Fantasy Football Week 2 Running Back Preview: Rankings adjustments, waiver adds, stashes, and more

I try not to overreact to too much from Week 1, especially when it comes to efficiency or touchdowns. I make small volume-based adjustments, small changes to projected run/pass splits, and rush/receiving share based on Week 1 usage. For rookies and players, we had uncertainty about coming into the year; the adjustments come quicker and more drastically than they do with established veterans in steady situations. 

But there is one running back tandem that I made a pretty big adjustment on after Week 1, Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet. I projected this as close to a two-to-one split in Week 1, and that is kind of how the game started. But Charbonnet was so much more efficient that the split changed as the game went on. I believe both of these backs are talented enough to be a starting running back in the NFL, and with a new offensive coordinator, I am more likely to believe that their split from last year has changed. 

For this week, I have a 50-50 split in rush attempts between Walker and Charbonnet, with Walker seeing more targets and Charbonnet having more scoring opportunities. The targets I am less certain about, because Charbonnet does play more on third down, but Walker saw three targets to zero for Charbonnet in Week 1. Obviously, this is less than ideal for the Seahawks, who only have an implied total of 19 points against the Steelers in Week 2. I would prefer to sit both backs, and both will be ranked outside my top 24. If you have both and have to choose, I would choose Walker in full PPR, Charbonnet in everything else.

One split I am holding off on adjusting too much is the Patriots. TreVeyon Henderson only had five carries in Week 1, but one of them went for 14 yards while Rhamondre Stevenson turned seven carries into 15 yards. Mike Vrabel has already talked about getting Henderson more involved, and the Dolphins defense could be the perfect opportunity. In full PPR, I would start Henderson over both Walker and Charbonnet, as well as Stevenson, of course.

Now let's get to the rest of the Week 1 RB Preview:

Week 1 RB Preview

• 53.6% -- Kenneth Gainwell played over half of the offensive snaps for the Steelers in Week 1. This is bad news for Jaylen Warren and even worse news for Kaleb Johnson.
• 1.8 -- Kenneth Walker averaged 1.8 yards per touch in Week 1. That ranked dead last amongst the 44 players who had at least 10 touches in Week 1.
• 91.3% -- Chase Brown had 91% of the Bengals rush attempts. It does not look like his role is shrinking at all.
• -0.32 -- Ashton Jeanty averaged negative yards before contact per attempt. 
• 28.6% -- De'Von Achane had a 28.6% explosive rush rate. He was the lone bright spot in this offense.
• 60% -- 60% of Jacory Croskey-Merritt's rushes went for five or more yards. We'll see if he can keep that up against the Packers.
• 2.1 -- The Packers held the Lions offense to 2.1 yards per rush in Week 1.
• 19% -- Dylan Sampson saw a 19% target share in his debut. We're adding him where he is available, even with Quinshon Judkins coming back.
• 4.3% -- Alvin Kamara had a 4.3% target share in his first game under Kellen Moore. If this sticks, Kamara is going to have a very hard time justifying his ADP.
• 77% -- Javonte Williams played 77% of the snaps for the Cowboys in Week 1. He's a borderline starter against the Giants, who gave up 6.9 yards per carry to Washington.

Week 2 Adds (RB Preview)

Dylan Sampson RB CLE Cleveland • #22 Age: 21 • Experience: Rookie Weekly Breakdown MATCHUP @ BAL BAL -11.5 O/U 45.5 OPP VS RB 23rd RB RNK 31st ROSTERED 65% 2024 Stats RUYDS 29 REC 8 REYDS 64 TD 0 FPTS/G 17.3 Sampson was at the top of this column last week and is still just 65% rostered. It is not a good matchup, and Quinshon Judkins could be back, but we still like Sampson as a flex in Week 2. And a flex is about all you are going to get off the waiver at running back this week. Judkins just recently started practicing with the team, so I would expect a very slow ramp-up period. Sampson could have a large role for the next month.

Kareem Hunt RB KC Kansas City • #29 Age: 30 • Experience: 9 yrs. Weekly Breakdown MATCHUP vs PHI PHI -1 O/U 47 OPP VS RB 22nd RB RNK 41st ROSTERED 24% YTD Stats RUYDS 16 REC 2 REYDS 10 TD 0 FPTS/G 4.6 This is gross, and I do not want to start Hunt this week, but if you are desperate for a starter, he is the next best thing. Hunt is locked in as the Chiefs' primary third-down back and their short-yardage back, which means he could fall into the end zone at some point and get you double-digit Fantasy points. He also has some handcuff appeal, if something happens to Isiah Pacheco, Hunt could become a starter again.

Stashes (RB Preview)

Trey Benson RB ARI Arizona • #33 Age: 23 • Experience: 2 yrs. Weekly Breakdown MATCHUP vs CAR ARI -6.5 O/U 44.5 OPP VS RB 20th RB RNK 39th ROSTERED 65% 2024 Stats RUYDS 69 REC 1 REYDS 6 TD 0 FPTS/G 8.5 He is one injury away from being a must-start back, and James Conner is 30 years old with an extensive injury history. Benson had nine touches in Week 1 and broke off a career-long 52-yard run. He still needs an injury to James Conner to be a starter, but if he gets that opportunity, he may push to be a top 12 back on a weekly basis.

Top DFS Play

Projections powered by Sportsline

De'Von Achane RB MIA Miami • #28 Age: 24 • Experience: 3 yrs. Weekly Breakdown MATCHUP vs NE MIA -1.5 O/U 44 OPP VS RB 6th PROJ PTS 17.1 RB RNK 6th 2024 Stats RUYDS 907 REC 78 REYDS 592 TD 12 FPTS/G 17.6 I am going right back to Achane despite the offensive disaster for the Dolphins in Week 1. All Achane did in that game was average 7.5 yards per touch and score the Dolphins' lone touchdown. While the 10 touches look frightening, the Dolphins only ran 46 offensive plays and pulled their starters for the final drive. With the first team in the game, Achane had the ball directed his way on more than a fourth of the Dolphins offensive plays. This game could turn into a shootout because neither defense is very good, which is why I am sticking with Achane as my RB1 this week.

Contrarian DFS Play

Projections powered by Sportsline

TreVeyon Henderson RB NE New England • #32 Age: 22 • Experience: Rookie Weekly Breakdown MATCHUP @ MIA MIA -1.5 O/U 44 OPP VS RB 12th PROJ PTS 9.1 RB RNK 22nd YTD Stats RUYDS 27 REC 6 REYDS 24 TD 0 FPTS/G 11.1 Henderson is only $5,300 on FanDuel, which makes sense if you only look at his five rush attempts. He also had six targets in the game. I expect his role to grow this week, and he possesses the ability to score from anywhere on the field. It is a great matchup at a bargain price, with the chance for fireworks.

My full set of Week 1 Fantasy football projections for every position are now available on SportsLine. You'll find them here. Find out which of my favorite plays are projected to score higher than consensus rankings and which don't live up to their draft hype, at least in Week 1. Projected stats for all starting running backs are available, so be sure to check out the full set of projections at SportsLine.