The Bills running back situation has been giving plenty of fantasy owners headaches and leaving owners baffled on who to start. LeSean McCoy is yet to see significant time this season and has been sidelined since the preseason with a hamstring injury. McCoy’s backup Karlos Williams went down last week with a concussion and now the Bills again are reshuffling the running back cards. Currently the Bills depth chart has Boobie Dixon listed as the number 3 running back after McCoy and Williams. Boom Herron is currently in the 4/5 spot on the depth chart and is apparently going to see touches this week against the Titans. The running back situation for the Bills is almost as bad as their preseason quarterback controversy.
Week 5 Matchup
The Bills play Tennessee this week on the road and are looking to rebound after a tough week 4 loss. Tennessee is coming off a bye week and is 1-2 on the season. Ultimately the Bills running backs will be clashing with the 12th ranked fantasy run defense. Boobie Dixon will likely see most of the touches but in my opinion he is still not a safe start. Dixon has been pretty much irrelevant in his 5 year NFL career but has been viewed as a decent goal line running back. So far on the season Dixon has a total of 8 rushes for 0 yards but found the endzone once. Dixon is an unproven back at best and I would not recommend starting him. The Titans are a decent run defense and the Bills can certainly pass the ball to win the game. Dixon does not become fantasy relevant because he is the number 1 running back this week.
Projections
If Dixon is going to get points he will have to get in the endzone. The Bills have a top passing offense and do not need to hand the ball off if Dixon is not accumulating yards on the ground. Tyrod Taylor is certainly a legit dual threat quarterback and can pick up rushing yards himself. ESPN currently projects Dixon to scored 9 fantasy points. Dixon has scored 8 fantasy points all season with 6 of them coming on a single 1 yard run. Next on the depth chart comes Daniel Herron who has also been irrelevant so far this fantasy football season. Herron is projected for 5 fantasy points this week. This is also not a safe bet considering that Herron has neither carried the ball once or caught a pass once all season for the Bills. Herron has been in the league for a few years now and has jumped from team to team over the past 4 NFL seasons. Herron started off with the Bengals in 2012 then went to Indianapolis for 2013 and 2014. Herron ended up with the Bills this offseason and has not touched the ball once all season. In my opinion you can not start either Dixon or Herron simply due to their sub par careers so far and the Bills ability to pass the ball.
Verdict
As previously stated I really do not advise anyone to start Dixon or Herron this week. Neither of them are huge threats out of the backfield and should not be deemed fantasy relevant due to the injuries to McCoy and Williams. Do not start Dixon or Herron this week and do not buy into ESPN’s high projections for the Bills running backs. Sammy Watkins is currently listed as questionable and in my opinion if he plays, Buffalo will have no shortage of receiving threats and will look to pass the ball for most of the game. In conclusion there are much better options than Dixon and Herron this fantasy week and I do not advise starting either of them.