Before we get into my favorite running backs for fantasy football Week 3, here are a few notes.

Injuries: I'm writing this piece on Monday and Tuesday, which means I won't have complete information regarding several players injured this past weekend. For the most part, I'll try to avoid highlighting players who might miss time to injury or who might see extra playing time if someone else ahead of them on the depth chart is out.

2023 Defensive Data: This is the final week in which I'll rely more on last year's data than this year's. It's not as if what defenses did in Weeks 1-2 doesn't matter, but for the purposes of evaluating skill-position matchups it still matters a little less than the 2023 numbers.

Pearl Jam: That's right, baby. They're playing at Fenway Park on Tuesday night, and I've decided to rediscover my youth and go to the concert. As a result, this edition of the article might (or might not) be shorter than it usually is. Rest assured, I'm putting the same research time into the piece. I just might (or might not) put a little less writing time into it. And that might (or might not) be a win for everybody, if we're being honest (your editor thanks you, Freedman).

Let's get to Week 3.

If you want to find the rest of my favorite positional fantasy football plays for Week 3, see below:

Best RBs for Fantasy Football Week 3

Here are my preliminary Week 3 favorites. These are the guys who (in some combination) …

  • Might be high in my fantasy rankings relative to the industry consensus.
  • Need to be started in most season-long leagues.
  • Must be added if they are on waivers.
  • Possess underappreciated upside.
  • Have advantageous matchups.
  • Should be considered in DFS.
  • Make for desirable dynasty acquisition targets.
  • Are on teams with player-friendly betting odds.
  • Catch my eye with their player projections.
  • Stand out in our player prop tool.

Some notes.

  • Updates: After I submit this piece (on Tuesday afternoon), any changing opinions I have will be reflected in my weekly fantasy football rankings and my NFL player projections (accessible with a FantasyLife+ subscription), which I will update throughout the week.
     
  • Rankings Accuracy: Last year I was No. 18 in the FantasyPros Accuracy Contest. That was my sixth season with a top-20 finish.
     
  • Scoring & Ordering: All fantasy points are half-PPR scoring unless otherwise stated. Players are ordered within position roughly (but maybe not precisely) according to my rankings.
     
  • Abbreviations: Check out the end of the piece for abbreviations I might use.
     
  • Sports Betting Data: Odds are as of 12:45 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Sep. 17, and based on the consensus lines in our Fantasy Life NFL Betting Odds Page.

De'Von Achane (Dolphins) at Seahawks

  • Dolphins: +5.5
  • O/U: 41.5
  • TT: 18

Last year, Achane was an efficiency monster thanks to his ability to break long runs on any carry. On just 103 rush attempts, he had eight runs of 20-plus yards and five of 40, resulting in a league-high 7.8 Y/A among all rushers with at least 50 carries.

This year has been different: Achane is yet to gain more than 17 yards on a carry, and his rushing average has plummeted to a meager 3.8.

And yet … he still has 265 yards and two TDs from scrimmage thanks to his workmanlike 32 carries and 14 targets.

Efficiency is a prince, but volume is king, and targets turn kings into emperors.

RB Raheem Mostert (chest) didn't practice at all last week, so I'm skeptical he'll return to action in Week 3, and RB Jeff Wilson (oblique) might not play given that he exited Week 2 early.

One week after getting a career-high 29 touches—and blessed with three extra days of rest coming off Thursday Night Football—Achane looks positioned once again to lead the Dolphins backfield, and the team could especially rely on the running game with QB Tua Tagovailoa (concussion) not suiting up. 

Last year the Seahawks were No. 2 in most fantasy points allowed to RBs (24.4), and last week despite winning they still allowed Patriots RBs to amass 195 scrimmage yards and one TD.

Alvin Kamara (Saints) vs. Eagles

  • Saints: -3
  • O/U: 49.5
  • TT: 26.25

Kamara enters Week 3 with an NFL-high 290 yards and five TDs on 35 carries and eight targets.

Sure, you can nitpick his production by saying he got 180 of those yards and four TDs in just one game against the Cowboys … but that's the point: In any given week, Kamara has the ability to go all the way off—and that still leaves 110 yards and a TD on 20 touches for the other game.

Not shabby.

At the age of 29 years, Kamara is unlikely to dominate in this fashion for the entire season, but right now he's healthy and looking like the 2017-20 version of himself, who averaged 1,500-plus yards and 14.5 TDs from scrimmage. 

The Eagles last year were No. 30 in defensive rush EPA (-0.020), and they seem to miss retired DT Fletcher Cox. In Week 1 they allowed 150 scrimmage yards to Packers RBs. In Week 2, 187 to Falcons RBs.

With one less day of rest coming off a disappointing Monday Night Football loss and traveling to New Orleans for an early game on Sunday, the Eagles defense could be especially vulnerable this week.

Zamir White (Raiders) vs. Panthers

  • Raiders: -5.5
  • O/U: 40.5
  • TT: 23

There might be a little bit of wishcasting going on here, as I have a bet on White to rush for over 775.5 yards, and if he's to hit that mark I'll need him to exploit soft matchups when he gets them.

To this point, he has just 68 yards rushing (plus 16 receiving) … so I have little reason to be enthusiastic. After finishing last season with 457 yards on 84 carries and 13 targets in the final four games as an injury fill-in, White entered 2024 poised to dominate, but instead, he has annoyingly split work with backup Alexander Mattison.

  • White: 52% snap rate | 61% rush rate | 40% route rate | 9% target rate
  • Mattison: 40% snap rate | 25% rush rate | 39% route rate | 9% target rate

Perhaps what's most frustrating about White's usage (or lack thereof) is that the No. 2 back has gotten both of the backfield's TDs and 100% of the carries inside the five-yard line.

But the matchup this week might be good enough for both White and Mattison to produce as home favorites.

In Week 1, the Panthers yielded 172 yards and two TDs from scrimmage to the Saints RBs. Last week, 201 yards and one TDs to Chargers RBs. Last year the Panthers were No. 32 in defensive rush EPA (0.024) and defensive rush DVOA (5.7%)--and now they're without DT Derrick Brown (knee, IR). 

White has the upside for 25-plus opportunities in this game.

More Fantasy Football RB Plays for Week 3

The Checkdown

  • Jonathan Taylor (Colts -1.5, TT: 22) vs. Bears: Taylor has 16 opportunities in each of the past two weeks, and I could see that number being higher in Week 3 given what we saw out of QB Anthony Richardson (three INTs) in Week 2.
     
  • James Cook (Bills -5.5, TT: 25.5) vs. Jaguars: Since becoming the lead back last year, Cook has 1,136 scrimmage yards and four TDs in 11 games as a home favorite. He should be fresh with three extra days of rest off Thursday Night Football, where he had 95 yards and three TDs.
     
  • Kyren Williams (Rams +7, TT: 18.5) vs. 49ers: Without WRs Puka Nacua (knee, IR) and Cooper Kupp (ankle), Williams could see enhanced usage against the 49ers, who last season were No. 30 in defensive rush SR (42.3%). 
     
  • Brian Robinson (Commanders +7.5, TT: 20.25) at Bengals: Robinson has leveraged his 16-plus opportunities in each of the past two weeks into 225 yards and a TD on the season. The Bengals lost run-stuffing DT D.J. Reader this offseason and weren't all that good with him in 2023, ranking No. 28 in defensive rush DVOA (1.4%).
     
  • David Montgomery (Lions -3, TT: 27.75) at Cardinals: In 2023, Montgomery had a league-high 27 carries inside the five-yard line, and he already has two TDs in 2024. Last year, the Cardinals were No. 1 in most fantasy points allowed to RBs (24.9) and the largest fantasy boost allowed to RBs (+5.5).
     
  • Zach Charbonnet (Seahawks -5.5, TT: 23.5) vs. Dolphins: Lead RB Kenneth Walker (oblique) didn't practice at all last week, and Charbonnet in his stead had a satisfactory 69 yards and a TD as the fill-in. In his four career games with a snap rate of at least 60%, Charbonnet has 79 total opportunities.
     
  • Zack Moss (Bengals -7.5, TT: 27.25) vs. Commanders: Moss has been the backfield leader through two weeks, and in his 10 games with a snap share of more than 50% with the Colts and now Bengals over the past two-plus seasons he has put up 1,084 yards and six TDs. The Bengals are big home favorites and No. 1 on the slate with their implied point total.
     
  • Najee Harris (Steelers -2, TT: 18.75) vs. Chargers: Harris is yet to fall into the endzone this year, and his inefficiency is notable (3.8 yards per carry, 3.5 yards per target)---but he has 37 carries and four targets in an offense that funnels through the backfield, and he should see his usual workload as a home favorite.

More Fantasy Football Plays for Week 3

Abbreviations

  • Fantasy Points per Game (FPPG)
  • Against the Spread (ATS)
  • Over/Under (O/U)
  • Team Total (TT)
  • Moneyline (ML)
  • Return on Investment (ROI)
  • Adjusted Yards per Attempt (AY/A)
  • Expected Points Added (EPA)
  • Success Rate (SR)
  • Completion Percentage Over Expected (CPOE)
  • Defense-Adjusted Value Over Average (DVOA)
  • AirYAC (Air Yards + Yards After Catch)
  • Weighted Opportunity Rating (WOPR)
  • Average Depth of Target (aDOT)
  • Short Down and Distance (SDD)
  • Long Down and Distance (LDD)