Who Should I Start? Najee Harris or Tyjae Spears

Wednesday, September 24, 6:15 PM

The Los Angeles Chargers announced on Wednesday that they placed running back Najee Harris (Achilles) on Injured Reserve, according to Fernando Ramirez of the Sporting Tribune. Harris' season is over after he tore his Achilles in the Week 3 win over the Denver Broncos on Sunday. It's a disappointing end to his first year with the Bolts after signing with them in free agency in the offseason. The 27-year-old will end his streak of four straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons to begin his career. In his three games this year, Harris carried the ball 15 times for 61 yards and no touchdowns, adding three receptions for 25 yards through the air. The Chargers will be forced to lean more on rookie first-rounder Omarion Hampton as their lead back going forward, making him a must-start each week. Hassan Haskins will be elevated to the RB2 role, with Kimani Vidal the next man up at No. 2 in the backfield.

Wednesday, October 15, 9:26 AM

Tennessee Titans running back Tyjae Spears is coming off his second game of the season since starting the year on the injured reserve with an ankle issue, and in Week 6, he out-snapped backfield mate Tony Pollard 59% to 43%. Additionally, accumulated 50 all-purpose yards on nine total touches (five on the ground and four through the air) to Pollard's 47 all-purpose yards on 12 opportunities. While the entire Titans offense has struggled mightily this year, Pollard has not been able to do much with his opportunities as the lead-back early in the year, averaging only 3.93 YPC. With the younger and more explosive running back in Spears now ramped up, it's possible he could take over the lead-back role down the stretch, or at the very least, continue to be used 50/50 with Pollard, which gives him some flex appeal moving forward. Spears has proven, when given the opportunity, that he can be a top-15 running back when given the chance. Last year, when Pollard went down with an injury, Spears had three top 15 finishes at the running back position to end the year. Fantasy managers will want to make sure that Spears is not on their waiver wires moving forward.