Fantasy Football Week 3 Running Back Start/Sit: Tony Pollard, D'Andre Swift, Carson Steele and More
These are the backs you have questions about this week. We'll let you know if you should start or sit them.
Start
Tony Pollard, Tennessee Titans
It looks like Tyjae Spears could miss Week 3 with an ankle injury, or at the very least may be less than 100%. Pollard has already been dominating snaps and opportunities, both on the ground and through the air. If Spears is out, he should see a near-every-down role.
That volume alone would make him a solid start, but he also has an outstanding matchup against the Packers this week. They have been gashed by the opposing starting running back in each of their first two games, allowing back-to-back 100-yard games.
Zamir White, Las Vegas Raiders
White is not a back we believe in and he was a sit in this article just last week. It was well deserved because he was horrible for the second-straight week, rushing for just 24 yards. However, this week he goes up against the Carolina Panthers and all teams do is run against them.
The Panthers fall far behind and teams stop throwing but still run all over them with ease. Alexander Mattison also shouldn't be much of a factor as the pass-catching back because this will be a true ground attack. While we don't like White moving forward, we are starting every team's carry leader against the Panthers until further notice.
Zach Charbonnet, Seattle Seahawks
Kenneth Walker is probably going to miss another game and Charbonnet will once again be the clear-cut RB1 for Seattle. No other back saw a single opportunity in Week 2. The matchup this week against the Dolphins is the perfect situation.
Last week, Miami was gashed on the ground by James Cook and the game script is in his favor. Without Tua Tagovailoa, we expect the Seahawks to run away with this game, which means Charbonnet should see 20-plus carries. His outcome should be better than the 2.7 yards per carry he managed last week against the New England Patriots too. However, if Walker does end up being active, then forget about all of this and don't start Charbonnet. We do not anticipate that being the case though.
D'Andre Swift, Chicago Bears
Swift has been awful so far in Chicago, but we are willing to give him one more shot for two reasons. He's been receiving almost all the running back snaps and opportunities and the matchup is juicy. The Indianapolis Colts haven't been able to do anything to stop the run so far this season, getting trounced on the ground by both Joe Mixon and Josh Jacobs for over 150 yards each.
To make matters worse for Indy, they just placed their star defensive tackle and best run-stopper DeForest Buckner on injured reserve with an ankle injury. If Swift fails this week, then it's fair to give up on him, but he's a must-start against the Colts.
Sit
Jerome Ford, Cleveland Browns
Because the matchup is so good against the Giants this week you may end up starting Ford. However, there are some serious red flags that you should be extremely alarmed about as well. D'Onta Foreman only playing five fewer snaps than Ford in Week 2 while out-touching him 15-8 and out carrying him 14-7 is terrifying if you were expecting to rely on Ford for the foreseeable future.
This is a fantastic matchup but his role is suddenly a massive question mark. You can start Ford, but understand the risks and temper your expectations.
Carson Steele, Kansas City Chiefs
A lot of people are going to go all in for Steele on the waiver wire this week and that's understandable. Nevertheless, we aren't willing to throw him in our starting lineups this week. We want to see how this backfield is deployed with Steele, Samaje Perine and most likely Kareem Hunt all in the mix.
It's not clear how much the coaching staff trusts Steele after fumbling in Week 2 or even how good he actually is. Isiah Pacheco is going to miss about two months. If we see what we are hoping to see, you'll have plenty of opportunities to start him moving forward. Rushing him into your lineup would be a risky move in Week 3 though.
Javonte Williams, Denver Broncos
Williams is a bad running back in a bad offense with a bad matchup this week. We want nothing to do with him. At this point, we are closer to sending him to the waiver wire than starting him. No further explanation is needed here.
Rachaad White, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
White is quickly watching his volume get siphoned off by rookie Bucky Irving, with Irving being the more efficient of the two. Last week, White saw 10 carries that he took for just 18 yards and one five-yard reception on his only target. Irving carries the ball seven times for 22 yards.
This week, White has popped up on the injury report with a groin injury, which is always tricky to navigate through and a high risk for re-injury. The matchup against the low-scoring Broncos also isn't ideal being that most of White's value comes in the passing attack. We've seen him struggle to put up fantasy points already this year because the Bucs have been leading so often. If you have a decent pivot option then leave him on your bench this week.
