Week 15 Fantasy Football Running Back Waiver Adds: Patrick Taylor, Isaiah Davis, Sincere McCormick, Kimani Vidal

When it rains, it pours. After a full season of almost no highly drafted running backs missing time, we saw three different superstar RBs (Christian McCaffrey, Breece Hall, and Kenneth Walker) miss Week 14. We also have multiple other injuries and shifting backfields around the league, making this the most stacked week of RB pickups we have seen since the very beginning of the season. Let’s get right into it!

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Week 15 Fantasy Football Running Back Waiver Adds

Patrick Taylor, San Francisco 49ers (4.1% Rostered)

With CMC and Jordan Masn on IR, Isaac Guerendo took over as the 49ers’ lead RB on Sunday. In the most 49ers-RB game imaginable, he proceeded to score 25.8 Half-PPR points before exiting early with a foot injury. That injury is reportedly minor, but there is a chance he will miss the 49ers’ Thursday Night Football matchup for Week 15.

Next up in the 49ers’ backfield is Patrick Taylor, a former Packer who has spent most of the season on San Francisco’s practice squad. On the one hand, there is a real chance that Taylor won’t see a true RB1 workload. Deebo Samuel and Kyle Juszczyk will be involved, and we might also see Ke’Shawn Vaughn and/or Israel Abanikanda, both of whom were signed by the 49ers following the Mason/CMC injuries. On the other hand, I had the same worries about Guerendo, who was clearly an immediate smash. If he is the starting RB for Thursday against the Rams, Taylor will be a borderline RB2 option, which makes him a must-add in all formats.   

Braelon Allen, New York Jets (49.2% Rostered)

After a season of holding and waiting, we finally got a game with Braelon Allen as the Jets’ lead RB. Frankly, it was underwhelming. This wasn’t entirely unpredictable, as New York had been using Isaiah Davis (more on him later) even with Hall healthy in recent weeks. But I still wouldn’t have predicted that the two rookie RBs would see essentially a 50/50 split, and that is what we saw on Sunday. Allen had the edge just barely in snaps (56% to 52%), routes (43% to 36%), and carries (11 to 10), while Davis saw one more target (six to five). 

Going forward, it’s unclear how long Hall will be out, and he could even return as early as next week. What is clear is that Allen isn’t going to be the league winner we might have hoped he would be with Hall missing time late in the season. Regardless, Allen should be the Jets’ RB1 as long as Hall is out, even if he’s more of an RB-1A to Davis’ RB-1B. That makes him a must-add. 

Isaiah Davis, New York Jets (8.4% Rostered)

Given his usage this week, Davis himself is also worth adding, especially in deeper leagues and/or PPR formats. He actually out-scored Allen this week, 14.2 Half-PPR points to 10.1. This was thanks largely to a rushing TD, but he did play all four of the Jets' snaps inside the 10 (Allen also played one). Davis will likely lag behind Allen more in snaps and carries if the Jets are ever in positive game scripts, but he should stay involved enough to have flex appeal as long as Hall is out.

Sincere McCormick, Las Vegas Raiders (11.2% Rostered)

With Alexander Mattison and Zamir White still sidelined, McCormick dominated the Raiders’ backfield this week. Ameer Abdullah still played 40% of snaps, but McCormick handled 15 carries to the veteran’s one. McCormick was also involved in the passing game, seeing two targets on a 24% route participation rate (Abdullah also saw two targets on a 39% participation rate). 

Looking forward, both White and Mattison could still return. Mattison in particular seemed to have a genuine shot to suit up for Week 14, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see him in Week 15. There’s a chance that immediately kills McCormick’s value, but it’s also true that McCormick has been the Raiders’ most efficient rusher by an absolute mile. If Vegas’ coaching staff is paying attention, he should still be involved. Given that the Raiders have a very soft schedule for the fantasy playoffs, that is enough for me to recommend McCormick as a deep-league add. 

Kimani Vidal, Los Angeles Chargers (12.7% Rostered)

The Chargers’ offense fell apart on Sunday Night Football, obscuring the fact that there was a large shift in their backfield. After playing just 26% of offensive snaps last week, Vidal out-snapped Gus Edwards 53% to 44% against the Chiefs. Although he finished with just one target, the rookie dominated passing-down work, with a 42% route participation rate to Edwards’ 28%. And he was also involved on the ground, with eight carries to Edwards’ 10. Neither back got much done against the Chiefs’ elite run defense, but Vidal was slightly more efficient, with 4.3 yards per carry to Edwards’ 3.6.

Of course, this all turned into just 3.4 Half-PPR points for Vidal, as Edwards scored a goal-line TD (and played all four of the team’s snaps inside the 10). The Chargers’ offense has absolutely ground to a halt over the last two weeks, so there likely isn’t enough production to go around for Vidal to have much value in a 50/50 split with no goal-line work. With that said, they do have some decent matchups (Tampa in Week 15 and New England in Week 17), and betting on the pass-catching rookie over the plodding veteran is never a bad idea. Vidal is worth adding in most formats.  

Kendre Miller, New Orleans Saints (7.5% Rostered)

Miller returned from his second IR stint on Sunday and immediately saw decent involvement in the Saints’ offense. He played just 26% of snaps but handled 10 carries and saw one target. He even played the team’s only snap inside the 10-yard line and scored a touchdown. 

Of course, Miller is very unlikely to carve out a fantasy-relevant role while Alvin Kamara is around. But this performance cemented two things: 1. That Miller is ahead of Jamaal Williams in the pecking order, and 2. That he might be a talented running back (he finished with a 79.2 PFF Rushing Grade). Those two things combine to make him a very intriguing handcuff if Kamara were to miss time, so he is worth adding. 

Sean Tucker, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2.8% Rostered)

Bucky Irving exited the Buccaneers’ Week 15 game in the first half and was eventually ruled out with a back issue. With that in mind, it’s a little disappointing that Tucker only finished with 11 snaps, three carries, and one target. There’s a chance that Irving will not miss any time and, with what we saw on Sunday, Tucker might not be very involved behind Rachaad White even if the rookie is out. Still, I’m sure we all remember Tucker’s one massive game when given an opportunity in Week 6. That one huge week is enough for me to still mention him as worth considering as long as Bucky is banged up.   

Jaleel McLaughlin, Denver Broncos (15.4% Rostered)

I mentioned McLaughlin in last week’s breakdown, and Denver was on bye this week, so not much has changed in his situation since then. The Broncos’ backfield shifts on a weekly basis, but McLaughlin is arguably the best playmaker of the group and saw the most work the last time Denver was on the field. That puts him firmly on the deep-league radar.  

Ted Chmyz is a fantasy football contributor for FantasySP. Find him on Twitter @Tchmyz for more fantasy content or to ask questions.