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It’s pretty obvious.
If there was a C.J. Spiller fan club, I’d easily be the leader, the head honcho, the leader. I’ve displayed my biased affection towards the Buffalo running back, having stated that I strongly believe he could finish this season as the league’s top rusher. Through two games this season, Spiller hasn’t been nearly as dominant as he was towards the end of last season, but he did post his first 100-yard rushing game of the season on Sunday, and while fantasy owners may be expecting more, they need to be patient. And if they aren’t patient, opposing owners should jump at the opportunity.
That’s right, folks. More buy-low opportunities.
A lot of Spiller owners were salivating at the thought Spiller “getting the ball until he throws up.” Well, after touching the ball just 42 total times, compared to backup Fred Jackson’s 33 touches through two games, many owners may just want to throw up. It’s still early, but the Buffalo backfield situation is looking more like a committee approach, which can be extremely frustrating for Spiller owners, considering how talented he is. However, Spiller is the type of runner that doesn’t need a massive workload to be productive. I mean, we clearly saw that last season, right? Despite only carrying the ball 207 times, Spiller still managed to finish as fantasy’s number seven running back, all while averaging a stellar 6.0 yards per clip. Spiller is a guy who can break the big run that can change your mood when looking at his pedestrian fantasy score at times. Spiller, although he failed to find the end zone, demonstrated that today, as he broke a few 20-yard runs, as well as a 46-yarder.
Of course, I do believe that the presence of Jackson should not be overlooked, and maybe I became to infatuated with Spiller that I forgot that the Bills still have a backup who could start for a handful of teams in this league. Head coach Doug Marrone has historically featured a two-back offense during his tenure at Syracuse university, but again, he’s never had a back like Spiller. I think Jackson will see at least 10 carries per game, but not nearly enough to hinder Spiller’s fantasy outlook. He may vulture some goal line touchdowns (like he did today), but Spiller will still be the star of this offense. In the opener against the Patriots, despite posting only 55 total yards, Spiller still managed nearly one touch per minute in this offense. The Bills, while they are no Eagles, want to run a good amount of plays per contest, which means Spiller, despite surrendering work to Jackson at times, will see a ton of volume.
If you own Spiller and you are frantically worrying about his usage, I laugh at you, and if I were in your league, I’d be sending trade offers faster than Spiller can run.
Adam Pfeifer is a featured fantasy sports columnist for Rant Sports.
You can follow him on Twitter @aPfeiferRS.
