Is Rashaad Penny A Good Fantasy Football Pickup for Week 5? Waiver Wire Outlook

There is no doubt who the top tailback on the Seattle Seahawks is now.

After months of speculation that Rashaad Penny might end up splitting time and touches with second-round rookie Kenneth Walker III in Seattle’s backfield, Penny firmly established he is the main man of the Seahawks' rushing attack this past Sunday. He galloped like a greyhound through a porous Detroit Lions defense for 151 yards and two touchdowns, making a statement that fantasy football managers should pick him up if he is somehow available in their leagues.

Penny does come with more baggage than an overpacked traveler, though. His sordid injury history is well-known in the fantasy football universe. Penny missed 26 games between 2019 and 2021 and has never met an injury he has not had, which has been frustrating for fantasy managers since he has a career of 5.7 yards per carry. So should you add Penny after what he did in Week 4? Here is my take:

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Should I Add Rashaad Penny In Fantasy Football?

In a nutshell, yes! Running backs rule the roost in fantasy football, no matter how much of a passing league the NFL becomes. Penny is probably the No. 1 target in the few leagues where he remains on the waiver wire. While Penny only accounted for 141 rushing yards and zero touchdowns over the first three weeks of the season, his Week 4 performance showed his true self when he is 100 percent healthy and the offense revolves around him. He is an explosive runner who has emerged as the bell-cow back in a run-first offense that is currently clicking on all cylinders.

The No. 1 RB spot in Seattle’s offense is Penny’s to lose. He has more than triple the rushing attempts of Kenneth Walker III (49 to 15) and third-down specialist Travis Homer is on the injured reserve with a rib injury. Heading into a fantasy-friendly matchup against the reeling New Orleans Saints, Penny should be an above-average play in every fantasy format imaginable. He should get at least 15 touches and be able to give fantasy managers 75 yards and a touchdown, if not more.

Penny’s injury-riddled past cannot be ignored. Unless a new diet involving nothing but milk and vitamins keeps his bones from being brittle and his cartilage from being torn, Penny is a huge risk. Fantasy managers who pick him up cannot count on him staying injury-free for 17 games. He has shown no penchant for that kind of durability at any time in his career.

But you have to face the fact that there cannot be many, if any better available running backs in your league than Penny. Pick him up, ride him while he is hot and healthy, and either trade him when his stock is at its highest point or enjoy his production until another untimely injury derails his season later this year.

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