The Minnesota Vikings are 0-3 on the season and need of a win on Sunday against the Carolina Panthers.
One of the issues for the team has been mistakes, namely giveaways by the offense. The team leads the league with nine turnovers, including seven fumbles.
The ground game has been ineffective on the season, and the Vikings moved to acquire Cam Akers from the Los Angeles Rams. With that move, fantasy football managers have to decide which Vikings running back should be in the lineup.
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Alexander Mattison’s Fantasy Outlook This Week
Mattison had struggled to start the 2023 season as the new number-one running back for the Vikings but is coming off his game of the season.
He rushed the ball 20 times against the Los Angeles Chargers, finishing with 93 yards. He also had five catches for 32 yards. More importantly for fantasy football managers, Mattison had 83% of the Vikings carries.
With the passing game featuring Justin Jefferson and T.J. Hockenson, opposing defenses have to focus on that. This should create running lanes for the Vikings’ running backs, and they have to start capitalizing.
Mattison looked more like the player the Vikings thought he would be last week, but could Cam Akers come in and take some of the carries?
Cam Akers’ Fantasy Outlook This Week
Akers comes to Minnesota from the Los Angeles Rams, where he had an up-and-down career. In the season-opener against the Seahawks, Akers did get 22 carries in the game but lost the starting running back job to Kyren Williams.
Akers is a very talented running back, but consistency is a major issue. In his first 12 games last year, Akers didn’t rush for more than 65 yards in any game. However, in the last three games, he rushed for at least 104 yards, including a 118-yard, three-touchdown performance against Denver.
There are many times when a player needs a fresh start, and that might just be the case for Akers.
Which of the Vikings RBs Should You Start?
Mattison is still the guy for Minnesota until we see otherwise. The fact he is coming off his best game of the season should help the Vikings still be confident in him.
Another advantage for Mattison over Akers is his ability to make plays out of the backfield. In 14 games with the Rams last season, Akers had only 13 catches. Mattison, through three games, has 11 catches and is much more reliable in the passing game.
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Akers will get some work in this game, but he is still a few weeks away from truly being a contender to take some carries away from Mattison.
The Panthers have a good defense, and having a guy who knows the system like Mattison is the play.