Given the New England Patriots’ season and the severity of the injury — a high ankle sprain — it’s a little surprising that Rhamondre Stevenson has not been shut down yet for the year. So until that happens, I suppose he’ll be an option leading up to each week.
But just how good of an alternative is backup Ezekiel Elliott for fantasy football managers? Let’s look at the situation for Week 16.
Should You Start Rhamondre Stevenson in Fantasy This Week?
As mentioned, Stevenson’s ankle injury has kept him out of the last two games.
While it’s uncertain if he will return to the field anytime soon, his production this season — at least the games leading up to his injury — probably keeps him in the conversation for fantasy managers until he is officially ruled out.
Stevenson was averaging 91 rushing yards a game and 112.7 scrimmage yards a game over the three weeks before his injury suffered in Week 13 versus the Los Angeles Chargers.
It would be a surprise to see Stevenson again with nothing much left for the Patriots to play for this season.
Should You Start Ezekiel Elliott in Fantasy This Week?
When Stevenson went down in Week 13 against the Chargers, the opportunity for Elliott to return to being an every-down back opened up. The reviews of his performance have been mixed.
The veteran running back, who had 95 total carries over his first 11 games, suddenly was given the ball 50 times over the last three games. But those 50 carries produced just 145 yards, 48.3 rush yards per game. On top of that, he averaged less than three yards a carry (2.9).
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But the value of Elliott has almost always been what he does besides carry the ball. Over these last three games, Elliott has nearly as many yards receiving (133) as he has rushing (145). He also has 16 total receptions over this stretch and had a touchdown reception in the win over Pittsburgh two weeks ago.
The fact that the Patriots are facing the Denver Broncos on deck — the league’s worst rushing defense which allowed 185 rushing yards last week to Detroit — and have problems at the quarterback position means that Elliott could get some more opportunities to grind out some yards this week.
Using the Pro Football Network Start/Sit Optimizer, our Consensus Rankings say that Elliott is the player to start. His projected 9.9 points include 44 rushing yards and one reception for seven receiving yards. His projected stat line outperforms that of Stevenson, who because of his current injury status does not have any projected numbers for this week in the optimizer.
My ranking for these running backs aligns with the consensus. Stevenson’s injury situation makes it far too risky to take a chance on his effectiveness, should he play.
Elliott’s ability to catch passes as well as run the ball makes him a nice alternative for anyone looking to play Stevenson this week.
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