As expected with a Thursday Night Football game in Week 11, Chris Carson and Carlos Hyde will be sitting out this weekend for the Seattle Seahawks. That leaves the Seahawks with a trio of Alex Collins, Travis Homer, and DeeJay Dallas in Week 10 against the Los Angeles Rams. It’s fair to call this situation a mess for fantasy football. Which running back(s) can be trusted this weekend? Can DeeJay Dallas be startable in fantasy football? Let’s take a look.
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A messy backfield doesn’t help the Seahawks in Week 9
After seeing a healthy 79% snap share in Week 8, DeeJay Dallas saw plenty of work at running back for the Seahawks. While he had 23 offensive touches as the clear lead back, Dallas could only muster 41 yards rushing on 18 carries (2.3 yards per carry) and 17 yards on five receptions (3.4 yards per catch). What saved his day was his two total touchdowns (one rushing, one receiving) in an otherwise unimpressive performance by Dallas.
Come Week 9, Dallas’s snap share took a huge cut down to 31%, and his touches dipped to nine, a huge decline from 23. As his snaps and touches declined, Homer’s snap share beat out Dallas’ with 48% and the same number of touches. While Dallas was able to score a late touchdown for the Seahawks in a losing effort against the Buffalo Bills, Homer outgained him with 80 scrimmage yards compared to his 24. Part of Homer’s increased usage could be chalked up to the Seahawks constantly playing from behind and wanting to utilize a better pass-catching option out of their backfield. Still, it’s discouraging for DeeJay Dallas and fantasy football owners nonetheless.
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On top of that, we saw Collins snag a couple of carries in that game as well. It may not mean much for Week 10, but it’s still something to note as Dallas was clearly already struggling for work even without Collins in the mix. Dallas improved his yards per carry quite a bit in Week 9 with 31 yards on seven carries (4.4), up over two yards versus his Week 8 game against the San Francisco 49ers. Despite the increase in efficiency, it is still troubling for DeeJay Dallas’ fantasy football outlook in Week 10 with Homer and Collins healthy and expected to be part of the Seahawks’ game plan.
Week 10 could see a tough game for the Seahawks RBs to make an impact
The Seahawks travel to Los Angeles this weekend to face their division rival, the Los Angeles Rams. They will be fresh off their bye week after an upset loss to the Miami Dolphins in Week 8. The same cannot be said for the Seahawks, as they will be without Carson and Hyde plus cornerback Shaquill Griffin and potentially missing fellow cornerback Quinton Dunbar and defensive end Benson Mayowa (who are both questionable but did not practice all week).
For a defense already hemorrhaging plenty of points (third-most in the league with an average of 30.4 points per game allowed), this is concerning. That is without even mentioning that the Rams have a solid wide receiver duo in Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods to contend with, a position with which the Seahawks have struggled against this season.
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With this contest expected to have many points scored, this is not likely to be a game in which we see the Seahawks rack up the score early and control the clock on the ground to wrap it up. Plus, as we saw in Week 9, the Seahawks seemed more inclined to utilize Travis Homer when they needed to pass more/were playing from behind.
That’s not to mention the tough matchup that the Rams provide either. Over the last three games, the Rams have only given up 228 yards rushing on 68 carries (3.35 per carry) and 66 yards on 13 receptions to opposing running backs, with only one total touchdown. The Rams allow less than 100 scrimmage yards per game on average to all opposing running backs recently, with just that one touchdown scored.
Can I start DeeJay Dallas in my fantasy team with confidence in Week 10, or is Travis Homer the better play?
Take away the fact that DeeJay Dallas and Travis Homer are already fighting with each other for snaps and touches. They also find themselves up against one of the toughest defenses against opposing running backs. It’s clear that Dallas is a rather touchdown-dependent running back as 57.7% of his fantasy points in half-PPR leagues over the last two games have come from touchdowns (31.2 total, 18 from three touchdowns).
He has struggled to be efficient on the ground (72 yards on 25 carries) and is making much of opportunities in the passing game (25 yards) despite his seven receptions. With that being said, Homer also struggled in the run game with 16 yards on six carries (2.67 yards per carry) but had a terrific 21.3 yards per reception (three receptions and 64 yards).
Overall, Travis Homer appears to be the running back with the safer floor between the two because of his increased usage when healthy and his receiving floor. DeeJay Dallas is a better bet to score, but his efficiency and decreased touches in Week 9 is a fair cause for concern.
With that being said, Homer doesn’t appear to be anything more than a desperation RB3/FLEX in half/whole-PPR leagues, while Dallas is a low-end RB3/FLEX in all formats simply because of his increased chance of scoring in what is expected to be a high-powered matchup.
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Doug Moore is a fantasy football writer for Pro Football Network. Follow him on Twitter at @DMooreNFL.