Is Roschon Johnson a Good Fantasy Football Pickup for Week 4? Waiver Wire Outlook

The Chicago Bears have been a nightmare offensively to start the season. After acquiring D.J. Moore and drafting Darnell Wright, it was though that Justin Fields would potentially lead a top-10 offense in 2023.

That could not be further from reality. Chicago has failed to score 21 points in a game this season while currently being 31st in passing yards and 17th in rushing yards.

However, there is one bright spot on this offense: a player consistently performs well. That player is rookie running back Roschon Johnson.

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What Has Roschon Johnson Done So Far?

It was expected that Khalil Herbert would receive the largest share of rushing attempts from this Chicago committee coming into the season, followed by D'Onta Foreman and then Roschon Johnson.

However, after the first three games, Johnson has clearly taken over Foreman's spot and is challenging Herbert for the starting role.

Johnson has 17 carries for 90 yards and a score, while also catching 10 passes for 56 yards so far this season. He has proven to be Chicago's best pass-blocker as well as a solid receiving threat out of the backfield.

Additionally, the rookie received the first carry of the game in Chicago's week 3 loss to the Chiefs. His snap share has also increased each week, which is a promising sign of things to come in the future.

Chicago Bears 2023 RB Opportunity Share Trend

Week 1:
Khalil Herbert - 41.2%
Roschon Johnson - 35.3%
D'Onta Foreman - 23.5%

Week 2:
Khalil Herbert - 62.5%📈
Roschon Johnson - 37.5%📈
D'Onta Foreman - banished❌

Week 3:
Khalil Herbert - 47.4%📉
Roschon Johnson - 52.6%📈

— Aaron Stewart (@ffbcaptain) September 25, 2023

Have There Been Any Worrying Signs With Roschon Johnson?

So far, Johnson has been the most efficient runner in the Bears' offense. However, there has yet to be a game script that maximizes his potential.

Chicago has trailed in the majority of every game so far this season. Because of this, there has yet to be a single player to with 10 or more rushes in a game.

Furthermore, the bulk of Johnson's fantasy points came in garbage time in week 1, when the Bears had little to no chance of winning the game.

Johnson has been seeing more time on the field when the games are closer in score; however, it seems evident that the Bears will continue to play from behind for majority of the season. If this is the case, Roschon will continue to suffer from a lack of carries.

Should I Pickup Roschon Johnson Off the Waiver Wire in Fantasy Football?

Despite how atrocious this Bears offense has looked this season, Roschon Johnson continues to show promise in both the running and passing game. It seems as though it is only a matter of time before he overtakes Khalil Herbert as the lead back in Chicago.

The Bears offense has been hard to watch, but their schedule should get a little easier in the coming weeks. This includes a week 4 matchup against the Denver Broncos, who just allowed 350 rushing yards and 5 rushing touchdowns against the Miami Dolphins.

For fantasy purposes, it looks like Johnson will get plenty of opportunities this week to establish himself as RB1 on this team. If he excels, he can become a solid flex or low-end RB2 option in PPR formats. If Johnson is available, he is a great waiver wire option for week 4 that could continue producing for the rest of the season.

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