Week 2 Fantasy Football Running Back Sits: Zamir White, Travis Etienne, Zack Moss, Justice Hill and More

These are the running backs you should leave out of your lineups this week.

Sit

Zamir White, Las Vegas Raiders

Ironically enough, before the start of the season, I pegged White as this year's Alexander Mattison. It's ironic because Mattison could be the biggest issue for White. He was in on almost every passing down, as well as quite a few rushing downs.

White ended up playing just 38% of the snaps compared to Mattison's 60%. Nonetheless, White did see 15 opportunities to Mattison's 11, but that's not close to the volume fantasy owners were hoping to see from White.

Also, we aren't advocating you start Mattison either. His presence is merely to thwart the upside of White when it comes to fantasy football. This was about as disastrous a Week 1 as White owners could have foreseen. Mattison was also more efficient than White both on the ground and through the air while scoring the team's only touchdown.

You are going to see a lot of Mattison this season, especially when the Raiders are losing. Bad news White owners, they play the Baltimore Ravens this week, who are coming off a tough loss on national television. You're probably looking at a blowout from whistle to whistle. 

Zack Moss, Cincinnati Bengals

Moss established himself as the clear RB1 in Cincinnati, at least for the time being, in Week 1. Because of that, he deserves consideration on a weekly basis unless Chase Brown begins to see a much larger snap share.

Moss was solid last week, averaging 4.9 yards per carry and scoring a TD even though he only managed nine carries and three catches in an ugly loss to the New England Patriots. He draws a horrible matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs this week, who looked awesome up front last week stifling Derrick Henry before he could even get going.

We also anticipate the reigning champs having a healthy lead throughout this game, forcing the Bengals to throw a ton which could mean more Brown on the field. What we saw from Moss last week from a usage standpoint was encouraging, but he's still matchup dependent and this is a bad one. 

Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys

This a backfield we want nothing to do with, in a matchup we want nothing to do with. This is a backfield we avoided all offseason and last week we saw exactly why. Zeke and Rico Dowdle split snaps 32 to 28, carries 10-8 in Zeke's favor. Elliott also saw two targets to Dowdle's one. Neither guy managed to hit 50 total yards, although, Zeke did find the end zone.

This is far too even a split for a running back we wouldn't even love it if he was seeing 70% of the snaps and opportunities. To make matters worse, the matchup is brutal against the New Orleans Saints who held the Panthers' running backs Miles Sanders and Chuba Hubbard to just 36 total yards last week.

We get it, it's just the Panthers and it was a blowout. Nonetheless, Hubbard wasn't a bad back last year and the Saints' rush defense is almost always stout. There are so many reasons to avoid the Cowboys' running backs this week and not nearly enough upside to risk playing either guy.    

Chuba Hubbard, Carolina Panthers

That brings us to Hubbard, who was part of that throttling from the Saints last week. He is still the starter in Carolina, but only out-touched Sanders six to five on the ground last week and Sanders actually had one more opportunity than Hubbard if you count his two targets.

If this is any sort of a timeshare then Hubbard is essentially useless on an offense who will constantly be playing from behind and can't move the ball. The allure of Hubbard was always volume. We aren't willing to drop him quite yet, however, we will bench him this week and see how the running usage plays out in Week 2.

Hubbard did outsnap Sanders 32-22, but Sanders averaged 4.4 yards per carry to Hubbard's 2.3. It's not crazy to think Sanders' role could grow if he's more efficient again early on in this game. 

Travis Etienne, Jacksonville Jaguars

As a fantasy owner, the scariest development I saw in Week 1 that wasn't injury-related was the usage of the Jacksonville running backs. If you spent an early second-round pick on Etienne and are relying on him to be one of your top backs, last week had to leave you shook.

Not only did Etienne and Tank Bigsby split carries evenly at 12-12, but Bigsby looked like the much better runner. Bigsby turned his 12 carries into 73 yards compared to Etienne's 44. Etienne also essentially fumbled a win away into the end zone which could have ramifications moving forward.

It's exactly what happened to Bigsby last year that had him cast off to the bench. That won't happen to Etienne, but he could lose his red zone role. His two catches and TD saved his fantasy week even with the fumble and limited yardage total.

While his passing role is safe, nothing else seems to be at the moment. It's a heart-wrenching call, but we are leaving Etienne on the bench this week against a dominant Cleveland Browns' rush defense if at all possible. This isn't a start him but temper expectations "sit" call either. If you don't have to play him you should seriously consider leaving him on your bench for Week 2. Our condolences if he struggles again this week or Bigsby's role grows even larger.  

Justice Hill, Baltimore Ravens

Hill has an awesome fantasy game against the Chiefs in Week 1, especially in PPR leagues. He out-snapped Derrick Henry 43-37 and caught six passes for 52 yards. He is more than capable of having weeks like that from time to time. This week won't be one of those times.

When the Ravens are losing and have to pass this is how the running back usage will shake out. However, the Ravens are going to destroy the Raiders this week. Baltimore lost a heart-breaking rematch of the AFC Championship Game by a toe on national television to the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last year on opening night.

They are going to come out angry and punish Las Vegas. If you are in a knockout pool, this is the game to target because it's going to be ugly. You are going to get a heavy dose of Henry and doubt we see much of Hill. His snaps will be very limited in what we expect to be a slaughter. 

Looking for start/sit help? Be sure to check out the FantasySP Who Should I Start tool.

#2024-fantasy-football #start-sit-decision