Keaton Mitchell (RB, BAL) - Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 15

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ Team Leagues

ROSTERED IN: 57% of Leagues

ANALYSIS: Baltimore Ravens running back Keaton Mitchell has averaged at least four yards per carry in all five games he's played this year. The rookie running back possesses big-play ability and has tremendous upside if he can secure a larger role.

With the Ravens on a bye in Week 13, it seems as though some fantasy managers may have dropped him. That’s a mistake. In Week 12 against the Chargers, Gus Edwards played just 27% of the snaps and finished with eight carries for 26 yards. Mitchell led the backfield in snaps, playing 46% of the time. He also finished with nine carries, which also led the Baltimore backfield, and was the most efficient rusher. He ended up with 64 yards. He also had two targets, two receptions, and 25 receiving yards.

Based on his utilization in Week 12, Mitchell seems to be the 1A in Baltimore’s backfield. Edwards and Justice Hill are still going to play. Due to Mitchell’s size, he cannot be a workhorse back. However, it seems likely Mitchell will be the running back that plays the most and sees the most touches. That may only mean 8-12 touches per game. Edwards will probably have 8-10 touches as well. Hill is likely to be the forgotten man here for fantasy purposes. Edwards will still be the goal-line back for the Ravens, but Mitchell should be expected to be the primary pass-catcher out of the backfield moving forward.

Mitchell does not need a lot of touches to make a difference. Since Week 9, he has had games averaging 15.3, 11.3, 4.1, 7.1, and 6.0 yards per attempt. He has carries of 60, 40, 39, 29, and 21 yards on the season. He also had a 32-yard reception. He’s a big play waiting to happen.

Over the past five weeks, he’s scored 19.9, 13.1, 4.6, 9.9, and 6.7 half-PPR points. That amounts to a 10.8 half-PPR PPG average. Mitchell had nine carries for 54 yards this past weekend and had one reception for eight yards. He had the most carries among any running back on the team and should be considered the team's 1A back.

Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App

Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy football app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, rankings, starts/sits & more. All free!

More Fantasy Football Analysis