Week 6 Fantasy Football Running Back Rankings & Tiers: Studs, Sleepers, and Must-Starts (Ep. 1761)

Summary

FantasyPros - Fantasy Football Podcast

Episode Title: Week 6 Fantasy Football Running Back Rankings & Tiers: Studs, Sleepers, and Must-Starts (Ep. 1761)
Release Date: October 9, 2025
Host: Chris Welsh
Analysts: Pat Fitzmorris & Andrew Erickson

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into the murky and ever-changing landscape of fantasy running backs for NFL Week 6. Chris Welsh, Pat Fitzmorris, and Andrew Erickson break down RB1s, RB2s, and flex plays, discuss the most pressing start/sit debates, analyze waiver wire pickups, and provide actionable insight for fantasy managers hit hard by injuries and underperforming studs. The trio also debate the lowest floors and highest ceilings among mid- and low-tier running backs, referencing their own rankings and the latest expert consensus (ECR).

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Changing Landscape at Running Back (00:35–01:50)

• Running back injuries and backfield shakeups have made the RB landscape "murky" and unreliable outside the top tier.
• The Chargers' backfield is a prime example of chaos, with injuries and depth chart churn.
• Last week’s hot waiver debates (D. Markado vs. Michael Carter) shift to this week’s battles (Hassan Haskins vs. Kamani Vidal).

2. Chargers' RB Conundrum: Haskins vs. Vidal (01:50–04:03)

• Pat sees Hassan Haskins as the safest low-ceiling choice due to expected goal line work while Omari and Hampton are out. "[Haskins] is probably the safest bet to offer some fantasy value ... probably the safe play to have some low level fantasy value for however long Omari and Hampton [are] out." (01:50)
• Andrew concurs, siding with Haskins over Vidal due to expected opportunities in a favorable matchup versus Miami, but worries about Haskins’ talent and efficiency. “He had a 0% success rate on his runs ... five carries for 13 yards and they were all negative plays. That’s my only concern about just being too bullish on Haskins.” (03:01)

3. Point-Costly Mistakes & Rookie Fumbles (04:03–06:15)

• The hosts jest about rookie mistakes—players dropping the ball before crossing the goal line, notably D. Markado’s recent error.
  "It's dumber because a guy did it the week before. ... Just show everybody low light of these guys ... dropping the ball before they score." — Andrew (04:27)
• Pat defends Adnai Mitchell’s fumble as less egregious but calls D. Markado’s mistake “inexplicable.” (05:09)
• Emphasize to rookies: “Just be sure to get the ball into the end zone first and then, you know, go for it.” — Pat (06:05)

4. RB1 Rankings & Debates (06:15–11:46)

Top 12 RBs (Tier 1)

• Ample agreement on clear top-tier backs: Jonathan Taylor, Bijan Robinson, Christian McCaffrey, etc.

Devon Achan – High Ceiling vs. Uncertainty

• Pat is highest (RB6): "One of the most dangerous dual run-catch threats ... without even breaking off a big play of 30+ yards yet." (07:24)
• Andrew, less optimistic, notes poor showing against Carolina but admits: "The fact that Achan hasn't had that marquee big play yet ... I'm getting now a little bit concerned that I am too low on Achan." (08:10)

Javonte Williams – Ranking Debate

• Andrew pushes Javonte up to RB5, citing bell-cow status and Dallas’s offensive success:
  "Brian Schottenheimer is all on board ... He said actually one of his postgame pressers that he's president of the Javonte Williams fan club." (09:31)
• Pat tempers excitement: "I'm not higher on him [because] Carolina run defense ... is kind of a neutral matchup now." (10:50)

5. RB2 Tier: Volatility & Notable Debates (14:21–28:49)

Derrick Henry – Floor Falling Out?

• Andrew, most pessimistic (RB21): "He needs to get a goal line opportunity ... Rams, one of the toughest defenses to run against ... I see the floor could bottom out entirely." (15:22)
• Pat echoes concerns but holds steady: "The silver lining is that the Ravens fed Derrick Henry 15 carries last week ... that's all I got." (17:10)

Rico Dowdle “Revenge Game” Hype

• Both analysts are slightly above ECR (consensus 15), citing opportunity, passing game role, and matchup.
• Andrew stokes the “revenge” angle: "He wants to show, hey, you guys should have kept me." (19:29)

Bill Crosky-Merritt Is Trustworthy Again

• Both analysts have him inside the top 20, touting efficiency and role: "He basically took over the RB1 role ... and just continue[d] to do what he does.” — Andrew (21:13)
• Pat cautions about a three-RB committee limiting ceiling: "He had his highest snapshare ... only 47.5%.” (22:34)

Rashad White—Volume Wins in a Tough Matchup

• Pat: Stable ECR, value tied to Bucky Irving’s injury: “We got what we expected from Rashad White last week ... maybe I should be a little higher just based on projected volume.” (24:12)
• Andrew: More bullish (RB15): “Passing game ... that's where White actually thrives the most ... I think that he's a top 15 guy.” (24:58)

Michael Carter – Opportunity vs. Talent

• Andrew: Skeptical, outside RB2 (RB27): "[Last week] was the perfect run out ... he's a Jag running back ... wouldn't be so shocked if the Cardinals are trailing and D. Markado is out there." (26:07)
• Pat: Prefers opportunity over talent for RB usage: "So often at running back, opportunity means more than talent ... 23 touches last week for Michael Carter." (27:43)

6. RB3/Flex Tier, Waiver Fliers, and Sleeper Hopefuls (28:49–38:34)

Jalen Warren/Kenny Gainwell Split (30:00–32:31)

• Both see Warren as a floor flex due to passing role, but worry about split with Gainwell post-bye.

Chase Brown – Flacco Checkdown Effect?

• Andrew: "If [Flacco throwing to RBs] becomes more of the norm, then I think that you're looking at an RB3 floor ... but volume, right?" (33:24)
• Pat: Volume is key, and situation (bad O-line, immobile QB) pushes rush attempts: “You have to at least pay lip service to the running game.” (34:50)

Hassan Haskins – Emergency Rainy Day Start

• Both list Haskins around RB31–32, outside top flex WRs; touchdown-dependent:
  – Pat: “Best bet to have goal line opportunities for the Chargers ... pretty good bet for double digit carries and short yardage duty. And that's about as excited as I can get for Hassan Haskins this week.” (36:16)
  – Andrew: “You’re really starting more as like a desperation RB2 where you have to start a running back. ... I think you can probably find a better wide receiver, even potentially a tight end option this week.” (37:47)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On rookie fumbles at the goal line:
  "What they should do at the rookie symposium ... show everybody low light of these guys ... dropping the ball before they score." — Andrew Erickson (04:27)

• On opportunity vs. talent at RB:
  "Opportunity means more than talent and I think that's kind of the case here." — Pat Fitzmorris, on Michael Carter (27:43)

• About running back unpredictability in 2025:
  "Fantasy football is weird ... guys you would have thought would maybe be RB2s at this time, like RJ Harvey, Travion Henderson. Would have been crazy to think that those guys would have earned RB2 value by this point." — Pat Fitzmorris (30:00)

• Summing up the RB3 tier:
  “The top end is okay and then it really starts to fall off ... maybe there are even bigger questions which can be saved for the trade show.” — Chris Welsh (29:53)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Intro & Recent RB Landscape: 00:35–01:50
• Chargers RB Situation (Haskins/Vidal): 01:50–04:03
• Rookie Mistakes/Lowlights Anecdote: 04:03–06:15
• RB1 Rankings & Devon Achan/Javonte Williams Debates: 06:15–11:46
• RB2 Tier & Derrick Henry Debate: 14:21–17:37
• Rico Dowdle Revenge Game Hype: 17:17–20:48
• Bill Crosky-Merritt, Rashad White, & Michael Carter: 21:13–28:49
• RB3/Flex Tier & Deep Sleepers: 28:49–38:34
• Haskins vs. WR/TE in Flex: 37:13–38:34

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Summary Table: Key RB Rankings/Opinions

| Player | Fitz Rank | Erickson Rank | Notable Commentary | |----------------------|------------|---------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Hassan Haskins | 31 | 32 | Safe, TD-dependent, desperation RB2/flex | | Kamani Vidal | Outside 36 | Outside 36 | More "juice," less trust; some red zone looks | | Devon Achan | 6 | 11 | Huge upside, has not had a breakout play yet | | Javonte Williams | 10 | 5 | True bell cow, trusted by coaching staff | | Derrick Henry | 13 | 21 | Volume remains, low efficiency, brutal matchup | | Rico Dowdle | 14 | 13 | Workhorse with pass game role; “revenge game” narrative | | Bill Crosky-Merritt | 18 | 19 | Efficiency plus role, but limited by committee | | Rashad White | 20 | 15 | Volume/targets if Bucky Irving is out | | Michael Carter | 23 | 27 | All opportunity, little talent | | Jalen Warren | 26 | 30 | Floor with pass game; split concerns | | Kenny Gainwell | 34 | Not ranked | Will hurt Warren more than provide standalone value | | Chase Brown | 29 | 26 | Volume locked, Flacco may boost checkdowns |

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Final Thoughts

• Manager’s Dilemma: The RB ranks are turbulent, especially outside the top 12. Volume and opportunity are the primary decision drivers in an otherwise talent-thin, committee-plagued tier.
• Waiver & Flex Planning: Week 6 especially calls for creativity and risk tolerance in RB2/RB3/flex spots.
• Devon Achan & Rico Dowdle: Stand out as high-upside, confident starts, with Dowdle’s revenge-game narrative adding flavor.
• Derrick Henry: Once auto-start, now a matchup-dependent, floor-concern RB2.

For further rankings and updates, the hosts encourage listeners to monitor fantasypros.com/rankings, and join the Thursday live stream (YouTube, 3pm ET) for start/sit Q&A — “There will be no less than 400 billion Hassan Haskins questions.”

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Summary created for fantasy football managers seeking in-depth, actionable week 6 running back insights.

Transcript

[Pat Fitzmorris]

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[Chris Welsh]

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[Chris Welsh]

What's up friends and welcome in to Fantasy Pros. This is the fantasy football podcast. Week 6 Running Back Ranks There's a lot to talk about with running. The running backs, they're falling. It's guy. We went from Michael Carter to this week a charger situation. They're changing a bunch. Guys we trust are not as trustable and we will get a couple trusted voices in here to help us figure out this entire situation. I'm Chris Welsh, that is Pat Fitz Morris and Andrew Erickson here to guide us through this very, very messy running back waters that it is murky, it is scary and we can't see the bottom. So we are going to try to figure out. We need a lifeboat here. Some of the top end guys are still good, but if you're having to dig a little bit then you were in the waiver streets this week. Speaking of those were a battle. Last week it was D. Markado versus Michael Carter. This week it was Hassan Haskins versus Kamani Vidal. Fitzy, what did you do? What did you do in the waivers? Waivers were kind of boring and then it turned into this situation and they probably died. Unless you needed a tight end, you might have been able to do some good stuff with Mason Taylor. It's not a waiver show but what side did you fall on on the Chargers running backs and that will probably be relevant to what we talk about here in just a little bit.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

Oh man. I was a Kamani Vidal truther last year. Didn't work out so well and now I just. We have no idea what the Chargers running game is going to look like. But Hassan Haskins is in the mix. Kamani Vidal is in the mix. Chargers brought in Naheem Hines, a pass catching back. They brought in Amar Johnson who was on the packers for a while. And look in the preseason I don't know if they've activated Johnson from the practice squad yet. I do think Hasan Haskins is probably the safest bet to offer some fantasy value. It's the only Chargers running back left who was on the opening day roster. Haskins had 1300 receiving yards and 20 touchdown runs in his final college season at Michigan playing for Jim Harbaugh. He's kind of a plotter and doesn't really have a lot of pass catching potential, but it's a pretty safe bet that Haskins is going to be the Chargers goal lineback at least while Hampton is out. So I do think he's probably the safe play to have some low level fantasy value for however long. Omari and Hampton this out.

[Chris Welsh]

Erickson, do you concur? Is it Haskins over Vidal for you?

[Andrew Erickson]

Yes. Yeah, it's Haskins over Vidal for this week. Again, really easy matchup against the Miami Dolphins and Cream Hunter showed us that you don't necessarily need to be good at running back to score touchdowns if you're just getting those types of opportunities. So Askins can get it done. He could fall in the end zone a couple times and you feel good about starting him. Although I think Vadal offers a little bit more juice and Videl did get some red zone touches last week, so it's not just with a bullet. That's going to be Hassan Haskins going to get all the red zone attempts. But he's a former Michigan guy, he has Harbaugh's trust. I just don't think that he's very good, which is why I don't want to be over the moon about you got to start Haskins over all these other guys because he's playing the Dolphins. You still have to hit like some level of competence as a running back because last week he had a 0% success rate on his runs. He had five carries for 13 yards and they were all deemed as negative plays. So that's my only concern about just being too bullish on Haskins. But if you need a starting running back, especially in RB2 with all these injuries, I think he's a fine guy. Just plug in and just hey, what did we say with Kareem Hunt last week? Spraying Pray baby.

[Chris Welsh]

It worked out well and I think you said this off air, but it was a much better situation last week with D Markado and Michael Carter. I think we all had a very clear vision of where we were going and then obviously the production. I mean we could have been having a very different conversation if DeMarcado didn't make one of the dumbest plays in quite a few years in the NFL. But we will talk before the dumbest.

[Andrew Erickson]

Play before AD And I. Mitchell made it the week before.

[Chris Welsh]

But my point is, is like, it's dumber because a guy did it the week before. Like, it's not like, oh, we're five years away and you just did the thing. A guy did it last week and you caught. Like, it's the dumbest.

[Andrew Erickson]

What they should do at the rookie symposium is before they do anything else, they get all the rookies to sit down and they just show everybody low light of these guys. Desean Jackson, Adonai Mitchell, Jonathan Taylor, just doing them all. Running into the end zone, dropping the ball before they score. And like, that's the first thing. It's like. Any questions, guys? All right.

[Chris Welsh]

Yeah, just put like the, you know, the look of like the AI children crying or whatever. Just have that, like in the background as they're dropping the ball and just AI, you're just crying and screaming that they did this to them. Just something. Let's fix it.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

But I'll say in Adnai Mitchell's defense, like, he was. He didn't slow down before he got to the end zone and. And it seemed like he was trying to just change hands. Maybe he was preparing for some big celebration or whatever. But he didn't just drop the ball. I mean, it was a. It was a bad play, no question about it. But like, I mean, if DeMarcado hadn't just. He was slowing down and I'm like, what are you doing? You're going to get the ball punched out. And then he just dropped the ball on his own anyway right before a guy could punch out the ball. So that one was really kind of inexplicable.

[Chris Welsh]

I just want to see a guy 50 yards completely open and then just do the like, contested catch animation on Madden and just fall over. Just fall, like, don't do any. Just fall over into the end zone. Just protect it. It'll be great. Shout out to Amari D. Markado.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

I don't get it, man. Once you get into the end zone, you can do whatever you want. You know, you can be like the packers and jump into the stands to celebrate with fans. You can do the Go jump in.

[Chris Welsh]

A bucket if you want to do.

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[Pat Fitzmorris]

Yeah, do the. The Isaac Tesla Snow angel in the end zone. Like so many different things you can do. Just be sure to get the ball into the end zone first and then, you know, go for it.

[Chris Welsh]

So many activities that you can do in the end zone, like karate if you want, but just take it, do the ball with it. Fantasypros.com rankings fantasypros.com rankings don't have a hissy fit or freak out. You guys are talking enough about the rankings. We're here, we're doing it. Fantasypros.com rankings it's going to change throughout the week. You want to follow any of the positions? What we're talking about here is going to have some variance as more people put the ranks up, but let's jump into it and see where you guys got them. Arby's 1 through 12, Jonathan Taylor is number one, Bijan Robinson at two, Christian McCaffrey, Josh Jacobs, Jameer Gibbs, James Cook that rounds out the top half of the RB1s. Coming in at 7 is Saquon Barkley, Kyron Williams, Javante Williams, Devon Achan, Ashton Genty and Breece Hall. These are all your big startable guys. There's probably not any crazy major questions, but we do have some differences between you guys. So let's get a few quick takes. Devon HN ECR RB10 Erickson's got him at 11, so one spot lower. But Fitzy, you're the high guy. You've got him at 6. That was supposed to be for last week when it was like a easier matchup. So what say you? Devon Achan, RB6 what's got you excited?

[Pat Fitzmorris]

Currently RB6 in half point PBR fantasy scoring and Achan is averaging 17 touches a game. He's one of the most dangerous dual run catch threats in the league and he's done all this without even breaking off a big play of 30 or more yards yet. And we know we're probably going to get some of those big plays from the former Texas A and M track star who, you know, melts stopwatches and I think went to the Olympic time trials as a sprinter when he was at A and M. So yeah, I mean add in a few big plays and a Tran could be like a top three running back.

[Chris Welsh]

But Erickson, is this the week against the Chargers? Is this the week where those big plays can happen in their defense?

[Andrew Erickson]

Say you I was so confident it was going to happen last week and then he averaged 1.6 yards per carry.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

Against the Carolina Panthers.

[Andrew Erickson]

So that really kind of rubbed me the wrong way where I'm thinking, man, he couldn't get done against Carolina, but what do we see? Our guy Bill just went absolutely nuclear against the Chargers because they love to stack the box. We talked about this on last week's show where yes, when teams over pursue that leads to a lot of negative plays. But it also opens up opportunities for you. Make one guy miss and it's off to the races. So the fact that Achan hasn't had that marquee big play yet, I'm getting now a little bit concerned that I am too low on Achan. I think the reason is just I like a lot of these top tier running backs this week. I think a lot of them are in really good spots. I know there's another guy we're going to talk about here as well that I'm also higher on than consensus. But yeah, I think I got to find a way to try to move HN up because I think that this could be a really big week for him.

[Chris Welsh]

It does not look like you will make the move when you do putting him above Javante Williams because as you were just mentioning, Javante Williams is ECR9. Fitzy you're at 10 one spot lower. But Erickson you're all in 5 RB5 for Javante Williams this week. So Achan's not going to make a move up to him. But it's a bold statement on a guy that's been a bell cow though. Like he, he just kind of rolls and runs into that offense and in theory like you liked about Devon H and last week, he does have Carolina this week. So hopefully he averages more than 1.3 yards per carry against this Carolina team. But talk to us about Javante Williams.

[Andrew Erickson]

Been a bell cow like you said. Brian Schottenheimer is all on board of we're going to ride the Javante Williams train. They he said actually one of his postgame pressers that he's president of the Javante Williams fan club. Like the head coach, the guy who's calling the plays is the running back's biggest fan. So Jaden Blue, Miles Sanders, these guys are ancillary pieces in this Dallas backfield is all Javante and he's all the way back. You know this is pre injury form Javante when he was a tackle breaking machine coming out of North Carolina. I'm all the way in, especially in this matchup against Carolina Panthers. I mean Dallas offense. I mean how many offenses are playing better than the Dallas offense And that's despite the missing Ceedee Lamb. They're missing guys on their offensive line and it doesn't matter because Dak Prescott is playing so well. So I'm all in on Javonte Williams this week and for future weeks.

[Chris Welsh]

Yeah Fitzy, one of the things we've definitely seen is like despite or whatever the loss is, they just go back to Javante Javante has been a safety net. Whether it's catching some balls or just consistently running and setting up, you know, play action and just better pass situations, Javante has been the guy and in theory this matchup looks pretty dang solid. On the fantasy pros ranks. This is given a four star matchup. It's an A start and sit rating and then the matchup is four out of five stars. You know, easy star metric here, which is one of the higher of the top 12 Arby's this week.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

Yeah, Javante has been terrific RB3 and fantasy points per game. He's averaging 5.7 yards per carry. He's chipping in as a pass catcher. Javante leads all running backs with 25 runs for first downs. I guess the only reason I'm not higher on him is the Carolina run defense. That good a matchup. Like it's, it's not the pushover that it has been the last couple of years. They lost Derrick Brown, they're big defensive tackle early last season and then the run defense just kind of fell apart. Maybe it hadn't been that great to begin with, but now Panthers have given up the 14th fewest fantasy points to running backs. Kind of a neutral matchup. Their run defense ranks 14th in DVOA. Like maybe this is not a plum matchup anymore. You know, used to be a matchup you would target with running backs. We might have to start getting our heads around the idea that it's just no better than a neutral matchup.

[Chris Welsh]

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[Chris Welsh]

Arby's 13 through 24 or the RB2s as we would designate them. Coming in is Derek Henry at 13, Quinson Jutkins at 14, Rico Dowdle, Bill Crosby, Merritt JK Dob Cam Scatterboat 18, Travis Etienne, DeAndre Swift, Rashad White, Ken Walker, Dave Montgomery and Michael Carter. Strap in because this is the core of what we have a lot to talk about. Usually in these ranges you guys will know we talk about like 3 max 4. But we we got a lot of guys to talk about. And let's start with Derrick Henry. Even though he is such a big name, there is a lot of just negative feels on Derrick Henry right now. And there's a negative rank by one of you two. He is ECR 13. Fitz is not the negative. Nancy. He's got him at 13. Erickson 21. That is benchable, actual benchable territory. Depending on the running backs that you have got out there. If you picked up a Rico Dowdle or a Bill Crosby merit, you might also have another better guy. 21 Is it this bad for Derek Henry right now?

[Andrew Erickson]

Erickson I mean, it's been this bad for Derek Henry. He has one top 20 finish and half PPR this season and it was in week one against Buffalo Bills. Every single week he's been outside the top 20 running backs. So I can't get there with consensus ranking him as a top 20 running back when this team is so injured they're projected to play in a negative game script. When we know Derrick Henry, if it's 10, nothing. I mean he's game scripted out like he's not even on the field to catch passes or salvage his fantasy production in any way. He needs to get a goal line opportunity, which is what happened last week when he scored the touchdown. So factor in the Rams, one of the toughest defenses to run against the 31st in terms of running back points allowed per game this season to fantasy. So it's kind of like the trifecta of why you shouldn't play Derrick Henry this week. There's just so many reasons why I want to get away from him. And yes, I know that he's the big dog and he can always do and rip off these big plays, but this year specifically has been his worst year as of late in terms of forcing missed tackles. He's forced eight missed tackles across 64 carries. That's his lowest force miss tackle rate over the past eight seasons dating back 2018. So in better matchups when Lamar Jackson is back, yes, you're going to be firing Derrick Henry up as an RB one. You're not going to think twice about it. But in this particular spot, I'm trying to get away from Derek Henry because I don't see the ceiling. I see the floor could bottom out entirely into a brutal matchup. So yes, you guys are going to have to sell me on why he should be a top 20 running back.

[Chris Welsh]

Fitzy if he's the big dog, we all know the big dog eats and will the big dog eat this week? You've got him at ECR. It's just outside. I mean, you know 13, that's just outside. It's essentially an RB one. It's kind of hard to not do the really like I maybe it's lame for people, but you're just like, dude, it's Derek Henry. Like you got to start him. It's hard to not do that because of like who he is and the volume and stuff. But things have been bad. What say you? Fitzy?

[Pat Fitzmorris]

I'm Definitely nervous. Erickson did a fantastic job of laying out all the negatives. So I guess it's up to me to try to find a silver lining for the the Derrick Henry investors. The silver lining is that the Ravens fed Derek Henry 15 carries last week in a game where they ran 39 offensive plays. 38.5% of their offensive plays were handoffs to Derek Henry and he did score a touchdown. And that's all I got.

[Chris Welsh]

That's all. That's all the Derek Henry. That's all that we have here. There's got to either be a trust level or, you know, if you've got options, it's going to be a lot of Derek Henry Stern sick questions. Just sorry. We know it's going to be there. You guys are on opposite ends. I'm probably going to be. Most of fantasy pros is kind of battling between it revenge narrative game. Rico Dowdle was amazing last week. Cowboys are back ECR15. You guys both have him a little bit higher. Fitzy, let's start with you. We'll get, we'll get more breakdown. Hopefully Enrico Dowdle. And I'm guessing we're starting Rico Dowdle in some spots over Derek Henry. Definitely for Erickson. But what say you on Rico Dowdle for week six? Fitzy.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

Oh man, I've got him one spot behind Derrick Henry. Now with the revenge game narrative that I totally forgot about, I think I might have to flip him. No, just kidding. But like, yeah, we saw Rico have a heavy workload last week with no Chuba Hubbard and now he gets a pretty good matchup against a Dallas defense that ranks to 23rd in DVOA against the run. And the Cowboys have allowed the sixth most fantasy points to running backs. And even if the game script goes sideways, like if Dak Prescott continues to deal and gets the Cowboys up by a couple of scores over the Panthers, Rico Dowdle does have utility as a pass catcher. He's used in the passing game. And the Cowboys have given up League high 299 receiving yards to running backs this season. So yeah, I mean Rico had three catches for 28 yards last week. He had 39 catches with the Cowboys last year. So he might be game script proof. And the matchup does look pretty good.

[Chris Welsh]

Erickson, please sell me on some revenge game narrative. Build the revenge game up. It's super important. Everybody is dialed in. All the broadcasts will be talking about Rico Dowdle returning to Dallas. Well, you guys know he said that aside.

[Andrew Erickson]

You guys know what he said after the game, right? He said they got to buckle up when talking about playing the Cowboys after they. So I think that this is a revenge game that not just us is talking about and thinking about it, because we're the ones that are always driving this really dumb narrative most of the time that basically means nothing. And most players are like, yeah, I made a lot of money with that.

[Chris Welsh]

Team, but Stefon Diggs. But I just want to point out. But Stefan Diggs, revenge game narrative. Yes, I guess with.

[Andrew Erickson]

With certain players, some players, I think maybe it does matter just a little bit more who is on the other side of the field. And I think with Rico Dowdle, again, he spent five years with the Dallas Cowboys. He had a breakout year last year, and they said, go somewhere else, like, we're not going to resign you. And again, they got Javante. So it ended up working out for both parties, I think, getting a running back, but I think he wants to show, hey, you guys should have kept me and not signed Javante. So I think he's set up for just another monster, monster game. And I know I talked about, like, being high in Javante. You know, Rico's going to be right up there if we get Chuba Hubbard, like, officially out. And I think that's probably going to be what ends up happening here, because Hubbard's injury, it was a re. Injury of something that he was dealing with. And just given how well Rico played, I think that they're not going to push Hubbard, who they have invested into a lot financially. They're not going to press him to come back sooner than he's ready to go. So, Uncle Rico, baby, revenge game. Let's go.

[Chris Welsh]

I do feel like this is football over that mountain over there for Rico this week. I'm in. Bill Crosky, Merritt, ECR16. Both of you guys are a little bit lower, but, you know, semantics. It's top 20. That's the thing that we've gotten to. Fitzy, you're at 18. Erickson, you're at 19. You guys are both a little bit higher. Ericsson, why don't we let you kick it off here? Bill Crosby, he's back in the good graces. He is in the trust tree. Yay or nay?

[Andrew Erickson]

Yay. He is back in the trust tree. He basically took over the RB1 role against the Chargers and just continue to do what he does. Just be the super efficient running back that we saw when he was still splitting work with Rodriguez. And then the coaches finally decided, all right, we got our starting quarterback. Let's get our starting running back. The ball more and he just was fantastic. 111 rushing yards, scored two touchdowns, basically a nearly flawless stake set for the rook. Excuse me, the fumble that he had and then Chris Rodriguez they involved a little bit later in the game. So there's always a chance that Rodriguez vultures a touchdown because that's kind of where they like to use him in the red zone. But JCM still had a touchdown from outside the five yard line and he's shown that he can score from anywhere on the field with his explosiveness. So against the Bears defense, top five in terms of fantasy points allowed to running backs this season, that's how you've been attacking them. I think you've got to fire up JCM and I'm not hesitating to fire a Bill over Derrick Henry this week. Final last words.

[Chris Welsh]

Okay, that was okay, that was a big final last word. Let me present the in and Fitzy. Feel free to, you know, just get into the Bill cross. But let me present a who'd you rather in this situation? Would you rather Bill, you got him at 18. Would you rather Bill Crosby at 18 or. Or the ECR 18 which is currently Cam Scatter Boo and we got word that Tyrone Tracy looks like he's a full go practice everything like he should be back in it. Are you Bill Crosby or Cam Scatterboo.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

For week six I'm still Cam Scatterboo because he well one, I think he's maybe the better player and number two, I think he is going to have a higher snapchair than Jakory Crosky Merritt this week even with Tyrone Tracy back. Like I don't think Tyrone Tracy is getting anything close to like a 5050 workload share. I think now Cam Scatter Boo is the starter and Tyrone Tracy is the backup and maybe the passing down back and that's it. And really like that is the only knock on Jakory Crosky. Merit Erickson mentioned the efficiency. He is leading all running backs in yards per carry, 6.6 yards per carry. Pretty good rushing success rate 72.1% also pretty good. But the commanders are still using a three running back rotation. Like Bill had his highest snapshare of the season against the Chargers and it was only 47.5% which is good enough to be an RB2. But it's just, you know, you'd like to see it over 50% and it is kind of a bummer for him that he has to share with Chris Rodriguez and Jeremy McNichols.

[Chris Welsh]

You hope maybe that we'll start to see that tick up and up. But he is in the good graces of everybody regardless of it as a top 20 back this week. So probably going to be a few questions on him. Rashad White, RB21 obviously connected to Bucky Irving and his status. Fitz, you got him at 20. Erickson, you've got him at 15. Fitzy, why don't you kick us off real quick. You're right around ecr. Is this just simplistic of like it's relative to Bucky's situation? If Bucky's out, Rashad sits in this range.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

Yeah, I mean I'm ranking him as if Bucky is going to be out again. I should maybe inch a little closer to where Erickson is versus ecr. It's just that we kind of got what we expected from Rashad White last week, aside from the two touchdowns. That was the nice bonus with him. But we got sort of a low efficiency rushing day 14 for 42.3yards per carry and then like nice production as a receiver, four catches for 30 yards. So maybe I should be a little higher just based on projected volume.

[Chris Welsh]

Erickson, this is clearly Bucky is out. Rashad white top 15. He gets the Niners defense, which really hasn't been as good as they have in the past against the run they've got gotten eaten up a little bit. You can catch some balls out of the backfield for them. So Bucky out. Rashad top 15 played 80% of the.

[Andrew Erickson]

Snaps last week to Sean Tucker's 21%. Sean Tucker only played 13 snaps, so it was a tougher matchup last week I think as well for Rashad White as a rusher. He's never been someone that pops in terms of yards per carry anyway, but he has the red zone equity. The Buccaneers are going to score points because Baker Mayfield's their quarterback and their top 10 offense, so he's going to have those opportunities. And the passing game, stuff like that's where White actually thrives the most. I actually expected more from him against Seattle in the passing game. We just saw Kyron Williams torch this 49ers defense out of the backfield with career highs across the board and receiving. So I think that they're going to look at that and think, hey, we can get Rashad White involved in the pass catching game here. So I think that he's a top 15 guy.

[Chris Welsh]

Michael Carter is the final one in this range. I expect lots of questions about him this week. Also tied in Kyler Murray wasn't practicing today Something to keep and as we're recording this, something to keep an eye on. But Michael Carter ECR RV 24. Fitz you got him at 23. Erickson you're a little bit lower at 27. Erickson, let's get your lower. Take lower. Ish. It's just he's not a RV2 for you. He's in that flex range. Maybe he's battling some wide receivers. But what's your take on Michael Carter for this week?

[Andrew Erickson]

Yeah, I think that last week was kind of the perfect run out for Michael Carter in terms of he got all the usage. It was a really good matchup for him against a really bad Titans defense. They were heavy favorites and they should have won the game like going at going away had it not been for the demarcato just plunder and then everything kind of just fell apart from there. But it was a perfect sped up for a guy that we don't think is very good. Like he's a Jag running back. He's bounced around from team to team. I don't think that Carter is a special talent and that was apparent when you just you know, watch the game and look at what he averaged. I mean he was below three yards per carry. Like he was not efficient despite seeing I think he had yeah, 18 carries for 51 yards. So I don't think that he, oh this guy looks amazing. He's so great. I don't think that was the case. It was. He was the best guy out of the trio of running backs that they had. I think dear Mercado still flashed a lot now obviously he had the issue with the fumble. Jonathan Gannon has said that he's not going to penalize DeMarcado in his role. That remains to be seen. We'll see what happens. But I wouldn't be so shocked if the Cardinals are trailing in this game and D Markado is out there like playing on third downs and playing in the two minute drill because that's his role in the offense. So I do have more concerns. I felt way better about Carter last week so that was a much better spot for him against the Colts on the road. I am much less optimistic especially if Kyler Murray is going to be missing this game. I not nearly as optimistic. So I think Carter is someone that started last week. I actually would much, I would very much consider benching this week even though he got a lot of usage.

[Chris Welsh]

Wouldn't it be funny if the first play of the game was a run to DeMarcato? That would just be like awesome. That'd be great. Fitzy, what do you think about Michael Carter this week?

[Pat Fitzmorris]

So yeah, I know he was just Admittedly Michael Carter is a pretty ordinary talent and low efficiency last week, but so often at running back, opportunity means more than talent and I think that's kind of the case here. 23 touches last week for Michael Carter and a 57.4% snapchair. And I know Michael Carter isn't guaranteed to get more than a 57.4% snapshare, but based on what Amir Amari D Mercado did last week, like if, if this is the Game Show Card Sharks where you have to bet whether the next card higher or lower than the last one, I'm going to bet higher than a 57.4% Snapchat for Michael Carter this week after Mari DeMarcado's theatrics last week. So Colts run defense has been okay. They've allowed the 8th fewest fantasy points to running backs, but they're only 16th in DVOA against the run. Like, I don't think it's a red light matchup by any means, more of a neutral matchup. So I think Michael Carter deserves to be an RB2 range.

[Chris Welsh]

All right, we're going to be talking about the RB3 S25 through 36, but we want to make sure that you guys have a chance to dominate your fantasy football league and you can do that with Fantasy Pros Premium. You can get now available for RE for six months when you deposit and place your first wager on one of our partner sportsbooks. This is the easiest way to get full access to our fantasy tools all season long. So go to fantasypros.com premium to get started. That's fantasypros.com premium today. RB25 Alvin Camara followed by Tony Pollard, Jalen Warren or Madre Stevenson. Chase Brown, Travion Henderson at 30, 31 through 36 is Zach Charbonnet, Isaiah Pacheco, Kareem Hunt, Kendra Miller, Kenny Gainwell and RJ Harvey, also known as bl. Like it's not good. The top end of this is okay and then it really starts to fall off. Maybe there's even bigger questions which can be safe for the trade show, but let's drop a couple in here. Jaylen Warren, ECR 27 fits. You got him at 26. Erickson, you've got him at 30. Kenny Gainwell was pretty productive and makes it as a top 35 guy here. Fitzy, what's your take on Jalen Warren? Starting in Week six.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

Yeah, just before the take on Jalen Warren. Walsh about RB2s versus RB3s this week. Like RB3s might be bluff, but if you look at the names, those are the guys you would have thought would maybe be RB2s at this time, like RJ Harvey, Travion Henderson. Would have been crazy to think that those guys would have earned RB2 value by this point. The guys who are actually in RB2 value, Michael Carter, Rico Dowdle. Just like all these unpredictable guys. I know fantasy football is weird, so Jalen Warren, I'm guessing coming out of the buy it's maybe like a 6040 Jalen Warren, Kenneth Gainwell split. We saw Gainwell have that big game in Ireland with no Jalen Warren in Week 4. Tough matchup against the Browns, but I think Warren's pass catching ability helps raise the floor a little bit. He's had three or more catches in three of the four games he's played this season, so decent floor play, I think, at running back.

[Chris Welsh]

Erickson, what do you think, what do you think about our boy Jalen Warren here?

[Andrew Erickson]

I think Fitz summed it up perfectly. Really bad matchup. Warren has a floor, I guess maybe just a little bit more concerned about what the workload is like with Kenneth Gainwell and them coming off the bye week. Warren was also coming off an injury too, so assume that that's past him. But I am a little bit more hesitant just given this is just a brutal matchup and you need a touchdown. And we've seen Kenneth Gainwell work in the red zone just as much as Jalen Warren when both guys have been healthy. So that's another concern I have.

[Chris Welsh]

I was going to ask you, what do you think about Kenny Gainwell being inside the top 36? Like, do you think what he did in that game without Warren is going to warrant Kane Gainwell getting like a lot more usage? Like, do you think he should be in that flex territory or do you think it's just so gross you don't know anything right now? These are both kind of avoids.

[Andrew Erickson]

I think that his impact is just going to hurt Jalen Warren more than give him actual standalone value where you can. I mean, are we really excited about starting two running backs against the Browns on the same team when that team is the Steelers? I, I, I am not. So I would be pushing. I'm if people are going to ask me about should I start Gainwell this week or X, I'm probably going to be leaning in that other direction than going with Kenneth Gainwell and, and before.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

The injury to Warren, the gap was widening between Warren and Gainwell. As far as usage like we were seeing it be more like 7030 or 8020 than. But now, I mean Gainwell showed what he could do, so maybe it's closer to 50 50, but I tend to think it's still going to work out in Jalen Warren's favor there.

[Andrew Erickson]

And there is always a chance that Caleb Johnson gets to play. We'll see.

[Chris Welsh]

Caleb Johnson. Speaking of the guys. All right, Chase Brown. Chase Brown is ECR 29. Fitzy, you got him at 29. Erickson, you've got him at 26. The reason I wanted to bring this up is kind of back to the Joe Flacco discussion. It looks like he's going to start this week. There's also, you know, big narrative thing of Joe Flacco loves to throw to running backs in here. It's not like Chase Brown wasn't getting plenty of like one yard screen passes by Jake Browning already. You know, six catches for 14 yards. I don't know if anything changes, but Erickson, let's start with you. You're a little bit higher. Chase Brown has just been one of the bigger disappointments. He still doesn't make RB2 territory for you. But is there anything with Flacco in at quarterback that moves the needle for Chase Brown? Or is this just Jake Browning 2.0 and it's the same old Chase Brown we've been seeing?

[Andrew Erickson]

No. I do think that there is some realism to buying into the targets for Chase Brown. Yes. I know that he has seen a good amount of targets as it was anyway. But to open the year with Joe Burrow, it was three. It was three. And then, I mean it was only last week that he saw this massive target share spike with eight targets last week. So if that becomes more of the norm for Chase Brown, then I think that you're looking at. Okay, he has an RB3 type of floor because he's still seeing a pretty strong workload. They're not really getting guys like Samaj P. Ryan or Taj Brooks really involved. It's still Chase Brown's backfield now, albeit in a terrible situation behind one of the worst offensive lines and a brutal matchup. So like there's not a lot going in Chase Brown's favor but. But volume. Right? And Chase Brown we still believe is a explosive, talented player that I know last week was. Was rough. I mean as every week basically is for him, but he was averaging 4 yards carry against the Denver Broncos. So There was some light at the end of the tunnel where maybe he's generating some big plays on his own and he's going to see a lot of more opportunities in space because of the targets out of the backfield from Joe Flacco. So I'm pretty pessimistic about this Joe Flacco edition anyway. Just really being the, the tide that lifts all boats that sometimes I'm kind of seeing is going to be a thing with Flacco. The offensive line is terrible. He can't move. And I think that just means Chase Brown is, is going to see a boosted target share.

[Chris Welsh]

Do you ever think, Fitzy, you were going to be adamantly suggesting to start Michael Carter over Chase Brown in Week six?

[Pat Fitzmorris]

I did not expect that Welsh at all. And Erickson laid out the Chase Brown outlook pretty well. I don't know that there's much else to add. It's just volume. Like, if you want to keep the Bengals quarterback upright, whether it's Jake Browning or Joe Flacco, like, you have to at least pay lip service to the running game and make a good faith effort to try to run the ball. And that's probably the easier way to attack the Green Bay defense than through the air with an immobile quarterback behind a flimsy offensive line. So, yeah, I would expect Chase Brown to get a dozen or more carries. And you know, we've hit the bye week. So I guess there's, there's flex value to that.

[Chris Welsh]

We talked at the top of the show about Haskins vs. Vidal and this group has gone on the side of Hassan Haskins. So Hassan Haskins did not end up making the top 36 ECR. There was a time he was, by the way, I think it was Tuesday. Haskins was there. More ranks have kind of adjusted in here. I do find it interesting and maybe it's just because people don't like see it. But like I see RJ Harvey at 36 and I'm like, no, I'll probably go with Haskins at this point. But you two both have Haskins higher than whatever the ECR number is currently because Bitsy, you've got him at 31. Erickson, you've got him at 32. So earlier we picked which side. Now let's talk about the reason to start. And we'll start with you, Fitz, you've got him at 31. Hassan Haskins in week six.

[Pat Fitzmorris]

Yeah, I think just as I mentioned before, I think he is the best bet to have goal line opportunities for the Chargers. That's about it and I don't expect him to play on passing downs. I think he's a pretty good bet for double digit carries and short yardage duty. And that's about as excited as I can get for Hassan Haskins this week.

[Chris Welsh]

Well, it's not very excited for sure. Erickson, let's do this. You've got Haskins at, what was it, 32. So that's, you know, a flexi type of running back. Going over and looking at like our wide receiver ranks or Rashid Jahid. Well, Rashid Jahid, you had Rashid jahid at like 36 here. Rashid Shahid or Hassan Haskins half PPR.

[Andrew Erickson]

Flex well Rashid two weeks in a row. I think that he probably can. So I'll go with Shahid there over Haskins. Yeah, okay.

[Chris Welsh]

First time, long time. Thanks so much. Super chat. All right, there you go. So that like this is what I'm trying to gauge here is like Haskins is almost like pseudo top 30 running back is not breaking the top 36 wide receivers right now. So Haskins is, you know, there's like a little bit more desperation in it. It does not breed the Michael Carter situation. But Erickson, give us anything else you've got on Hassan Haskins as a starting asset this week. We kind of, we know the range. I mean it's like Hassan Haskins versus Isaiah Pacheco. There's another one for you. I don't know what the rank is for you there.

[Andrew Erickson]

Yeah, I have him one spot at Pacheco and my rationale is just, hey, who do I think could score a touchdown? It's a good matchup. But then I look at where I have Cream Hunt who is currently behind his hon Haskins and all Cream Hunt does is score a touchdown. So do I need to move Hunt ahead of Haskins? I think that where I definitely draw the line where I feel confident about ranking Haskins is behind Zach Charbonnet because I know Charbonnet has touchdown equity and I know he's better than Hasan Haskins. So like that's kind of where I draw the line where I refuse to start any running back or for Sean Haskins where his ranking is. So I think that you're really starting more as like a desperation RB2 where you have to start a running back. Whereas I'm not trying to flex Haskins because I think you can probably find a better wide receiver, even potentially a tight end option this week.

[Chris Welsh]

Mason Taylor, Hassan Haskins in full ppr.

[Andrew Erickson]

I would do Mace Taylor easy.

[Chris Welsh]

Okay, so that's, that's where we're living at Boy do I know you guys are going to have tons of Hasan Haskin questions. And guess what? Maybe I didn't get to a couple of my who'd you rathers but you guys will have your opportunity because we've got the weekly start and sit live stream on YouTube Thursday at 3pm Eastern where just bring it. You guys can super chat to make sure your question gets answered. I imagine there will be no less than 400 billion Hasan Haskin questions and we get it and bring out the scenarios so make sure you're subscribed. If you're listening on the podcast YouTube.com fantasypros turn on the notifications so you can ask your million questions about him and we'll get you covered. You guys want more? Go to fantasypros.com rankings. You can check out all the RB rankings way beyond top 36. How does it change? How does it compare? You can also sync up your leagues to get a bunch of information based on these rankings and how it sets up for you. Go to fantasypros.com rankings today and get yourself set up for all week long. If we are not with you, that's going to do it for the week six RB ranks. I'm Chris Welsh, that's Andrew Erickson and Pat Fitzmorris. Thanks so much for hanging out with us and we will talk to you next time right here on Fantasy Pros.

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[Pat Fitzmorris]

This is an I Heart podcast.