Damien Williams, once a fringe first-rounder on my Big Board, has been among fantasy’s biggest losers in early camp. First, he suffered a hamstring injury. Worse, Williams’ missed time opened the door for other RBs to impress. Consequently, Andy Reid’s gone from labeling Williams “full-time starter” to “committee back” in the blink of an eye.
Granted, Williams still has time to separate from this hum-drum pack and re-establish himself as a workhorse. Thus, we can’t overreact quite yet. Still, with little pedigree outside his strong 2018 finish and minimal financial commitment, Williams may just find himself in an impossible-to-project situation. He falls hard.
Indeed, Reid using a committee approach would be a huge departure from his typical “workhorse” approach. His lead RBs have averaged over 19 touches per game, with particular involvement as receivers. Consequently, he’s produced numerous fantasy monsters. Within such an unstoppable offense, a true lead-horse would be a Top-Seven weekly option. Just last year, Williams averaged 22.5 Half-PPR FPs as a starter, trailing only Todd Gurley‘s averages.
Unfortunately, despite this strong play, Williams has lost what seemed like a strong grip on the full-time role. Appearing on Sirius XM, Reid sparked fantasy nightmares:
“I did a little bit of that back when I was in Philadelphia,” Reid said. “Kind of a running-back-by-committee deal and we had some success with it. We’ll do that here.
“We ended up drafting a kid there also and then the other Williams (Darrel) isn’t bad either. So we’ve got a couple of Williamses and then Carlos (Hyde) and then we’ve got a new little guy in there (Darwin Thompson). We’ve got a good nucleus of players. I think we’re going to be good at that spot. And they all have their strengths, and we’ll try to exploit their strengths there.”
Despite the confusion, the Chiefs backfield can’t be labeled a “fantasy avoid.” The upside remains astronomical for Williams or any other runner who could emerge. Unfortunately, this is becoming much more of a guessing game — one that could be worthless if no one does ultimately separate. As such, Williams falls to Round 4 on my latest Big Board, while Hyde and Darrel Williams
