Three fantasy football RB options to stream in NFL Week 13, including New Orleans Saints’ RB Devin Neal.
For many managers, the fantasy playoffs are already here. Not in a literal sense, but if you find yourself fighting to get in or in dire need of improving your seeding, every week from this point forward can be approached with a must-win mentality. It’s gut check time, and that extends beyond what your actual gut may be feeling after stuffing yourself full of Thanksgiving delicacies this week! Now is not the point in the season where you should be afraid of making moves, and that includes targeting low-owned fantasy football RB pickups with streaming upside to help you emerge victorious.
Below, we take a closer look at some of our favorite low-owned fantasy football RB pickups and streamers for Week 13 that are useful for various situations and team outlooks. Be sure to check out our Week 13 fantasy football rankings for additional help when setting your lineups!
Fantasy Football RB Pickups for Week 13
Devin Neal, New Orleans Saints (32.4%)
It’s public knowledge that the Saints are a bad football team, and this has led to them being overlooked and dismissed by many with regard to fantasy football upside this season. As such, it was not seen as significant when Kendre Miller landed on IR with a torn ACL several weeks back. Alvin Kamara was seen as the only RB worth rostering in this offense, but his age was showing. Now, Kamara is also in line to miss at least this week’s contest after suffering an MCL sprain last week. Suddenly, rookie RB Devin Neal could be in line for a healthy workload in Week 13 as the main man left standing.
With Kamara’s injury and subsequent departure coming in the first half of last week’s game, Neal wound up playing 74% of the team’s offensive snaps, easily his high-water mark for the season. It should be noted that prior to last week’s game, the former Kansas star was seeing a decent amount of playing time as the Saints’ RB2. While he had played at least 35% of the snaps in each of the three games prior to Week 12, his touch volume was fairly low. Even after Kamara’s injury last week, Neal only finished the game with seven carries and seven targets. Swiss Army knife Taysom Hill actually led New Orleans with ten carries in the running game.
The presence of Hill is clearly a downside to Neal’s fantasy outlook heading into Week 13. Additionally, the Saints could opt to give Audric Estime a good chunk of carries on the ground. New Orleans’ offensive line is also suspect and has played a role in the team’s inability to run the ball consistently this season. With all of that being said, Neal is expected to get plenty of playing time which is the first step towards earning opportunities. It’s also a favorable matchup against a Miami Dolphins defense that has been rather leaky at times this season. Neal definitely should be rostered and can be streamed into lineups with modest expectations this week.
Bhayshul Tuten, Jacksonville Jaguars (27.6%)
Rookies are getting plenty of run among our low-owned fantasy football RB pickups and streamers this week! Two weeks ago, Bhayshul Tuten set season-highs in both snap percentage played and carries. His 15 carries for 74 yards and a touchdown in Week 11 was easily the best game of his young career to date. Unfortunately, Tuten also picked up an ankle injury in that contest. While he was a player we recommended you go out and get last week, his playing time and usage plummeted in Week 12. One has to assume that the injury designation he carried throughout the week likely played a part in how the Jaguars utilized him last week.
On the bright side, despite only being on the field for 13 offensive snaps in Week 12, Tuten still saw seven carries. We won’t expect that kind of workload efficiency to continue, but it’s also reasonable to assume that his snap count increases moving forward with better health. Travis Etienne is clearly still the lead RB in this offense, but one has reason to believe that multiple backs can be relevant for fantasy purposes moving forward. Liam Cohen has tried everything to help Trevor Lawrence, but it largely hasn’t worked. With an untrustworthy QB, the Jags are showing a willingness to become a more run-heavy offense in recent weeks.
As a result of this evolving offensive game plan, I expect Tuten to remain relevant in the weekly streamers discussion as Jacksonville has every reason to not run Etienne into the ground. Week 13 also presents a favorable matchup against a Tennessee Titans defense that has allowed the seventh-most PPR points per game to opposing RBs while ranking 24th in defensive EPA/play against the run. Whether you need to stream him into your starting lineup this week or not, Tuten makes for an appealing pickup option as the fantasy playoffs approach.
More Fantasy Football Streamers Week 13
Chris Rodriguez Jr., Washington Commanders (11.2%)
When you stop and think about it, it’s pretty wild to realize that a lead RB in a team’s offense is available in nearly 90% of ESPN leagues heading into Week 13! I’m trying to rack my brain for a comparison from past years, but none jumps out. Perhaps part of the reason for this is that the Commanders’ backfield situation has been weird all season. Nonetheless, Chris Rodriguez Jr. should be strongly considered for managers in search of fantasy football RB pickups and streamers.
Of course, Rodriguez is sparsely owned for countless reasons. The Commanders have been dreadful this season, which has taken plenty of luster off of this offense. There’s also the fact that rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt was one of the pre- and early-season darlings for fantasy purposes this season. When Austin Ekeler was lost for the year to injury, Croskey-Merritt looked like he was going to pay dividends. In reality, he has been pretty bad as a runner in his maiden NFL season. The result has been increased snaps and carries for Chris Rodriguez, a trend that dates back to Week 9.
With the Commanders coming off their bye week, there’s nothing to suggest that Rodriguez shouldn’t continue to operate as the lead RB in terms of carries in this offense. For those specifically looking into fantasy football RB pickups to find a competent Week 13 streamer, it should be noted that Rodriguez will be up against it facing a nasty Denver Broncos defense this week. His lack of upside as a pass-catcher could lead to him being touchdown-dependent in this matchup. However, managers taking a more long-term approach are advised to pounce, as a far more favorable schedule of matchups awaits him in the Fantasy Football Playoffs.
