Over the years, the fantasy football community has seen some real interesting characters bring home the championship. Last season, Jaguars wide receiver Keelan Cole posted back-to-back 100-yard efforts in Weeks 15 and 16 to help his owners win the title. The year before, it was Oakland running back DeAndre Washington’s 99-yard, two-touchdown game that saved playoff teams from injuries.
Countless oddball names, from Tim Hightower to Zac Stacy, have graced the late-season leaderboards, and this season won’t be any different. While studs like Todd Gurley, James Conner and Odell Beckham Jr. nurse injuries, we are searching for a new hero to swoop in and save the day. Surprisingly, we just may have found a few.
When the Dolphins capped off their 2018 “Hate the Drake” campaign last week, fantasy owners found a potential hero in rookie running back Kalen Ballage. Rather than hand over the backfield reins to Kenyan Drake, Miami coach Adam Gase felt it was more important to see what Ballage could do with consistent touches rather than be let down by Drake yet again. He responded with 123 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries, including an impressive push through the line for a 75-yard touchdown run.
Putting your faith in Ballage can be unnerving, but the Dolphins have no reason not to give him the opportunity again. They may have an outside shot at the playoffs this year, but they need to think about next season, particularly the draft, as well. They know they’re not happy with Drake, but can Ballage be their guy or will they have to seek out another lead running back in the draft? A matchup against the Jaguars provides an excellent test, and for fantasy, that is a defense that has allowed 138 rushing yards per game over the past three weeks.
Fantasy owners may also be able to turn to Packers running back Jamaal Williams, who missed a golden opportunity to thrive early on in the season but has just as good an opportunity now to close the season out on a high note. With Aaron Jones on IR, Williams will be the lead back against a Jets team that has coughed up nearly 120 rushing yards per game over the past three. The fact Aaron Rodgers is expected to play only enhances Williams’ value, as the Jets’ defense cannot just stack the box.
The names might not be sexy and the trust factor might not be high, but with nowhere else to turn, your fantasy heroes have to come from obscurity. Six weeks ago, fantasy owners were riding Gurley, Conner and Kareem Hunt to the playoffs. Today, they’ll beg for Ballage and Williams to save the day.
Howard Bender is the VP of operations and head of content at FantasyAlarm.com. Follow him on Twitter @rotobuzzguy and catch him on the award winning “Fantasy Alarm Radio Show” on the SiriusXM fantasy sports channel weekdays from 4-6 p.m. Go to FantasyAlarm.com for all your fantasy sports advice and NFL player rankings.