The situation for Elijah Mitchell’s fantasy football managers continues to be tough as he is listed as questionable heading into Week 4 against the Seattle Seahawks. With Mitchell questionable to suit up, can you trust him as a starter in your fantasy lineup, or should you sit him with his afternoon matchup?
Update (10/03/21): Elijah Mitchell is inactive for the 49ers Week 4 matchup with the Seattle Seahawks
Elijah Mitchell’s fantasy season has been … interesting
Mitchell has experienced a wide range of emotions in the NFL as a rookie. In his first game, he burst onto the scene with 104 yards and a touchdown on 19 rushing attempts. Careers in the NFL do not start much better than that. That start also sent fantasy managers scrambling to the waiver wire to add Mitchell.
Unfortunately, things have not quite gone so well since that first game. In Week 2, Mitchell struggled to have the same impact against the Eagles. He managed just 42 rushing yards on 17 carries while adding 11 yards on 2 receptions. He also left the game with an injury before returning to help the team close out the win.
Week 3 saw Mitchell listed as doubtful, but given the pessimism around his status, at least fantasy managers could feel confident leaving him on the bench. This week is a little different. When you look at the matchup, Mitchell should be a player you start. But the injury and the late kickoff make him a potential sit option.
The Seahawks present an intriguing matchup for the 49ers RBs
As if it isn’t frustrating enough for fantasy managers that Mitchell is questionable, the matchup only makes it worse. No team in the NFL is worse than Seattle against the RB position in terms of fantasy points allowed so far this season.
The Seahawks have allowed 413 yards on 95 rushing attempts with 3 touchdowns. On top of that, they have conceded 27 receptions on 33 targets for 248 yards. That all adds up to per-game averages of 251 total yards, 9 receptions, and a touchdown.
In Week 3, we saw Alexander Mattison post 112 rushing yards and pull in 6 receptions for 59 yards. If either Mitchell or Trey Sermon can dominate touches in this game, they’ll have a great chance of putting up a 15-20 fantasy point day.
Should you start Elijah Mitchell in your Week 4 fantasy lineup?
If you knew Mitchell was going to be suiting up and would lead the team in touches, he would be an instant starter. The problem is that according to Adam Schefter, Mitchell will be inactive in Week 4. Even if he was active, it would be questionable how much he would touch the ball. With Raheem Mostert, Jeff Wilson, and JaMycal Hasty injured, the 49ers need to be careful with their new starting RB.
They have added plenty of depth to the roster in Trenton Cannon and Jacques Patrick, but it was Sermon who handled the bulk of the work last week. He was unimpressive, however, with 34 yards on 10 carries and 2 receptions. The only thing that saved Sermon’s day from a fantasy perspective was his rushing touchdown.
That performance does provide some hope for Mitchell’s fantasy managers. If he does manage to suit up, Sermon did not impress and was actually inactive back in Week 1. On top of that, no other back touched the ball (outside of Kyle Juszczyk) last week. Therefore, the 49ers could lean heavily on whoever draws the start this week.