Who Should I Start? Latavius Murray or Alexander Mattison

Saturday, December 23, 12:23 AM

Buffalo Bills running back Latavius Murray remains somewhat in play for Week 16 against the Los Angeles Chargers. Murray vultured a short touchdown in last Sunday's easy win over the Dallas Cowboys, preventing featured back James Cook from an even bigger evening than his 221-yard outburst. Though Murray handled two red-zone touches in Week 15, he played his lowest rate of snaps (15.6%) and ran his fewest number of routes (one) for a mere 11 total yards. Murray is almost certainly going to need a touchdown and perhaps for the Bills to form a sizable lead to have any chance at a decent outcome in Round 2 of fantasy's postseason. It needs to be noted that Ty Johnson's (shoulder) snaps have ascended in each of Buffalo's prior three outings, out-snapping Murray altogether against Dallas. Murray is nothing more than an emergency RB4/flex if Johnson ends up missing Saturday with a shoulder injury.

Monday, November 4, 12:57 PM

Las Vegas Raiders running back Alexander Mattison retained his starting job and carried the ball nine times for 36 yards in a massive 21-41 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 9. The game got out of hand quickly, leading to few rushing opportunities for the team's RBs overall. He wasn't targeted in the passing game, though, and had a rushing touchdown snagged by his backup, Zamir White. Should White continue to handle the goal-line opportunities, Mattison could see his already shaky fantasy value fall even further. The lack of involvement in the passing game is also concerning. Moving forward, he's best viewed as a RB3/FLEX option in deep PPR leagues. He'll have a bye week in Week 10 before facing the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 11.