James Cook is still the No. 1 RB for the Buffalo Bills, but Leonard Fournette and/or Latavius Murray are possible options as well for fantasy football managers to start in their lineups. We’ll break down the fantasy outlook for each player heading into Week 14.
Should You Start James Cook in Fantasy This Week?
Cook has certainly had his ups and downs this season. When he’s good, you can get 123 yards rushing and 36 more receiving, as he did against the Las Vegas Raiders back in Week 2.
Or, you can get a 100-yard game on 9.1 yards per carry, as he did to the Denver Broncos in Week 10.
But when he’s bad, you can also get five carries for minus-4 yards (Week 5 vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars), or you can get 43 rushing yards on 2.7 yards per carry (Week 12 vs. the Philadelphia Eagles).
One positive that is a benefit for Cook supporters is the fact that he continues to get carries. In 10 of 12 games, he’s logged double-digit rush attempts, including each of the last three games.
He also remains a threat to catch the ball out of the backfield. In the game against the Eagles before the bye week, Cook was targeted seven times and finished with six catches for 57 receiving yards, all season highs.
MORE: Fantasy News Tracker
You should not expect much in the way of fantasy points from touchdowns, since he has just three touchdowns on the season, and only one rushing TD — that came back in Week 4.
But the combination of workload and pass-catching skills make him the right choice among the three for this week.
Should You Start Leonard Fournette in Fantasy This Week?
With the Bills coming off a bye, the opportunity to finally put Fournette on the active roster is certainly there. Although he still has yet to play this season, Fournette certainly has appeal to fantasy football managers.
The veteran has a career average of 4.0 yards a carry and remains one of the league’s top pass-catching running backs. He has averaged over 50 receptions a season (52.0) over his six seasons in the NFL, so even if he didn’t receive many carries, his potential production in receiving yards makes this an interesting option.
However, we’ve been waiting to see Fournette on the field for a few weeks now, and nothing has happened. So, until he’s actually placed on the active roster, he really isn’t an option at this point.
Because of his current inactive status, Pro Football Network’s Start/Sit Optimizer does not have a projection for Fournette this week.
Should You Start Latavius Murray in Fantasy This Week?
Murray has been more productive of late, with three straight games of at least 30 rushing yards, his longest such streak of the season. However, he has had double-digit carries in a game just twice this season, and over his last eight games, he’s been held under 4.0 ypc seven times.
Murray was on the field for a season-high 42 offensive snaps in Week 12 vs. the Eagles. But he still had just nine carries for 30 rushing yards. He was targeted a season-high five times, catching three passes — also a season high — for 18 yards. But for the season, Murray has just 16 receptions, so he’s not much of a threat to catch passes out of the backfield.
MORE: PFN’s FREE NFL Playoff Predictor
In PFN’s Start/Sit Optimizer, our Consensus Rankings say that Cook is the player to start. His projected 12.7 points include 54 rushing yards, three receptions, and 25 receiving yards. His projected stat line outperforms the consensus projection of Murray (3.5 points) and Fournette.
My ranking for these three Bills running backs aligns with the consensus. Cook is just getting too many carries to go with any of the other two options right now.
Looking to make a trade in your fantasy league? Having trouble deciding who to start and who to sit? Setting DFS lineups? Check out PFN’s Free Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer and DFS Lineup Optimizer to help you make the right decision!