Backfield Breakdown: Week 11 Recap & Week 12 Sleepers

This article is part of our Backfield Breakdown series.

Between family obligations and the trio of Thursday games, I'm on a tight schedule this week and won't have quite as much time for written observations in Backfield Breakdown and Target Breakdown. Last time I gave this warning I ended up writing the usual amount, more or less, but this time I really mean it... I think? 

Apart from the little bullet points, it'll be the usual drill, starting with Week 11 usage leaderboards and injury reports...

Usage Leaderboards

Week 11

Doesn't include MNF. GL Looks = Targets + Carries inside the 5-yard line

Full Season

Doesn't include MNF. GL Looks = Targets + Carries inside the 5-yard line

Week 11 Injury Report

Inactives

Aaron Jones (knee)

Alvin Kamara (ankle)

Elijah Mitchell (finger) + JaMycal Hasty (ankle)

Cordarrelle Patterson (ankle)

Jeremy McNichols (concussion)

Jermar Jefferson (ankle)

Chase Edmonds (IR/ankle)

Kareem Hunt (IR/calf)

In-Game Injuries

Michael Carter suffered an ankle injury in the second half.

Rashaad Penny left early with a hamstring injury.

Jordan Howard injured his knee in the third quarter.

Jerick McKinnon injured his hamstring.

Week 11 Red-Zone Report

Inside the 5-Yard Line

• Larry Rountree actually got three snaps inside the five, the same number as Ekeler. But the rookie didn't get any looks, while Ekeler took his one GL chance for a TD and also scored three other times.
• Tevin Coleman was the only other tailback besides Rountree with multiple snaps inside the 5-yard line but no touches. Coleman also got three snaps there, with all three in the first half before Michael Carter left with an ankle injury.

Red Zone Looks (carries + targets)

• Patrick Taylor, Boston Scott and Darrel Williams each got 5-6 snaps in the red zone but just one look apiece.
• J.D. McKissic had four RZ snaps but no looks.

Week 12 Waivers & Sleepers

Picking from players rostered in half or less of Yahoo Leagues.

Waivers, Pt. 1 —Top Adds & Streamers

1. Ty Johnson - 21%
2. Latavius Murray - 36%
3. Boston Scott - 21%
4. David Johnson - 25%
5. Tevin Coleman - 3%
6. Qadree Ollison - 0%
7. Eno Benjamin - 6%
8. Rex Burkhead - 0%

Oof, rough week. Johnson figures to split playing time with Coleman (and maybe La'Mical Perine) and isn't likely to do much on the ground, but there is upside for the receiving stats given that Johnson and Carter have 84 combined targets this year, 8.4 per game. Not that Johnson will get eight per week with Carter out — especially not with Zach Wilson coming back soon — but 5-6 targets and a few extra carries might be enough to squeeze out RB2 value in PPR leagues.

After that, we're pretty much left with Murray and Scott in the lesser half of backfield splits, or guys who are arguably in prayer/dart-throw territory. If you're not desperate for immediate RB help, this is a good week to add a high-end backup like some of the guys listed below. They aren't likely to do much Week 12, but most are one injury away from becoming confident starts, as opposed to guys like Johnson and Coleman who have an immediate path to some touches but no real upside even if (more) teammates get injured.

Waivers, Pt. 2 — Bench Stashes & Sleepers

1. Khalil Herbert - 26%
2. Sony Michel - 28%
3. Ronald Jones - 20%
4. Trey Sermon - 20%
5. Jamaal Williams - 39%
6. Samaje Perine - 6%
7. Jaret Patterson - 1%
8. Jeremy McNichols - 25%
9. Larry Rountree - 1%
10. DeeJay Dallas - 1%
11. Matt Breida - 2%

Week 12 Drops & Benchings

Drop'em

Mike Davis

Chris Carson

Rashaad Penny

Phillip Lindsay

Wayne Gallman

Bench'em

Zack Moss

Darrel Williams

D'Onta Foreman

Adrian Peterson

Nyheim Hines

Rhamondre Stevenson

D'Ernest Johnson

Devontae Booker

Week 11 Game-by-Game Breakdowns

Patriots (25) at Falcons (0) 

• Harris got the start after missing Week 10 with a concussion, but he played just three more snaps than Stevenson and finished with two fewer carries.
  • However, Harris did have a 10-8 lead in carries before Stevenson took the final four with New England up by 16 points in the final five minutes.
  • Apart from the second quarter (where most of New England's snaps were either long-yardage or a two-minute drill), both Harris and Stevenson got at least five snaps and two carries in each quarter.
    • They alternated drives for the first three quarters, with Harris going first in both halves.
    • In case you're wondering, New England scored seven points on Harris drives, six points on Stevenson drives, three points on a split Harris/Stevenson drive and three points on the Bolden drive right before halftime. And then six points on the late pick-six
• Bolden took 11 of 14 (85%) third-down snaps but played just six snaps otherwise, mostly in a two-minute drill at the end of the first half.
• J.J. Taylor was a healthy scratch, after seeing six carries on 13 snaps the week before with Harris out.

• Davis made his seventh start in 10 games, but with Cordarrelle Patterson (ankle) out for the first time all year, Ollison played just as many snaps as Davis and had six more carries (9-3) and one fewer target (3-4).
  • Ollison played 20% of snaps in the first quarter, 63% in the second, 56% in the third and 42% in the fourth.
• The Falcons ran only 52 plays, struggling to sustain drives in a slow-placed game.
• Ollison played 50% of first-down snaps, 47% on second down and 46% on third down.

Texans (22) at Titans (13) 

• Johnson got the start and nearly doubled his previous season high of seven carries, taking 16 touches for all of 34 yards.
• Burkhead handled his second-largest snap share of the season, and shockingly took 18 carries after seeing just seven through Houston's first eight games.
  • Burkhead's three largest snap shares are the past three games (49%, 30%, 42%), but his only decent fantasy showing was Week 8 (the game with 49% share) when he put up 4-21-1 rushing and 3-27-0 receiving.
• Lindsay's lack of involvement helps Johnson and Burkhead, but upside remains limited nonetheless.
• Johnson got a little more work in the first half and Burkhead in the second, but both guys played at least 31% of snaps in each quarter, rotating throughout the game.

• With Jeremy McNichols (concussion) inactive, Hilliard was called up from the practice squad and ended up handling a huge role (63% snaps, 17 looks) after the Titans fell behind early.
  • Tennessee trailed for 56 minutes of the game, including by 12+ points from midway through the second quarter until midway through the fourth. Ryan Tannehill threw a season-high 52 passes.
• Peterson got the start and a team-high nine carries, but he took just seven snaps after the first quarter.
  • Foreman also disappeared, with four snaps and one touch in the second half. Peterson at least touched the ball on four of his five snaps post-halftime
• Hilliard got 79% of snaps in the second half, and finished the game with an 8-47-0 receiving line on a team-high 10 targets. He also took seven carries for 35 yards.
  • He also nearly put an end to Tennessee's comeback effort with a fumble inside Houston's 5-yard line, but got lucky when Anthony Firkser recovered it. That was actually Tennessee's only snap inside the 10-yard line all day.

Colts (41) at Bills (15) 

• You probably heard about the five touchdowns, or maybe the 204 total yards. Taylor also played 83% of snaps, the second-largest share of his career behind only 84% from the previous game.
  • Taylor played 94% of snaps through three quarters, on track for a new career high until the Colts pulled him from the blowout.
  • 15 TDs in his past eight games.
• Taylor even played 12 of 14 snaps (86%) on third down, including six of seven on 3rd-and-long.
  • Hines barely had a role, with one touch on nine snaps (17%) before the fourth quarter.
• Jackson got all six of his carries and all seven of his snaps in the fourth quarter. Nothing before garbage time.

• Breida finished with the most carries and second-most snaps, but his role early on was actually smaller than the week before.
  • Last week, he had five snaps and three targets in the first half. This week, it was one snap and one carry.
  • Then, he got 60% of snaps in the third quarter and 54% in the fourth.
• Singletary played 48% of first-half snaps, with two carries and one target.
  • Moss played 44%, also with two carries and one target.
• In the second half, Moss got just four snaps (14%) and one touch, while Singletary stayed a little more involved with three targets and a carry on eight snaps (29%).
• Hard to get excited about any of them for fantasy purposes.

Dolphins (24) at Jets (17) 

• Salvon Ahmed was a healthy scratch after playing in each of Miami's first 10 games (but never getting more than nine looks or 23 snaps).
  • Duke Johnson took over the backup role but got a little less playing time than Ahmed had been handling (~20% share), while Laird subbed in for Gaskin for some obvious passing situations.
• Gaskin now has four receiving TDs and just one rushing TD, despite seeing a dozen or more carries in five consecutive games now.
  • He's averaging 16.8 carries (but for only 51.4 yards, 3.1 YPC) over the past five.
  • His five targets inside the 10-yard line are tied with Najee Harris and David Johnson for second most among RBs. Giovani Bernard leads with six.

• The stat provider I use isn't showing correct snap data from the Jets offense, so I don't have the breakdowns by quarter/down the way I normally would... which is kind of annoying given that Carter suffered an ankle injury and is expected to miss multiple games.
  • I'm guessing it will be sorted out by Tuesday, so check back here, or keep up with me on twitter (@JerryDonabedian).
• In terms of touches, Carter dominated the first half with 8-61-0 rushing and a catch for two yards.
  • Coleman had three carries for nine yards, while Johnson entered the half without any touches.
• In the second half, with Carter injured after his first touch, Coleman took two carries for seven yards and a catch for two yards. Johnson had one carry for five yards and caught his lone target for eight yards.
  • Johnson did next to nothing, but he's the one they trust on passing downs, and just the week before he caught five of eight targets for 36 yards in a game where Carter and Coleman both were healthy and active
  • Johnson has nearly as many targets (38) as carries (42) this year, and far more receiving yards (271) than rushing (144).

Washington Football Team (27) at Panthers (21) 

• Gibson lost a fumble in the first quarter and was benched for the entire second quarter.
  • It was Gibson's fifth fumble of the year, and the third he's lost. He fumbled just once on 206 touches as a rookie.
• Patterson took nine snaps in the second quarter and just four snaps otherwise.
• McKissic had a season-high 46 rushing yards but was targeted just twice.

• McCaffrey played 90% of snaps, up from 49% and 59% in his first two games back from the hamstring injury.
  • It was his first time with more than 59% since Week 2, and his first time with more than 71% since Week 1.
  • He did get three fewer carries and two fewer targets than the previous week, but only because Carolina ran a measly 48 plays. Sunday's game had just 12 incompletions (with Cam and Heinicke at QB, no less), and Washington held possession for 35:53.

49ers (30) at Jaguars (10) 

• Wilson got the start with Elijah Mitchell (finger) inactive, handling 17 carries and two targets on 67% of snaps through three quarters, before sitting out most of the fourth (17% of snaps).
  • The snap share and heavy rushing usage look very similar to Mitchell's typical workload, albeit with lesser results despite two carries and a target inside the 5-yard line.
  • There was one big difference, with Wilson taking 50% of third-down snaps, including 64% (seven of 11) before the fourth quarter. Mitchell hasn't been tasked with that at all this year, but he does dominate first and second downs whenever he plays.
• Wilson didn't dominate early downs the way Mitchell has, but he still got 65% of first-down snaps (Sermon - 35%) and 68% of second-down snaps (Sermon - 32%). Not bad.
• Sermon got 67% of snaps and four carries in the fourth quarter, but the rookie also took 28% share before the fourth, with 6-24-0 rushing and a 23-yard catch on his lone target.

• Robinson returned to the starting lineup after coming off the bench (but handling 59% of snaps and 16 touches) the week before in his first game back from a heel injury.
• Snap shares weren't impacted by the blowout, but may have been impacted by Jacksonville's complete inability to possess and move the ball.
  • Robinson played 64% of snaps through three quarters... which equated to 18 snaps because the team had just 28 overall.
    • He did have nine rushes and three targets on those 18 snaps.
    • And he scored a meaningless TD in the fourth quarter, from one yard out with three minutes remaining.
• Hyde took 82% of third-down snaps. Which might mean Robinson isn't technically a three-down back right now, but those are probably the plays where you want him off the field if he has to come off at some point.
  • Robinson took 81% of first-down snaps and 77% on second down.

Ravens (16) at Bears (13) 

• Murray (ankle) played for the first time since Week 6, but Freeman nonetheless made a fourth consecutive start and played exactly* 58% of snaps for a third straight week.
  • Freeman finished with season highs for carries, targets and fantasy points, aided by Baltimore's dominance of possession (38:50, 77 plays, 34 rush attempts)
  • QB Tyler Huntley had just seven of the 34 carries (21%). Prior to Sunday, Lamar Jackson had taken 38% of Baltimore's carries this year.
• Ty'Son Williams was technically active but didn't play snaps on offense or special teams.

*Ok, not EXACTLY 58%, because fractions/decimals, but you get the point.

• Montgomery rarely left the field, with 95% snap share a new career high.
  • He played 85% in his previous game, Week 9, which was his first game back from injury. Monty didn't get a lot of touches, but the playing time should lead to more, and he might benefit if Andy Dalton steps in for Justin Fields (ribs) beyond Week 11.

Lions (10) at Browns (13) 

• Williams played for the first time since Week 7 and returned to his pre-injury role. He's finished between 27-32% of snaps in five straight games now, averaging 10.0 carries for 40.4 yards with just three receptions and no TDs in that stretch.
• Swift finished with three catches for no gain but made up for it with a 57-yard TD run, finishing with 14-136-1 on the ground. Williams' return took a bite out of him, but Swift has been a consistent producer with or without his teammate stealing some work.

• Johnson and Felton essentially split the Kareem Hunt (IR/calf) role, while Chubb got 22 of the 30 RB carries.

Packers (31) at Vikings (34) 

• With Aaron Jones (knee) out for the first time all year, Dillon got the start and three-quarters of the snaps, but his rushing workload was somewhat disappointing with the Packers playing from behind for much of the day.
• Dillon took 79% of first-down snaps, 78% of second-down snaps and 58% of third-down snaps.
  • Dillon even took four of seven snaps on 3rd-and-long. The Packers took him off the field for stamina/fatigue-related reasons, but not for any particular situation/down/distance.
  • None of his six targets came on third down, but he did get two carries for 18 yards.

• Cook finished with 22-86-1 and 3-28-0 on four targets, scoring an early TD from one yard out.

Saints (29) at Eagles (40) 

• Ingram didn't quite match his 85% snap share from the previous week, but he did see two more carries and one more target on 10 fewer snaps.
  • Ingram got 72% of the snaps and 24 of the 29 RB looks (83%).
  • He finished with 16-88-0 and 6-25-0 (but also lost a fumble), after 14-47-1 and 5-61-0 the week before.
• Jones (ankle) returned from IR as the No. 2 back but saw just three looks (all carries) on 10 snaps. He didn't play at all in the fourth quarter.
• Alvin Kamara (knee) is listed as a non-participant on Monday's practice report, ahead of the Thanksgiving game against Buffalo.

• Sanders returned from IR with a season high for carries, while the snap share was his smallest of the year apart from Week 7 when he suffered the ankle injury.
  • Kenneth Gainwell was a healthy scratch for the first time in his career, though he could rejoin the action next week after Jordan Howard suffered a knee injury in the third quarter Sunday.
• In the first half, with everyone healthy, Sanders got 48% of snaps (8 carries, 1 target), Scott got 27% (0 carries, 2 tgts) and Howard got 25% (9 carries, 0 tgts).
  • Howard took nine carries for 56 yards on 11 first-half snaps.
• In the second half, Scott took 50% of snaps and six carries for 16 yards, with Sanders playing 44% and taking eight carries for 47 yards.
  • Not ideal for Sanders that it was close to a 50/50 split even after the Howard injury, but we'll also note that it was Miles' first game back from IR and the Eagles were up big until the Saints scored two quick TDs early in the fourth quarter.
  • Losing a fumble didn't help, though he wasn't benched for it.

Bengals (32) at Raiders (13) 

• Mixon finished strong, playing 18 of 21 snaps (86%) in the fourth quarter and taking 12 carries for 53 yards and a touchdown.
  • He finished with 30-123-2 but no targets.
  • Perine and Evans both took a bunch of pass snaps, including third downs.
    • Mixon played just five of 18 third downs (28%), while Perine got eight and Evans also got five.
    • Evans got four of five snaps in the two-minute drill right before halftime. That didn't matter Sunday, but it could hurt Mixon in the future if Evans gets most of the hurry-up snaps.
      • That said, it was Evans' first time playing more than three snaps since Week 6.

• Jalen Richard (ribs) was out, but the missing pass snaps seem to have gone to Jacobs rather than Drake.
  • Drake did still get four of seven snaps on third down... which was part of the problem for him. The Raiders reached third down just seven times,
  • Jacobs and Drake got 50% apiece in the fourth quarter with the Raiders playing from behind.

Cowboys (9) at Chiefs (19) 

• The workload split was typical, though Elliott briefly left the game with an aggravation of his lingering knee injury.
  • He's listed as a limited participant on Monday's injury report for Dallas, ahead of the Thanksgiving game. He'll probably play, but the knee might be more of an issue than it was the past few weeks.

• Edwards-Helaire got the start in his first appearance since Week 5, putting up 12-63-1 and 2-13-0 on two targets.
  • Williams got a couple more snaps but just five carries and three targets.
• CEH played 53% of snaps on first down, 64% on second down and 0% on third down.
  • Williams got all 12 third-down snaps.
• Williams took six of the seven red-zone snaps, but CEH's one was a one-yard TD, while Williams saw just a single incomplete target in the red zone.

Cardinals (23) at Seahawks (13) 

• Conner dominated again, finishing with at least 77% of snaps, 10 carries, five targets, and a TD for the third straight week. Easy RB1 until Edmonds returns.

• Collins played 60% of snaps in the first half, taking eight carries for 38 yards.
  • He then played just 13% in the second half, with the Seahawks again going pass-heavy while playing from behind.
  • Collins is still the back to roster here, but he needs the team to do better because he's not going to start catching passes anytime soon. He needs TDs, and needs Seattle to be competitive in the second half. That doesn't sound like much to ask, given the talent surrounding him, but the results have been absolutely brutal of late.
• Dallas replaced Homer as the main passing-down back, with 24% of snaps in the first half and 50% in the second. Dallas finished with 4-25-1 rushing and one catch for two yards on two targets.
• Penny also had a small role, but then injured his hamstring in the second half.

Steelers (37) at Chargers (41) 

• This was just the second time Harris has finished below 80% snap share, though he still accounted for 18 of the 22 RB looks (82%).
  • The snap share isn't a concern. But it is worrying that he managed just 3.3 YPC against a league-worst run defense that's been abused all season. Then again, we kind of just know that's the deal for this year, given Ben Roethlisberger's age and the terrible O-line.

• Ekeler scored twice on the ground and twice through the air, finishing with 11-50-2 rushing and 6-65-2 on seven targets.
  • Someone needs to remind him that he's too small to be scoring this many TDs. That's 13 in 10 games now.
• Ekeler has played 67% of the Chargers' offensive snaps this year, accounting for 67% of the RB carries and 84% of the RB targets.
  • He has nine of the 11 goal-line looks, and 20 of the 26 inside-the-10 looks.
• Joshua Kelley was the healthy scratch this week, with Justin Jackson back in the lineup (for five snaps) after missing two games with a calf injury.
• Rountree was second among the RBs in snaps and carries for a second straight week.
  • Which still doesn't amount to much... seven carries and no targets on 28 snaps in two games.