Should I Pickup And Start Royce Freeman In Week 17? Fantasy Football Outlook

Houston Texans running back Royce Freeman was a third-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos.

The former Oregon Duck had 521 rushing yards and five touchdowns as a rookie, averaging 6.7 half-point PPR fantasy points per game.

However, he lost his starting job to Phillip Lindsay. After three years with the team, the Broncos released Freeman. Following his release, the veteran running back has spent time with the Carolina Panthers and Texans.

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Should I Pickup And Start Royce Freeman In Week 17?

Since Dameon Pierce suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 14, the Houston backfield has been a fantasy disaster. Freeman has been part of a backfield that includes Dare Ogunbowale and Rex Burkhead. However, the former Oregon star led the backfield in snaps played last week.

Despite leading the backfield in snaps played with 37, the veteran running back had 32 rushing yards on 16 attempts, scoring only 4.3 fantasy points. This week he faces the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Last week, the Jaguars held the New York Jets running backs to only 10 fantasy points. Zonovan Knight and Michael Carter combined for only four yards on eight rushing attempts against Jacksonville last week. Furthermore, AFC South division leaders have held running backs to under 15 fantasy points in four of their past seven contests.

What Running Back Should I Target Off The Waiver Wire?

When Pierce was healthy, the rookie running back was excellent for fantasy players. However, the backfield has been awful since his injury. The Houston backfield has averaged only 12.8 fantasy points per game in the two games without the rookie this season.

Instead of adding Freeman off the waiver wire, fantasy players should add Chuba Hubbard. The second-year running back is rostered in only 27.6% of ESPN leagues.

Last week Hubbard had his best performance this year, rushing for a career-high 125 yards in a win over the Detroit Lions. His first two rushing attempts in the game were for 30 or more yards. Furthermore, the former Oklahoma State star scored the first touchdown of the game for the Panthers.

Meanwhile, Hubbard has an appealing matchup in Week 17. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have surrendered 97.4 rushing yards per game to running backs over their past five contests. Furthermore, they gave up a season-high 176 rushing yards to the Panthers in their Week 7 matchup.

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