Should I Drop Latavius Murray?
Fantasy football playoffs are here, and you all should be looking for players to drop in your roster to make room for the late-season hotness. That’s why more than a few owners are wondering “should I drop Latavius Murray” to make room for pickups such as DeAndre Washington, Raheem Mostert, Bo Scarbrough, or Patrick Laird. We at Football Absurdity’s department of “Should I Drop Him” have been churning the numbers, and have come up with a definitive answer.
There are two approaches to low-end flex players/third running backs when it comes to playoffs. The first school of thought is that you want a player with a high floor, one who is definitely going to get you 8+ points but won’t be setting off any fireworks. Let your studs win the game for you, and round out their performances with B-list players that provide surefire support. So, is the answer to “Should I drop Latavius Murray” handled by this way of thinking?
The Skinny
Let me put it this way: In 3 of his last 5 games, Murray has scored 4.2 points or fewer in HPPR. That’s not a high floor, that’s a trap door that could plunge you team (he had 0.2 points against Atlanta’s horrible defense!) So if you’re looking to get a high floor, find an RB who is more likely to catch passes, like DeAndre Washington (provided Jacobs sits again) or Boston Scott, who each caught 6 passes last week and are available in greater than 95% of leagues. There might even be a better player than those on your waiver wire, I just wanted to throw two guys out there that will definitely be there in even the biggest leagues.
People who are big underdogs in their playoff matchups tend to approach their flex/low-end players a different way: They want a player with a high ceiling, someone who could go off and cause an upset. Does that answer the question “Should I Drop Latavius Murray?” When we consider that Murray’s ceiling appears to be a dozen points when Kamara’s healthy, and he doesn’t really face a soft defense in weeks 15 or 16, I’d definitely drop him for a player with way more upside. Raheem Mostert is available in 50% of Yahoo! leagues and topped two dozen points each of the past two weeks, see if he’s available.
To summarize, no matter how you build your team for the playoffs, the answer to the question, “should I drop Raheem Mostert” is a resounding “yes!”
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