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New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley has had an excellent 2022 season. The superstar running back has averaged 15 half-point PPR fantasy points per game this year, making him one of the top fantasy scorers at his position.
Over the first four years of his career, the former Penn State star struggled to say healthy. He missed most of the 2020 season with a torn ACL.
However, Barkley has managed to stay mostly healthy this year. Unfortunately, that has changed lately.
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Is Saquon Barkley Healthy Or Injured?
The veteran running back was dealing with a neck injury last week. Reportedly, he had a 50-50 chance at playing Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles. However, Barkley was active and played.
While he played, fantasy players probably wished he hadn’t suited up. The superstar played a season-low 31% of the snaps in Week 14. Meanwhile, Matt Breida led the way, playing 36% of the snaps. Even Gary Brightwell (32%) played more of the snaps than Barkley.
The superstar running back isn’t healthy. He had played at least 69% of the snaps in every other game this season before last week. Furthermore, the former first-round pick played 80% or more of the snaps in 75% of the games before last week.
With Barkley clearly not healthy, should fantasy players add Breida off the waiver wire for the fantasy playoffs?
Should I Add Matt Breida Off The Waiver Wire?
Last week I addressed this question. With Barkley potentially not playing in Week 14, fantasy players wanted to know if Breida was a suitable replacement. Given the matchup, I said no and was proven correct.
All three Giants' running backs combined for 57 yards on 17 rushing attempts. They also combined for only 13.4 fantasy points.
While all three running backs played on Sunday, Breida wouldn’t have a featured role if Barkley missed time. Brightwell has earned more work lately. Breida had only two rushing attempts for six yards against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. By comparison, Brightwell had five rushing attempts for 31 yards.
More importantly, the Giants don’t have a fantasy-friendly playoff schedule for running backs. Next week they face the Washington Commanders. They held Barkley to only 3.5 yards per rushing attempt two weeks ago. While New York's matchups against the Minnesota Vikings and Indianapolis Colts are more appealing, neither is an excellent matchup.
Barkley is a superstar and a must-start every week, regardless of the matchup. That isn't the case for Breida.
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