Another week, another wave of injuries at the running back position. Saquon Barkley, Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Damien Harris all exited their games at one point this past week, making a thin position even thinner. With bye weeks starting this week, the already tough job of finding running backs just became harder. Luckily, here are three fantasy football streamers at running backs that have slipped under the radar that can help you out.
Read on for three RB fantasy football streamers that are worth consideration for Week 6. In some cases, one might still be able to claim these passers off of waivers. In order to be included in the fantasy football RB streamers article, they must be rostered in less than 60 percent of ESPN leagues.
Week 6 Fantasy Football RB Streamers
Khalil Herbert | Chicago Bears (vs GB)
With David Montgomery injured, everyone expected Damien Williams to fill his role and be the fantasy football pickup of the week. The Bears and Khalil Herbert had other things in mind against the Raiders. Herbert had 18 carries for 75 yards against Las Vegas last week. While Herbert didn’t reach the endzone, it’s clear that he serves more than just “Robin” role with Montgomery sidelined. Now, in Week 6, he and the Bears return home for a big-time showdown with the Green Bay Packers.
The Packers don’t have as porous of a run defense as they have in the past. With that being said, they still are 17th against running backs. Herbert was more productive on the carries he had than Williams in Week 5. Although Williams scored, don’t be surprised if Herbert out-carries Williams again. In a week where most will flock to whoever replaces Saquon behind that garbage offensive line, be smart and take Herbert, who has more than enough usage in this offense to be a nice play. Rostered in just 8.2% of leagues, for some reason he’s clearly still flying under the radar.
David Johnson | Houston Texans (at IND)
I know what you’re thinking, “How the hell can I trust any one of the backs for Houston?” To be honest, it’s fair to be critical of this Houston backfield. With that being said, there aren’t many good options out there. David Johnson is doing a solid job with the work he’s getting. While Johnson doesn’t get a ton of carries, he has had three or more receptions in three games this season and 16 targets overall. Even if you’re only in a half-PPR and not a full PPR fantasy football league, that gives him a somewhat stable floor, which is more than can be said about a lot of other backs.
With the Colts on deck, there’s no question that the Texans will likely be playing from behind. To be fair, no matter who they play, the Texans will likely be playing from behind. As the pass-catching option in the backfield, Johnson will continue to be utilized as such this week. He’ll serve as a solid check-down option for David Mills assuming the Colts defense continue the trend of blanketing his only true pass catcher in Brandin Cooks. Rostered in just 37.1% of leagues, Johnson is a sneaky play and would be getting some more love if anybody paid attention to the Texans.
Brandon Bolden | New England Patriots (vs DAL)
I’ll admit, this is for the bold. See what I did there? Rostered in 13.2% of leagues, Brandon Bolden is the darling child of Bill Belichick and the de facto James White in this offense. While Bolden has only played this role for three games to this point, he’s shown promise in all of them. Bolden has at least three or more receptions in his last three games and hasn’t seen a lot of work on the ground.
Entering Week 6, Bolden has a matchup tailor-made for his skill set. Facing the Cowboys, the Patriots’ defense will have a tough time keeping up with arguably the best offense in the NFL. As a result, the Patriots will need to pass a lot and will be calling on Bolden in these situations. One touchdown is all a fantasy football streamer like Bolden would need to be well worth the play, and with his role as one of the favored targets of Mac Jones as of late, it’s not a stretch at all to believe he’ll do just that.
