when we get these elite rushing units, it doesn't matter what defense they're facing more often than not, like they can run on everybody.
36:53And the way that the Rams have been deploying this offense, Matthew Stafford, a little bit of got the sore arm.
36:59He's not really throwing the ball downfield. They want to keep him upright for a potential playoff run.
37:05And that means feed the running backs. So I'm, I got to move them up.
37:09I got to find ways to move them up.
37:12And even though it feels kind of shaky, just believe in how talented he is.
37:16And eventually they're going to keep featuring him. Why would they go away from Blake Corum based on how well he's played?
37:23Yeah. If anything, you would want to move maybe even more into him, especially if you want to keep Kyron maybe a
37:29little bit cleaner for the back half of the season.
37:32If you're making your playoff run, a Corum just looks phenomenal.
37:36Every time I watch him, you're just like, how does this guy not get 20 touches?
37:40I love watching him run in the way he like takes the handoff, has that split second pause where he's like punching
37:47things into his GPS to figure out where he wants to go.
37:51And then he stomps the accelerator. It's like a Tesla.
37:54Have you ever seen like, you know, when a Tesla just goes, it just like, it takes off.
37:59Like that is where Corum goes. It's like slight hesitation.
38:02And then bam, he is the RV Tesla. Now I want to, I think this might be the most talked about this
38:08little grouping here that we're going to get, at least from our perspective.
38:12And I think a lot of people are going to be dealing with this.
38:16This is a two-parter. Mike Washington comes in at 33.
38:19It's not the best matchup against the San Francisco 49ers.
38:22They're coming off of the bye. They've got DeForest Buckner back, you know, like it's not that great of a matchup, but
38:29you are coming off of Mike Washington having 25 touches.
38:32So he comes in as a flex option. Kind of talked about this, probably not going to be an RB2, but what
38:39I really want this to also be around is Ashton Gentry's rank.
38:42Ashton Gentry came in this week at 21. He is dramatically higher than Mike Washington and their usage was on completely different planes here.
38:49So getting back to Mike Washington for a second, you guys are both higher than ECR, not by a ton.
38:55Fitzy, you are at 28. Erickson, you're at 32.
38:58I want you to obviously talk about Mike Washington, but I also want it in context of what you think about Ashton
39:04Gentry's rank and should this be the case. So Fitzy, you are higher.
39:08So why don't you jump in and start here?
39:11Mike Washington and Ashton Gentry ranks in startability. Yeah, I have no idea what this workload split is going to look like this week.
39:18And I just wonder how much of Mike Washington getting 25 carries last week and Ashton Gentry getting only two is possible
39:25punishment for Gentry's comments about the Jets tackling and maybe Clint Kubiak wanting to send a message about not kicking a hornet's nest with your upcoming opponent.
39:33I don't know if that was a factor or not, because before last week, Gentry had been averaging what, 3.1 yards per
39:39carry and maybe 2.3 in his three prior games before the matchup against the Jets while Washington was averaging 4.9 yards per carry.
39:46So maybe Kubiak did decide that he wanted to shift more towards Mike Washington on early downs.
39:51But then with the extra workload, Mike Washington's efficiency looked a lot like Ashton Gentry's efficiency over the early part of the season.
39:5825 carries for 83 yards. And Gentry, 2 carries, 2 yards.
40:01But he did have 3 catches for 64 yards.
40:04Still the passing down back. And despite his struggles as a runner all season, Gentry's been really good as a receiver.
40:10So we saw some of the same troubles close in, close in the scoring range for Washington that we've seen for Gentry all year.
40:17Washington had 8 carries inside the 10-yard line against the Jets last year and some goal line carries.
40:23Couldn't get into the end zone. So right now I've got it.
40:26Washington RB 28, Gentry RB 24 in half point PBR.
40:29Okay, you answered what I wanted to hear on the Gentry rank.
40:33So Erickson, it's the same thing. But I'll throw out, I do this a lot.
40:37But hey, listen, this isn't going to be a running quarterback game.
40:41So guess who can... I mean, I guess you're probably going to have Warner probably covering a lot more on Bowers.
40:47So maybe that does open up opportunities for Gentry.
40:50But what do you think about the ranks and the startability, especially the Mike Washington versus Gentry?
40:55Should Gentry be above even though his usage was so low?
40:58And do you think it's going to change? I do think it's going to change.
41:03This is the latest from Clint Kubiak via the Coach Speak Index.
41:06Him, Mike Washington, Ashton Gentry are a big part of our run game and Ashton's going to continue to be a big part of our run game.
41:14In the Jets game, Mike had the hot hand.
41:17He was rolling. And then Ashton did a phenomenal job helping us win the game in the pass game, especially in pass protection.
41:24I can't say enough good things about how Ashton handled that and how well he played for us to win that game.
41:30Ashton Gentry is a pro. He was a team captain in the Jets game for a reason.
41:36We're going to continue to lean on him. So there's nothing to me, at least from that game, rewatching it that suggested,
41:42oh, Mike Washington needs to get another 25 carries.
41:45Right. I think Fitz kind of outlined where the red zone struggles were this.
41:49It was more of the same, right? It was just Ashton Gentry kind of like 2.0 where this team collectively can't run the football.
41:56And then when it's up against the 49ers who are well rested getting DeForest Buckner back, they are number one in the NFL and EPA per rush allowed.
42:04Raiders on offense. 31st in EPA per rush generated.
42:07They're not going to win this game trying to run the football.
42:11They got to win with Kirk Cousins throwing the rock.
42:14Like that's the only chance they got. So I think that plays into what Ashton Gentry has done so well all season.
42:20And that's being electric in the passing game. First in targets, first in catches, first in yards, fourth in yards per route
42:27run, fourth in target rate, fourth in routes run among running backs this season.
42:31Despite the fact that Mike Washington out-touched Gentry by 20 last week, Ashton Gentry scored more fantasy points because he caught the
42:38ball out of the backfield because that's how this game works.
42:41And I'm not saying that's right. I'm just preaching to the choir like I'm a slave to the numbers.
42:46The numbers say he scored more fantasy points because he caught passes.
42:50And that's how this works. And when you look at the matchup, again, who's Fred Warner going to be guarding and worrying about?
42:57Brock Bowers. That means running backs in the passing game, saddle up.
43:0049ers. First in catches allowed two running backs. Third most yards allowed running backs.
43:05Fifth most targets allowed two running backs. This is an Ashton Gentry screaming bounce back performance, in my opinion.
43:10So I think that the carries will probably be closer to a 50-50 type of split.
43:15But I think Gentry continues to dominate in the passing game.
43:18And I think we could see him flirt with six, seven, eight catches, especially if so much attention is being thrown at Brock Bowers.
43:25So I would still keep him in my lineup, especially in full PPR.
43:29Where do you have Gentry? 2020. 2020. All right.
43:3220. That's you guys are with it. I mean, I'm just surprised.
43:36I'm surprised on the ECR front, but you know, the matchup makes some sense.
43:40Even after all of the craziness and waivers, Ashton Gentry still ranking over.
43:44It's going to be an interesting one. Final one.
43:46And then we'll get some deep plays. Fitzy, you kind of teased this earlier that we were going to talk about Dylan Sampson.
43:53He comes in at RB 36 on this list.
43:56And you guys have a split. Erickson, you are 36 on ECR.
43:59And Fitz, you are lower. Erickson, case for Dylan Sampson.
44:02You making him a flex worthy option. Does the efficiency in the pass game continue?
44:07Kind of like a Gentry thing where it's like, yeah, it's fine.
44:10He doesn't. He's not in the backfield a whole bunch, but if he's getting six or seven targets a game and he's
44:17catching anywhere from four to six balls, like he's actually becoming, you know, flex worthy.
44:22Is that the spot that you have Dylan Sampson in this week?
44:25Basically. RB3 flex desperation type of play. Because if there's a scenario where the Browns are running the ball effectively with Judkins,
44:32then Sampson is going to be a nothing burger.
44:34They are on the road though. So these types of games, they are underdogs and you may have Shudder Sanders starting.
44:41So those are the reasons why I think Sampson can at least be like an RB, RB3 type of flex option.
44:47If it's, you said you don't have anything to worry about with Judkins versus Sampson.
44:51And you kind of showed that in your rank where you have Sampson like in the mid forties.
44:57So you're, you're not into him even being a flex worthy play.
45:00Yeah. Um, they're only like, aren't they only two and a half point underdogs Erickson?
45:05Like I expect this to be a competitive games.
45:07I think the Browns might just be a better team than the saints.
45:11Um, and Dylan Sampson played more snaps than Quinshot Judkins last week.
45:15That was a total mirage, uh, attributable to game script because the Browns lost to the Steelers 27 to six and trailed
45:21from the middle of the first quarter on and Judkins at 11 carries Sampson one.
45:26And Sampson did have six catches for 62 yards, which makes it look like he was heavily involved as a pass catcher.
45:32It was the absolute definition of garbage time production on the Browns final drive of the game when they were hopelessly behind.
45:39And I can't remember which side of the two minute warning this was on, but Sampson had check down catches on three
45:46straight plays for 32 yards where the Steelers were just safeties deep, not giving up anything big.
45:51This was not meaningful production. And I think starting Dylan Sampson this week would be a terrible mistake.
45:56Well, there's some deeper plays that are out there that maybe you can start instead.
46:00And you guys both have got those. So Fitz, why don't you jump into who is your not ranked top 36 deeper
46:07play running back that you're ranking up? Well, it's your guy, Kalen Black for the San Francisco 49ers.
46:12Christian McCaffrey with that tender hamstring. The Raiders, big underdogs going to San Francisco and the Raiders have a terrible run defense.
46:19I think we could see a lot of Kalen Black in this game.
46:23Wouldn't be surprised. Fitz Erickson, who you got as your deep play?
46:26This name, I just looked at that name. Oh, who do you?
46:30I mean, Fitz, who do you have ranked higher?
46:33J.K. Dobbins or Dylan Sampson this week? Oh, it's J.K.
46:36Okay. Yeah. See, J.K. is my deep play. Because he's facing the Carolina Panthers.
46:40And that's really it. He's not good, but they're not good.
46:43So there you go. That's what deep plays are all about.
46:46They're not good, but the other team and defense, they're worse.
46:50So that's how you build a deep play. All right.
46:53There you go. Those are the top 36 and a little bit further on ECR.
46:57You'll see some changes. I mean, as we did this episode, we had guys that kind of moved up and down.
47:03And Blake Corum was actually an RB2 a day prior.
47:06And then he moved back. The reason that these move are when more rankers, the experts out there, submit their ranks.
47:13So, you know, go to fantasypros.com slash NFL slash rankings.
47:16You can follow that throughout the week to also track and see what the big move.
47:20When there is big movement as well, we've got indicators on there.
47:24This guy's moved up two or three spots in two days and stuff like that.
47:28But you guys can kind of see where some of the movement is based on what we've talked about.
47:34Hopefully this has helped you get set for your running back decisions.
47:38But we always got you covered on lots of our live streams to make sure you're locked into that.
47:43Wide receivers will be coming up in the next episode.
47:46So make sure you lock into that. But that is going to do it for the RB ranks for week nine.
47:53For Andrew Erickson and Pat Fitzmaurice, I'm Chris Welsh.
47:55Thanks for hanging out. And we'll talk to you next time right here on Fantasy Pros.
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