Start or Sit Rex Burkhead
It’s week three of the NFL season, and as crazy as it seems, we will already be a major chunk of the way through the 2018 fantasy football regular season when the Steelers and Buccaneers wind down on Monday Night Football. So far, we’ve had some spectacular ups-and-downs in terms of out-of-nowhere players suddenly playing amazing, and amazing players suddenly playing like they’ve never seen a football field before. We now have to samples of data for the NFL season, and it’s a mess to try to make heads or tails of this so early in the season. However, we at Football Absurdity are here to help you think through some of your tough weekly lineup decisions. For example, should you start or sit Rex Burkhead as the New England Patriots take on the Detroit Lions this weekend?
As Rush once said, changes aren’t permanent, but change is. That seems to be the guiding ideology that powers Bill Belichick’s backfield usage. After spending last season rotating between Dion Lewis, Mike Gillislee, James White, and Rex Burkhead, Belichick gave four different backs at least a dozen snaps in each of the first two games of the season. It’s been a mess in the Patriots backfield, as Belichicanery once again reared its ugly head. There’s also another huge kink in the konk: first-round pick Sony Michel. With all this going on, answering whether to start or sit Rex Burkhead will take careful analysis.
Michel missed week one, but had his NFL debut last week, logging thirteen snaps to Burkhead’s fourteen. More disconcerting is that Michel’s thirteen snaps ended up with him carrying the ball ten times and getting two targets. That’s a massive opportunity share among the running backs, and a prime reason why I am shying away from Rex Burkhead. They also both lost out to James Develin and James White in the snaps department, making them split the short side of the platoon, with Burkhead getting the shortest end of the stick. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter whom the Patriots play this weekend, as it seems as though Belichick has a changing of the guard in order. Ignore Rex Burkhead, put in your speculative adds on Sony Michel, and pray Belichicanery takes a break like it did with LeGarrette Blount in 2016. The Lions gave up 239 yards to backup 49ers running backs last week, so fire up your Sony Michels.
When it comes to the question of whether you should start or sit Rex Burkhead in week three? Sit him, and hope that you don’t end up cutting him soon.
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