Week 4 of the fantasy football season is officially underway for 30 of the NFL’s 32 teams. The Tennessee Titans have had multiple players and coaches test positive for COVID-19, and their showdown with the Pittsburgh Steelers has been pushed back. While this obviously has huge real life implications, you can’t overlook how this affects the start sit decisions for your fantasy football team. Darrell Henderson is a great start this week, while Brian Hill should stay on your bench.
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Darrell Henderson, Brian Hill Highlight Fantasy Football Running Back Week 4 Start Em, Sit Em
Start: Darrell Henderson
The Los Angeles Rams have a new leader of their backfield. After an offseason of speculation, second-year pro Darrell Henderson has earned a strong grasp on the starting job, and it’s hard to see him relinquishing the position any time soon. The 2019 third-round pick is coming off a fantastic game where he recorded 114 rushing yards and one touchdown on 20 attempts.
Cam Akers is nursing a rib injury, and Malcolm Brown is battling a pinky injury. Henderson is the only completely healthy back on the team, and he has a good chance of recording another 20-touch game. The New York Giants have a terrible defense and an anemic offense, so Henderson should receive plenty of carries and should be pretty efficient with his opportunities.
Sit: Brian Hill
Todd Gurley doesn’t look like his old self, and backup running back Brian Hill made some noise during Week 3’s battle against the Chicago Bears. While he could be a good stash down the line, it’s far too early to play Hill in any format. He only played in 34% of the snaps last week and picked up 35 of his 58 rushing yards on one attempt. This is still Gurley’s backfield for the time being, which means Hill should stay locked on your bench.
Start: David Montgomery
David Montgomery might not be the most efficient runner in the world, but volume alone makes him a safe RB2. Fellow Chicago Bears running back Tarik Cohen tore his ACL last week, leaving Montgomery as the de-facto three-down back. Cordarrelle Patterson will take some of the work, but Montgomery should have one of the largest workloads in the league. Nick Foles loves throwing to the running back, so Montgomery should see plenty of work in both the rushing and receiving game.
Sit: Rex Burkhead
Rex Burkhead was fantastic last week, recording a combined 98 yards and three touchdowns against the Las Vegas Raiders. However, the sad truth is that Burkhead is about to see a major decrease in work. Put simply, there are just too many mouths to feed in this backfield. Sony Michel and J.J. Taylor aren’t going anywhere, and James White looks like he’s going to play in Week 4. This is, at best, a four-headed backfield, and it could get even worse from a fantasy perspective. Damien Harris returned to practice this week and could be activated from the short-term injured reserve. Rex Burkhead is a great player when healthy, but he won’t have the volume to be a reliable start.
Start: Ronald Jones
For the time being, Ronald Jones is still the head of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers backfield. The third-year running back saw a 51% snap share last week, and head coach Bruce Arians said that Jones will remain the lead runner for the foreseeable future. Even if you don’t believe Arians, you should note that Leonard Fournette currently has an ankle injury. The running back might not play this week, and is going to be limited even if he does suit up. Jones should be a good volume play with a decent shot of finding the endzone.
Sit: Devonta Freeman
Who could’ve guessed that an old, washed-up running back working behind the worst offensive line in football wouldn’t be good for fantasy? Devonta Freeman simply doesn’t have it anymore, and his situation offers him no help. The New York Giants have a terrible offensive line, so clear running lanes are hard to come by. Additionally, the Giants cannot move the ball to save their lives, so the odds of Freeman falling into the endzone are pretty slim. Freeman shouldn’t be anywhere near your starting lineup, and you can probably cut him in certain leagues.
Auto-Start (Better Than Darrell Henderson)
Alvin Kamara, Ezekiel Elliott, Aaron Jones, Dalvin Cook, Jonathan Taylor, Kenyan Drake, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Miles Sanders, Nick Chubb, Josh Jacobs, Austin Ekeler
Wide Receiver Start Em, Sit Em
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