Fantasy Football RB Report: Rachaad White reclaims the Bucs’ RB1 role… but Bucky Irving isn’t going anywhere

Running backs remain the king of fantasy football. Although it seems like there are more elite quarterbacks and wide receivers than ever before, the number of consistent, reliable running backs is dwindling. This makes it all the more important to value running backs in fantasy football. To help you with this, each week I’ll be looking at some backfields that stand out based on current trends or new information we’ve learned.

We’re halfway through the fantasy regular season, which means it’s time to prepare for the home stretch. In the NFL, there are trades, players coming off IR, and plenty of roster moves that could impact your fantasy teams. Let’s get into some of my top backfield picks for Week 8 of the NFL season.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Ravens and Buccaneers combined for 82 points on Monday night, which meant big things for fantasy football. The Bucs’ running backs were no exception, as Rachaad White and Bucky Irving both had great performances.

White continued to be the starter in his first game back from injury and led the team with 10 runs. The Bucs were in a pass-first game plan that favored White, who also had six catches for 71 yards and two scores through the air. Irving was solid in his own right, totaling 77 yards on 12 touches and scoring from one yard out. After an incredible performance in Week 6, Sean Tucker was used sparingly this week, with just five carries and 16 snaps.

I’m optimistic that both White and Irving will remain ready to go in the future. The Bucs will likely find themselves in even more pass-heavy situations over the next three weeks as they face the Falcons, Chiefs and 49ers, meaning White can be played as a top-24 player in PPR. Baker Mayfield could be particularly reliant on White since Mike Evans and Chris Godwin both left the game against Baltimore with injuries. Irving has seemingly taken over the goal line and short-yardage work, making him a valuable FLEX player as well. This leaves Tucker as an underdog and it is only worth using him in deeper leagues.

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Cleveland Browns

Nick Chubb returned from the knee injury he suffered early last season to serve as the Browns’ RB1 while Jerome Ford was sidelined. Chubb wasn’t particularly efficient in his season debut, converting 11 carries into just 22 yards, but he got into the end zone to save his dream day.

The Browns’ offense as a whole could improve in the coming weeks, with quarterback Deshaun Watson out for the season with a torn Achilles tendon and Jameis Winston due in Week 8. Despite being a volatile player, Winston has provided great support in fantasy offenses in the past and should be an improvement over Watson, who ranked in the bottom five in most quarterback metrics.

It’s unclear how the Browns will split up the carries once Ford returns from his hamstring injury. Of the Browns’ four running backs (Chubb, Ford, D’Onta Foreman and Pierre Strong), only Ford was effective in the passing game, giving him an edge.

Right now, starting Chubb as a low-end RB2 every week wouldn’t be a problem for me. I would expect the Browns to limit his workload a bit in the short term to help him get acclimated again, but when Chubb is back to his old age, he will be a valuable fantasy addition. Ford is still worth rostering as he could be a valuable PPR option if Winston leads a more pass-heavy Browns offense, but Foreman and Strong should remain on the waiver line.

Miami Dolphins

With De’Von Achane and Raheem Mostert both healthy, the Dolphins’ running back deployment on Sunday looked a lot more like 2023 than it did earlier this season. Achane had 15 carries while playing 58% of the snaps, and Mostert saw 11 carries on 33% of the snaps. Both were efficient but underwhelming due to Miami’s major offensive problems. However, it looks like quarterback Tua Tagovailoa will be coming off IR and starting this week, raising the floor and ceiling for all offensive players.

I’m not too worried about the reduced usage of Achane. He clearly showed last year that he was capable of producing with a lighter workload, and it’s entirely possible that the Dolphins didn’t want to give him the lion’s share of the volume back in his first game back from a concussion.

With that in mind, I would keep an eye out for Mostert on your waiver. Teams may have dropped him in recent weeks because he was injured, but with a healthy Tagovailoa, Mostert should be on your team as insurance for Achane if nothing else. If the Dolphins end up splitting carries more evenly, Mostert would also have FLEX appeal due to the Dolphins’ offensive production.

Carolina Panthers

The Panthers gave us a fun few weeks by replacing Bryce Young with Andy Dalton, but it looks like Dalton has fallen to earth as well. After winning his first start, Dalton lost four straight games, capped by a 40-7 loss on Sunday. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if the Panthers tried to initiate a major youth movement in the next few weeks, replacing Dalton with Young and getting their rookies more involved. This would mean that Jonathon Brooks, who was due to be taken off the PUP list last week, could soon have a significant impact on Chuba Hubbard’s workload.

Hubbard has been one of the few bright spots for Carolina so far, actually ranking fifth in rushing yards. However, he is a free agent after this season and doesn’t really fit into the Panthers team’s schedule, so I would suspect he will be phased out a bit over time.

I would avoid starting both Hubbard and Brooks if Young becomes the starter again. The Panthers’ offense has historically been terrible in the first two weeks of the year with Young under center, and I can’t see them supporting two fantasy-relevant running backs. With Brooks out, Hubbard should be a good low-end RB2 based on volume alone, but I certainly wouldn’t enjoy starting him unless Dalton is the quarterback.

New York Giants

In the Giants’ first game in which both Tyrone Tracy Jr. and Devin Singletary played, it was Tracy who led the team in chances. Tracy played 67% of the snaps, Singletary 21% and had three more touches. Considering how low the Giants offense’s ceiling is, I’m not particularly excited about starting either Tracy or Singletary in fantasy.

Tracy, with his background as a receiver in college, would be my preferred option of the two as he should provide a decent PPR baseline. The main attraction for Singletary was the extreme volume, and without that I doubt he will stay above the Mendoza Line of fantasy football. Ideally, I would keep both Tracy and Singletary on my bench.