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Fantasy Football Week 13 Waiver Wire Pickup: RB Latavius Murray

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By @JordanWevers

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Getty Images

With Week 13 of the fantasy football season upon us, the fact you’re now pondering picking up Latavius Murray of the Oakland Raiders should tell you you’ve already respectfully missed the boat — at least, there’s a good chance you have from a production standpoint.

Le’Veon Bell and the Carolina Panthers‘ backfield committee had byes in Week 12, so picking him up might have been the answer to filling any holes pertaining to your lineup. The writing was on the wall for Murray’s increased workload after Week 11 against the San Diego Chargers. He finished the game with an impressive 59 yards from scrimmage on only seven touches.

Heading into that same game, Darren McFadden was averaging 3.48 yards per carry. Maurice Jones-Drew was averaging an even more underwhelming 2.12 yards per attempt. Considering the Raiders were set to face the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 12, a lot of rational managers who were curious about acquiring Murray’s services may have backed away from claiming him. The Chiefs’ defense had not allowed a single rushing touchdown before their Thursday night tilt in Oakland.

Murray put an end to that statistic. He made the best of his four carries against the Chiefs before exiting with concussion-like symptoms. He brought 112 yards and two touchdowns to the table, or 23.2 points in most standard scoring leagues. Murray was an unexpected surprise, though he likely will not have a better day of production for the remainder of the year. The concussion makes his status questionable at best for Week 13.

The second-year pro is obviously much fresher and more eager to eat up carries than are veterans Jones-Drew and McFadden. Murray could bring okay returns for the rest of 2014, but most of his value is held in picking the former UCF Knights running back up in keeper leagues to gear up for next season. McFadden is headed for free agency, and it’s now fair to say MJD’s best days are behind him.

Next year, Murray could join the likes of Brandon Marshall, Asante Samuel and Daunte Culpepper as former Knights to appear in a Pro Bowl. His 90-yard touchdown run versus the Chiefs on TNF was the longest play from scrimmage thus far in the NFL’s three-month-old regular season.

Jordan Wevers is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @JordanWevers, “Like” him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.

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