Fantasy Football Mailbag Week 4: Starts/Sits, C.J. Anderson Advice And More

It’s already Week 4 of the 2015 NFL season, and fantasy football owners are facing many tough decisions this week.

Several star players, a few of whom were taken in the first few rounds of your fantasy drafts, have underperformed through three games. Should you drop them or keep the faith? We answer some of those questions and more in this week’s NESN.com fantasy football mailbag.

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This is a tough one, but I’d start Carlos Hyde. He has tremendous talent and there’s no one pushing him for the No. 1 spot or taking many carries away. But since the San Francisco 49ers are so bad and constantly trailing — often by two or more scores — in the second half, there haven’t been too many opportunities for Hyde to get enough carries.

He’s averaged just 14 carries over the last two weeks. The 49ers lost those games by a combined score of 90-25.

Gio Bernard has to outperform Jeremy Hill, a talented running back in his own right, for the No. 1 spot in the Bengals backfield. Bernard received 13 carries in Cincinnati’s Week 3 win over the Baltimore Ravens, while Hill got 12. Bernard was slightly better with 49 yards to Hill’s 21, but it’s going to be tough for him to be fantasy relevant with an average of 13.6 carries per week.

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Jonathan Stewart received the bulk of the carries in Week 3, but unfortunately for him, Panthers quarterback Cam Newton is the best red-zone rusher on the team. Newton has two rushing touchdowns through three games.

I would keep Stewart for one more week, and if he doesn’t meet expectations, go ahead and drop him. He has a favorable matchup in Week 4 against a bad Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense that’s allowed the third-most rushing yards in the league.

If you’re asking whether C.J. Anderson will be as productive as he was toward the end of last season, the answer is no. The Broncos haven’t been able to run the ball this season, and when they have found success, it’s been with Ronnie Hillman.

Hillman has 88 yards rushing to Anderson’s 78, and he’s scored Denver’s only rushing touchdown through three games. Week 3 should have been Anderson’s bounce-back game because the Lions defense is horrible against the run, but he was very ineffective.

Denver head coach Gary Kubiak is a run-first kind of coach, but the Broncos’ best chance for success offensively is passing the ball a lot. Combine that with Anderson’s struggles, and it’s unlikely we’ll see him be an RB1 for the remainder of the campaign.

Neither, honestly. Yeldon has averaged just 51 yards per game this season with zero touchdowns. Another problem for Yeldon is he plays for a Jaguars team that will be trailing early in a lot of games, which will result in Jacksonville throwing a lot. He’s been an OK option in the passing game with eight receptions for 38 yards in three games, but that’s not good enough to be fantasy relevant in most leagues.

Andre Ellington has had injury issues in the past and plays for a Cardinals team with two better running backs in Chris Johnson and David Johnson. Ellington also has made no impact in the passing game with one reception for three yards.

Yeldon and Ellington should not be started, even as flex players. Search the waiver wire or make a trade for an upgrade.

Thumbnail photo via John Rieger/USA TODAY Sports Images