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Fantasy Football Week 12 Waiver Wire Pickup: RB Alfred Blue

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By @bradberreman24

Alfred Blue, Houston Texans, Fantasy Football Waiver Wire

Ron Schwane-USA TODAY Sports

Filling in for an injured Arian Foster (groin), Houston Texans running back Alfred Blue had 36 carries for 156 yards against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. The carry total was a franchise record, and fantasy owners that were able to add him and start him had to be happy with what Blue produced, despite the fact he did not have a touchdown and did not catch a pass.

Blue also produced solidly in Week 3 when he started in Foster’s place, with 13 carries for 78 yards along with one catch for 10 yards against the New York Giants. That said, with just four double-digit carry games so far this season, is Blue a must-add for fantasy football owners this week?

Foster was injured in Week 9, prior to Houston’s bye, and Texans’ head coach Bill O’Brien suggested that it is a two-week injury while saying Foster is expected to be back for Week 12 against the Cincinnati Bengals. But with a big workload (161 carries), two missed games already and injuries seemingly coming up on a weekly basis to limit his practice availability, getting Blue more involved looks like a good idea in order to keep Foster healthy down the stretch of the season.

Houston’s upcoming schedule is favorable for running backs, with five games against defenses that entered Week 11 in the bottom half of the league in terms of fantasy points allowed to the position (ESPN scoring). By far the most difficult matchup comes against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 16, who entered this past week’s action allowing the fewest fantasy points to running backs (10.6 per game). That is also championship week in a lot of fantasy leagues, so whoever is leading the Texans’ backfield may struggle.

Foster’s injury history, and multitude of nagging issues so far this year, makes Blue a high-end handcuff at minimum over the rest of the season. But he carries some value on his own down the stretch, with the possibility of a more consistent workload yielding some potential as a flex option in 12 and 14-team leagues.

As of now Blue is available in close to half of Yahoo! leagues, but it’s fair to assume his ownership percentage will rise this week on the heels of his big game on Sunday. Owners in need of running back depth, Foster owners or otherwise, can absolutely take a long look at adding Blue if he is available. Just be ready to make a significant investment of any remaining free agent budget.

Brad Berreman is a Columnist at Rant Sports.com. Connect with him on Twitter or Google +.

 

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