If you started Bobby Rainey as a flex option or even your RB2, you were happy with the results. With the fantasy playoffs on the line however, is Rainey still a safe bet to start? Guest writer Brad Kelly shares some insight into Tampa’s running back.
Can Bobby Rainey Be Trusted For The Fantasy Playoffs?
Authored by: Brad Kelly
Since Rainey’s insertion into Tampa Bay’s lineup, he has proven to be an explosive RB capable of breaking off a big play every time he touches the ball. This was furthermore the case after last week’s nearly untouched 80 yd. scamper to the end zone against Buffalo. While the explosiveness is there, Tampa’s schedule does Rainey no favor and provides a daunting task for him to find success against over the next there weeks. Rainey’s next three opponents are San Francisco, St. Louis and the Saints. They respectively rank 14th, 9th and 21st against the run. These matchups, based on their rank, don’t seem as tough for Rainey but for all of us watching games on Sunday, we know that these three teams have some of the toughest front sevens in football and have shown that they can be viable stoppers against the run.
At this point of the season we are looking for quality numbers that will propel us down the playoff stretch and ultimately secure us a title. But, even if we were to just look at this week for example, we see that the 49ers are one of the most potent teams against the run over the latter half of the year. Last week they held Marshawn Lynch in check for only 72 yards. That has been a constant for the 49ers over the last 8 weeks, and they haven’t allowed a rusher over 75 yards during this stretch. I think we can all admit that if Lynch was shut down, we can’t really have superb confidence in Rainey to out produce him and break the norm. Also, it is important to note that after that 80yd run against Buffalo, he only amassed 47yds on 21 carries for the rest of the game, which is only 2.23 yards per carry.
Rainey has done an admirable job this and has put out of some monster showings this year. However, this late in the year and the importance each week holds proves that we have to have substantial confidence in every guy we start. Rainey just can’t be trusted to produce enough points to warrant a RB2 start this week, and that goes for pretty much every week after that. In a pinch, starting Rainey isn’t the end of the world but if you are on the fence about him and another guy, I would recommend that you stray away from Rainey and just try to find a player that has better matchup.
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