Hidden Stat Line: Week 4 Backfield Usage for Every NFL Team

We're doing things slightly different this week, starting with a sortable chart that has Week 4 stats for every running back who got more than a handful of touches. Then we'll do the usual backfield classifications, followed by team-by team breakdowns. Last but not least, we'll take a look at the top waiver/FAAB options for Week 5. Let's get to it!

Week 4 RB Leaders

(Bold denotes top-10 for Week 4)

Classify Me, Captain

Italics denote a significant change from the prior week. Classifications are based strictly on Week 4 usage/roles, not full-season assessments or predictions for the future.

Not Allowed to Come Off the Field Unless You Can't Breathe

1. Chicago Bears - David Montgomery
2. San Francisco 49ers - Jerick McKinnon   (Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman out)
3. Buffalo Bills - Devin Singletary   (Zack Moss out)

Three-down Role, Sometimes Subbed Out

1. Denver Broncos - Melvin Gordon   (Phillip Lindsay out)
2. Arizona Cardinals - Kenyan Drake
3. Carolina Panthers - Mike Davis   (Christian McCaffrey out)
4. Dallas Cowboys - Ezekiel Elliott
5. New Orleans Saints - Alvin Kamara
6. Minnesota Vikings - Dalvin Cook
7. Miami Dolphins - Myles Gaskin
8. Philadelphia Eagles - Miles Sanders
9. Atlanta Falcons - Todd Gurley

Clear Lead Back, But Usually Off the Field for Obvious Passing Situations

1. Jacksonville Jaguars - James Robinson
2. Cincinnati Bengals - Joe Mixon
3. Houston Texans - David Johnson
4. Seattle Seahawks - Chris Carson
5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Ronald Jones   (Leonard Fournette out)
6. Washington FT - Antonio Gibson
7. New York Giants - Devonta Freeman
8. Las Vegas Raiders - Josh Jacobs
9. Kansas City Chiefs - Clyde Edwards-Helaire

Two-Man Split

1. Los Angeles Chargers - Joshua Kelley & Justin Jackson   (Austin Ekeler injured)
2. Los Angeles Rams - Darrell Henderson & Malcolm Brown
3. Green Bay Packers - Aaron Jones & Jamaal Williams

Not-So-Pretty Committee

1. New York Jets - Frank Gore, La'Mical Perine & Kalen Ballage   (Le'Veon Bell out)
2. Cleveland Browns - Kareem Hunt, D'Ernest Johnson & Dontrell Hilliard   (Nick Chubb injured)
3. Detroit Lions - Adrian Peterson, D'Andre Swift & Kerryon Johnson
4. Baltimore Ravens - Mark Ingram, Gus Edwards & J.K. Dobbins
5. Indianapolis Colts- Jonathan Taylor, Nyheim Hines & Jordan Wilkins
6. New England Patriots - Damien Harris, James White & Rex Burkhead

Team-by-Team Breakdowns

(Snap totals, snap shares, carries and targets come from pro-football-reference.com or NFL.com's game books. Data on dropbacks and routes run come from Pro Football Focus.)

Broncos (37) at Jets (28)

Broncos

• Phillip Lindsay (toe) was out for a third straight week, but his availability came down to a game-time decision, suggesting he should be back for Week 5 at New England.
• Gordon scored a one-yard TD in the second quarter, then shut the door with a 43-yard score right at the two-minute warning of the fourth quarter. He had a 22-64-1 rushing line and 2-11-0 receiving line before his breakway run to seal the game.
• With Lindsay out the past three games, Gordon averaged 16.7 carries, 4.0 targets and 80 total yards, with snap shares of 79, 63 and 80 percent.
• The workload split in the first half of Denver's Week 1 contest wasn't encouraging for Gordon. Lindsay played 58 percent of snaps to Gordon's 52 percent, with Lindsay having a 7-6 advantage in carries and Gordon a 2-1 edge in targets, i.e., it was very close to a 50/50 split.

Jets

• Perine was phased out of the offense, after getting seven carries and two targets on 33 percent snap share the previous week in a blowout loss to Indianapolis. Four of his nine touches in that game were before halftime, so the reduced involvement Thursday night wasn't strictly about game script.
• Gore was the top ballcarrier, while Ballage was the clear choice in passing situations.
• Looking back to the season opener, Le'Veon Bell (hamstring) played all 27 snaps in the first half, albeit with only five carries and one target. He was forced out in the third quarter, at which point Gore became more involved and Josh Adams (who is no longer on the team) also got a few touches. Anyway, that doesn't mean Bell will have an every-down role once he returns, but it does suggest Ballage won't keep the passing-down role.
• In any case, Ballage was used as a blocker on 11 of his 29 pass snaps, tying Ezekiell Elliott for the Week 4 lead among RBs in pass-block snaps (not exactly a prestigious honor), per PFF. Ballage allowed three pressures, two hurries and a sack, so he didn't make a great case to keep a role. (Update: the Jets released Ballage on Monday.)

Cardinals (21) at Panthers (31)

Cardinals

• Edmonds continues to get the vast majority of his playing time on pass plays, but Drake actually had a 3-2 advantage in snaps on 3rd-and-medium/long. For the season, Drake has seen 18 snaps to Edmonds' 17 in those clear passing situations, yet it's the latter who continues to get more targets.
• Drake got four red-zone carries Sunday, but Edmonds took a carry from the 1-yard line on the final drive, then caught a two-yard TD pass on the next snap. Earlier in the game, Drake had been stuffed on a carry from the 1-yard line, setting up a three-yard TD pass to TE Jordan Thomas on the following play.
• Drake is now down to 3.7 YPC, 37th out of 43 qualified rushers. His PFF elusive rating (22.5) is 30th of 32 among RBs with 40 or more carries. Of course, Edmonds hasn't been any better in that regard, with 3.7 YPC and a 12.1 elusive rating.
• The Cardinals have PFF's second-worst team run-blocking grade (47.9), though ESPN paints a more favorable picture, with Arizona at No. 13 in run-block win rate after Week 3 (the stats haven't yet been updated for Week 4, as of Monday afternoon).

Panthers

• PFF charted Davis with four avoided tackles on rushes and three more on receptions, with his seven total placing third among all RBs in Week 4. His 5.6 after-contact average was best in the league Sunday. In two games with Christian McCaffrey (ankle) out, Davis has averaged 14.5 carries, 7.5 targets and 101 total yards, scoring a pair of TDs as well.
• Bonnafon was far more involved after playing only two snaps the previous week, but he did get half his carries in the fourth quarter with Carolina sitting on a lead. At the end of the third quarter, Davis had a 40-12 advantage in snaps, 11-5 in carries and 4-1 in targets.
• Davis limped off the field at one point early in the game, but he returned in short order and obviously had a great day.
• Davis scored a one-yard TD on the opening drive, then took a carry from the 1-yard line in the second quarter. But he was stuffed for a loss of two yards, and the Panthers brought in Bonnafon for a three-yard TD catch on the next play (the goal-line stuff had been the third straight play where Davis carried the ball, after back-to-back gains of nine).
• No. 3 WR Curtis Samuel took only one snap in the backfield, down from nine the previous week, per PFF. So part of Bonnafon's expanded role came from what Samuel took Week 3; it wasn't all taken out of Davis' pie.

Jaguars (25) at Bengals (33)

Jaguars

• Despite playing from behind throughout the second half, Robinson established new highs for both carries and snap share, with the latter marking a significant uptick from 51 and 45 percent the previous two weeks.
• Thompson got six of seven snaps in the two-minute drills at the end of the first half, but he otherwise played only four snaps before halftime.
• Robinson played 14 of 15 snaps in the fourth quarter, but he still came off the field for 3rd-and-medium/longs throughout the game. Thompson played each of the six snaps on 3rd-and-4 or longer. In other words, things are shifting more in Robinson's favor, but the Jags still prefer Thompson when the other team knows there's no threat of a rushing play.

Bengals

• Mixon was added to the injury report Saturday, listed as questionable with a chest injury, so naturally he put up the best stat line of his career — backed by his largest snap share since Week 8 of 2018 (in a game Bernard missed).
• Bernard got six of seven snaps on 3rd-and-medium/long, so he was still the choice for obvious passing situations. Mixon's snap share was so large in part because the Bengals faced very few of those situations and didn't need to break out their two-minute drill offense.

Browns (49) at Cowboys (38)

Browns

• Chubb suffered a knee injury late in the first quarter, but he played 14 of 18 snaps in that opening frame, with a 6-1 carry advantage over Hunt.
• After the first quarter, the Browns used a three-man committee. Hunt led with 22 snaps, but he wasn't far ahead of Johnson (17) and Hilliard (15). Hilliard got four of the five snaps on 3rd-and-medium/long, while Hunt led with 16 of 32 on first downs.
• Remember that Hunt was listed as questionable with a groin injury, potentially impacting his workload and allowing for Johnson/Hilliard to have more involvement. Hunt could see a larger share going forward if he's not playing through an injury.

Cowboys

• In addition to scoring his first touchdown of the year, Pollard nearly doubled his previous season high of 14 percent snap share (Week 1).
• Elliott lost a fumble for the second time this year, and Pollard poached a three-yard TD on a third down early in the third quarter. Despite finishing without a TD for the first time this year, Zeke topped 20 PPR points again, with eight catches and a two-point conversion making up for the weak rushing production.
• Elliott is now averaging 7.5 targets and 5.8 catches per game, besting his career highs from 2017 (6.3 targets, 5.1 catches). On the other hand, 17.5 carries per game puts him below last year's career-low 18.3.
• The increased receiving volume is largely a product of the Cowboys playing from behind and passing a ton, but it's also worth noting that Elliott has been targeted on 20.7 percent of his routes run, up from 15.3 percent last year. It's hard to imagine that being intentional given the other weapons in this offense, but it does make sense if he's running a lot of his routes against soft zones designed to limit downfield throws when the Cowboys need points in a hurry. On that note, Dak Prescott's aDOT is down from 9.3 last year to 8.0 this season.

Saints (35) at Lions (29)

Saints

• Kamara saw fewer than eight targets for the first time this year. The Saints had both Michael Thomas (ankle) and Jared Cook (groin) inactive, but they held a multi-score lead for nearly the entire second half, and wide receivers Emmanuel Sanders and Tre'Quan Smith combined for 10-147-2 on 13 targets.
• The Saints ran a handful of plays with Murray and Kamara on the field together, including Murray's six-yard TD run on a 3rd-and-goal in the third quarter. The defense presumably wasn't expecting a hand-off to Murray in that spot!
• The 19 carries for Kamara tied a career high (Weeks 4 and 9 of 2018). For the season, he's averaging 12.5 carries, 8.8 targets and a league-high 139.3 total yards per game.

Lions

• Swift re-emerged as a significant part of the Detroit offense after playing only 9 percent of snaps the previous week. And it wasn't just a matter of the Lions trailing, as Swift had a seven-yard TD catch and two other touches in the first quarter, including a carry on a 1st-and-10. His role is still far from what fantasy drafters were hoping for back in August.
• Peterson got the start and most of the carries again, but his role wasn't nearly as dominant as the 60 percent snap share and 22 carries we saw Week 3. A.P. played only six of 16 snaps in the first quarter, so the reduced usage wasn't strictly a product of game script. (Peterson got 11 of 16 snaps in the first quarter the previous week.)
• Johnson appeared banged up after he caught a three-yard pass to convert a 4th-and-2 in the fourth quarter. The Lions haven't reported anything, but it won't be any surprise if Johnson is on the injury report this week.

Vikings (31) at Texans (23)

Vikings

• PFF charted Cook with 10 avoided tackles on rush attempts, four more than any other running back in Week 4 (Melvin Gordon had six; James Robinson and Ronald Jones five apiece).
• That make three straight weeks with Cook handling 74 percent or more of snaps. His receiving usage (2.8 targets per game) is down from last season, but so is Mattison's share of the rushing pie. Mattison averaged 8.5 carries per game over the first eight weeks of last season, and he's seen only 6.0 per game this year.
• Mattison vultured a TD from four yards out, after Cook rumbled for a gain of 15 one play prior. Cook has a 5-2 advantage for inside-the-5 carries this year, and he's converted three of them for TDs.

Texans

• With Duke returning from an ankle injury after a two-week absence, David dropped down to 55 percent snap share, a far cry from 95 and 96 percent in the previous two games.
• Kind of a tough break for fantasy managers that DJ's brief run in an every-down role corresponded with matchups against Pittsburgh and Baltimore. The only good news here is that the tough September matchups leave Houston with a rest-of-season schedule that PFF estimates as the third-most favorable for RB production. It's a weak silver lining, but at least it's something, right?
• Duke got all seven snaps in the two-minute drill at the end of the first half, picking up a carry and a target en route to a Ka'imi Fairbairn field goal. Prior to that hurry-up drive, David had a 17-4 snap advantage in the first half, with an 8-1 edge in carries and 1-1 tie for targets.
• Duke got five snaps to David's three on 3rd-and-medium/long, so those situations were split. And on the final drive, David had a 6-5 snap advantage over Duke, including two runs inside the 5-yard line followed by a dropped pitch on an option play (sorry, Texans fans, that was a rough sequence).

Seahawks (31) at Dolphins (23)

Seahawks

• Carlos Hyde (shoulder) was inactive, while Carson bounced back strong from the knee sprain that knocked him out of last week's game in the fourth quarter.
• Homer is still getting obvious passing downs and the two-minute drill, but little else. That's allowed Carson to see 3-to-6 targets in each game, putting him on pace for a career-high 64. On the other hand, Carson still hasn't topped 17 carries in a game this year, after averaging 17.6 in 2018 and 18.5 in 2019. But even that has some benefit, as Seattle's transition to pass-heavy has led to huge point totals, helping Carson score five TDs on only 68 touches.
• Carson has accounted for all of Seattle's RB carries in the red zone the past three weeks. For the season, he's taken five of seven (71 percent) inside the 5-yard line, seven of nine (78 percent) inside the 10-yard line, and 10 of 13 (77 percent) in the red zone. The only inside-the-five carries he didn't get both came late in the fourth quarter of the Week 1 romp over Atlanta (one apiece for Homer and Carson).
• Dallas handled a slightly lesser version of Hyde's role, so we can give Carson a tiny boost if his backup misses another game. Hyde averaged 5.3 carries and 1.0 target on 26 percent of snaps over the first three weeks.

Dolphins

• The Dolphins didn't have any goal-line chances, so Howard didn't touch the ball until late in the third quarter. Each of his three touches came on the same drive, and the third one he fumbled (Miami recovered).
• Gaskin had three carries and a catch in the red zone, accounting for all of Miami's RB red-zone work (unless you count Lynn Bowden taking one carry on a direct snap).
• The snap share for Gaskin was down from 75 percent the previous week, but he's still been in the same range (63-to-75) every game this year, with 13 or more touches each week. He's on pace for a 192-768-0 rushing line and 72-452-0 on 80 targets, making him an acceptable PPR starter. Just don't be surprised if the TD drought continues, as the Dolphins are a subpar team with a goal-line specialist (Howard) to vulture scores.

Chargers (31) at Buccaneers (38)

Chargers

• Austin Ekeler was injured on the Chargers' fifth snap of the game. He had to be helped off the field while grabbing his hamstring/thigh area, and he was then carted off to the locker room (translation: it didn't look good.)
• There wasn't a clear split between Kelley and Jackson in terms of down/distance/situation. The Chargers didn't have any red-zone carries in Sunday's loss, and Kelley had only a slight snap advantage over Jackson (5-to-4) on 3rd-and-medium/long.
• Kelley's 3.2 YPC puts him 41st out of 43 qualified rushers, ahead of only Josh Allen and Frank Gore. The rookie has lost fumbles in back-to-back games, though the one on Sunday occurred when he was hit in the backfield right after Justin Herbert handed him the ball (Bucs DT Ndamukong Suh blew right by C Dan Feeney while fill-in RG Ryan Groy was trying to pull over to the left side). Groy and Trey Pipkins filled in for RG Trai Turner and RT Bryan Bulaga, as the Chargers' two best linemen missed the game with injuries.
• For what it's worth, Jackson had an 11-4 snap advantage over Kelley in the first half of the Chargers' Week 1 game, with the two RBs getting two carries apiece behind Ekeler. Jackson left that contest with a quad injury and missed Weeks 2 and 3, before returning for Sunday's loss. Kelley shined after halftime in the Week 1 game, but he's been mediocre — at best — ever since.

Bucs

• Leonard Fournette (ankle) was ruled out Friday, and his failure to practice at all last week suggests he's in danger of missing additional time.
• Passing-down back LeSean McCoy injured his ankle in the first quarter and never returned to the game, leaving Jones, Kenjon Barner and Vaughn as the healthy running backs. Barner then suffered a concussion shortly before halftime, leaving only Jones and Vaughn for the rest of the afternoon. McCoy and Barner combined for nine snaps, one carry and two targets.
• Jones had a nice day on the ground, but he more or less wasted his nine targets, dropping two passes and catching six others for only 17 yards. Even if he continues to dominate carries, and even if McCoy misses additional time, the Bucs likely will use someone else in passing situations. Vaughn took on the role late in Sunday's win, with a nine-yard receiving TD in the fourth quarter, followed by a 13-yard reception to convert a 3rd-and-4 on the next drive. If not for the drops earlier in the game, it might've been Jones getting those opportunities to pad his stat line. Vaughn played 14 snaps to Jones' 13 in the fourth quarter.
• Overall, Vaughn got five snaps to Jones' two in 3rd-and-medium/long situations.

Ravens (31) at Washington Football Team (17)

Ravens

• No Ravens RB has topped 11 touches or 77 total yards in a game this season. Ingram has landed between seven and 10 carries each week, and he's averaging only 1.25 targets (down from 13.5 carries and 1.9 targets per game last year).
• The main problem here is a three-way timeshare, but it also doesn't help that Baltimore is averaging 58 plays per game, down from 66.5 last year. The team still looks pretty good overall, so the number should correct into the 60s soon enough. However, it's hard to see any of these RBs becoming a reliable fantasy starter unless one of the other guys misses time with an injury.
• The breakdown here was only slightly impacted by garbage time. At the end of the third quarter, it stood like this: Edwards (15 snaps, 5 carries); Dobbins (12 snaps, 2 carries, 2 targets); Ingram (11 snaps, 6 carries, 1 target).

WFTs

• McKissic technically got the start — and lost a fumble on Washington's second drive — but Gibson was heavily involved from the opening drive through the end of the game, even with his team playing from behind all afternoon.
• While McKissic still handles clear passing situations, OC Scott Turners seems to be making more effort to get Gibson some catches. The rookie's targets have trended up — 2 (W1), 2 (W2), 3 (W3), 5 (W4). His big play in Sunday's loss was a 40-yard gain on a screen pass when he was lined up out wide on a 3rd-and-11 in the second quarter. Gibson got four of his five targets in the first half, and all five before the 8-minute mark of the third quarter.
• Washington had a sequence in the second quarter with three consecutive goal-line carries. Gibson got the first (a one-yard gain) and the third (a two-yard TD), while Barber got the middle chance (stuffed for a one-yard loss). Barber's other two carries came on 1st-and-10s in the first half.
• Washington had another goal-line sequence in Q4 garbage time. Gibson ran for a gain of two from the 3-yard line, before Dwayne Haskins tried back-to-back sneaks (the second one worked.
• Gibson's trio of goal-line carries brought him up to five inside-the-five carries this year, tied for sixth most in the league. Barber actually has six, but five of those came in Week 1 alone. Excluding Week 1, the breakdown of goal-line carries has been: Gibson (4), Haskins (2), Barber 1). Haskins technically has four if you look at the stats, but one was a kneel-down and another was an aborted snap.

Giants (9) at Los Angeles Rams (17)

Giants

• Lewis got 10 of 10 snaps on 3rd-and-medium/long. He also got seven of 13 in the two-minute drill at the end of the second quarter, with Gallman getting the other six. However, the split in the two-minute drill at the end of the game was: Freeman (4), Lewis (3), Gallman (0)... maybe Freeman learned more of the playbook/signals at halftime?
• Freeman got 10 of 13 snaps in the first quarter, and 14 of 19 in the third quarter. He was the clear lead guy, though Gallman picked up 33 yards on three consecutive plays on a drive early in the fourth quarter.
• The Giants didn't have any goal-to-go situations... shocking! But they did have eight red-zone snaps, with Lewis taking five (one target) and Freeman playing three (one carry, one target).

Rams

• Cam Akers (rib) missed a second straight game after sitting out practice all week. He appears questionable, at best, for Week 5 at Washington.
• Henderson was possibly the biggest fantasy bust of the week, playing as a two-TD favorite after a 20-114-1 rushing line on 49 percent snap share in the Week 3 loss at Buffalo. Brown got the passing-down work in Buffalo, and in Week 4 he also got a bunch of snaps and carries on early downs.
• Henderson got the start and had five touches to Brown's two on the opening drive. And then Henderson vanished... I guess the lesson is that we still need to treat this backfield as an unpredictable committee?
• Henderson did get both the team's carries inside the 10-yard line, but Brown had two carries and a catch in the red zone.

Colts (19) at Bears (11)

Colts

• Wilkins got only two of his nine carries in the fourth quarter, so this wasn't like the previous two weeks where he saw the bulk of his work late in the game. Prior to Week 4, he'd taken 10 of his 18 carries in the fourth quarter of games.
• The pre-halftime split: Taylor (17 snaps, 7 carries, 1 target); Hines (14 snaps, 4 carries, 1 target); Wilkins (6 snaps, 4 carries, 0 targets).
• Taylor got two of the three snaps inside the 5-yard line, including the lone carry. The rookie has played eight of the Colts' 13 snaps inside the 5-yard line this year, including five carries and two TDs. Hines has taken the other five. In terms of the super-close snaps from the 1/2-yard line, Taylor has a 4-1 advantage over Hines. Meanwhile, Wilkins still hasn't seen any work from in close.
• Taylor got 26 carries and 67 percent of snaps Week 2, but the past two games he's dropped down to 41 percent (13 carries) and 46 percent (17 carries), losing passing-down work to Hines and some early down work to Wilkins.
• We classified this as a committee above, as three different players had significant roles. But Taylor was the starter and got 17 carries, so he's not a committee back in the same sense as Mark Ingram. It's closer to what we're seeing in Detroit, but the Colts are a better team with better blocking, so Taylor is a safer bet for carries than Adrian Peterson.

Bears

• With Tarik Cohen (torn ACL) out for the season, Montgomery established a career high for snap share, adding passing-down duties to his familiar role as the lead ballcarrier.
• Patterson may be a converted wide receiver, but he's run only 24 routes and drawn only five targets while playing 70 percent of his snaps in the backfield (per PFF) this year. He actually played only six snaps in the backfield Sunday, so Cohen's absence didn't give Patterson more work — it all went to Montgomery instead. 
• Montgomery drew a 32-yard PI flag to convert a fourth down in the fourth quarter, and he had a two-point conversion on Chicago's final drive.
• Between the poor Week 4 showing and the brutal matchup coming up in Week 5 (vs. Tampa Bay), there's an opportunity here to buy-low on Montgomery's post-Cohen role. I'll be sending out a couple trade offers for him this week.

Bills (30) at Raiders (23)

Bills

• With Zack Moss (foot) missing a second straight game, the Buffalo backfield split looked very similar to Week 3. Singletary handled a three-down role, with Yeldon occasionally subbing in.
• Yeldon was on the field for Josh Allen's QB sneak touchdown early in the fourth quarter, but Singletary then scored a two-yard TD on the next drive. That was the full extent of goal-line opportunities, and for Singletary it was only the fifth inside-the-five carry (two TDs) of his career.
• In two games with Moss out, Singletary has averaged 15.5 carries, 5.5 targets and 98.5 yards, compared to 9.5 carries, 5.0 targets and 64.5 yards over the first two weeks.
• PFF charted Singletary with four avoided tackles on rushes and four more on receptions Sunday. His eight total were second most among all RBs in Week 4, behind only Dalvin Cook (10).

Raiders

• Jacobs apparently used up all his TD luck Week 1, but he's seen at least 15 carries and three targets in every game. He actually leads the NFL with 83 carries, surprisingly averaging only 3.6 per attempt, with a long gain of 16 yards.
• Jacobs is No. 13 in PFF's elusive rating (61.8) among 32 RBs with 40-plus carries. That's good, but not nearly as good as last season (103.6, 1st).
• Richard got seven snaps on 3rd-and-medium/long, compared to only two for Jacobs. Nothing new there.
• Richard "tweaked his ankle" but was still playing into the fourth quarter. Maybe that's why Riddick got a few snaps for the first time this year?

Eagles (25) at 49ers (20)

Eagles

• The Eagles ran only 59 plays, compared to 71 for San Francisco.
• Sanders has played 77, 78 and 77 percent of snaps in his three games, averaging 17.0 carries, 6.3 targets and 104.7 total yards.
• Killins was a new addition to the offense, but he didn't actually take any snaps in the backfield. He was lined up in the slot six times, and out wide twice, per PFF. The undrafted rookie out of UCF is listed at 5-foot-8, 164 pounds, making him one of the smallest players in the league.

49ers

• McKinnon led all NFL running backs in Week 4 snap share.
• You can't say we didn't warn you about Wilson, who played only eight snaps before halftime last week but then put up a bunch of numbers in the fourth quarter of a blowout. Three of his four touches Sunday night came on the opening drive of the third quarter, and even then McKinnon saw more touches (four) on that same drive.
• McKinnon even got the lone goal-line carry, scoring from one yard out right before the two-minute warning. He worked hard for his yards, avoiding six tackles and averaging 4.1 yards after contact (sixth best among RBs with double-digit carries in Week 4), per PFF.
• Tevin Coleman (IR - knee) can't return until Week 6 and won't necessarily be ready at that point. Raheem Mostert (knee) didn't log any practice participation last week, so he's not looking great for Week 5 against Miami.

Patriots (10) at Chiefs (26)

Patriots

• Harris was activated from injured reserve Monday, while Sony Michel (quad) was sent to IR.
• J.J. Taylor was active for the game, but he didn't play any snaps on special teams or offense. Interesting that he disappeared once Harris was available, after taking four, one and 11 carries over the first three games of the season.
• White returned from a two-game absence to handle his usual role as the pass-catching specialist. He had a spurt of touches at the end of the first half, and a couple on the final drive of the game, but there were long stretches where he wasn't noticeable, despite finishing with 53 percent of snaps and eight targets.
• The Patriots had two carries inside the KC 10-yard line, both going to Burkhead.
• Harris was the big story with 100 yards in his fist significant NFL action, but he mostly struggled until he broke free for a 41-yard gain on the final play of the third quarter. PFF charted him with zero avoided tackles on 17 carries, albeit with a solid 68.1 rushing grade.
• Harris got 13 of the team's 19 carries on first downs, and 11 of 16 before halftime.
• The Patriots ran 74 plays to Kansas City's 55. And they didn't have Cam Newton stealing carries away from the RBs.

Chiefs

• The snap share for CEH was a season high, though not by a large margin. He was at 67, 62 and 69 percent the first three weeks.
• The rookie is on pace for a 284-1,216-4 rushing line and 56 catches for 516 yards on 76 targets. The lack of touchdowns has been a major disappointment, but it's not like he's losing red-zone/goal-line work to another back... Patrick Mahomes has just been a total TD hog.

Falcons (16) at Packers (30)

Falcons

• This has basically been the same split all year. Gurley is trusted in every situation, but the Falcons sub him out frequently... Hill being the replacement on early downs, while Smith tends to come in for passing downs. That makes Hill the better bench stash, as he'd likely get most of the carries and goal-line work if Gurley were to suffer an injury.
• Gurley's snap share was below 50 percent due to garbage time in Week 1, but since then he's been at 64, 51 and 54 percent. He's seen at least 14 carries in every game, but has drawn only three targets the past three weeks after getting a handful in the season opener.
• Gurley leads the NFL with 19 red-zone carries, and he's tied for seventh with five carries inside the 5-yard line. Hill did steal a carry from the Green Bay 4-yard line Monday night, picking up one yard before Gurley re-entered the game and punched it in for a touchdown from three yards out.
• Smith tends to get more work when the Falcons are forced into late-game desperation mode... something that's happened often the past few seasons.

Packers

• The Packers used more two-HB looks, playing without Davante Adams (hamstring) and Allen Lazard (core muscle). It was the usual deal sans Adams, with the RBs getting a ton of receiving work.
• The snap share for Williams was a season high, up from 40, 42 and 31 percent the first three weeks. He did get the final two carries, but otherwise his stat line wasn't inflated by the Packers having a comfortable lead.
• Jones has landed in the 15-to-18 carry range each week this season, with 4-to-8 targets in every game. He may not play a ton of snaps, but the workload remains reliable, at least when the Packers are winning. And he still has a 66-59 advantage over Williams in routes run this season, so it's not like Jones will disappear if the Packers are forced to play from behind. Jones plays all three downs; it's just that he's subbed out fairly often.

RB Waiver Targets

This list is limited to players on less than 50 percent of Yahoo rosters as of Monday evening. Rankings are intended for a typical fantasy team, not one that's absolutely desperate for a Week 5 starter. With that in mind, we'll include some backups who make sense to stash on benches even if they didn't see any teammate injuries or role changes this past weekend.

(List updated Tuesday to account for Damien Harris.)

1. Justin Jackson - Joshua Kelley is already rostered in 55 percent of Yahoo leagues, while Jackson is at 5 percent. The rookie had a slight usage advantage Week 4, but he's struggling with both ball security (two lost fumbles) and rushing efficiency (3.3 YPC). Austin Ekeler (knee, hamstring) is expected to miss 4-6 weeks, and the Chargers could take a cautious approach to his return if they aren't in the mix for a playoff spot. Maybe Kelley emerges as the lead back in the meantime, or maybe it's Jackson who comes out ahead. Personally, I'd rather pick up Jackson.
2. Damien Harris - The Pats backfield is still a timeshare, and Monday's stats were inflated by dominance of the play count. However, it was interesting to see J.J. Taylor phased out, as he'd poached some carries from Sony Michel in previous weeks. That might be taken as a hint that the team likes Harris more than Michel. Or it might be nothing. Anyway, James White isn't going anywhere on passing downs, but it is possible Harris could take on more of the work that's been going to Rex Burkhead.
3. Chase Edmonds - Kenyan Drake isn't playing well, and Edmonds has proven himself a competent pass catcher. The Cardinals may soon consider making a change to Edmonds in the lead role and Drake off the bench.
4. Phillip Lindsay - Lindsay missed the past three games with a toe injury, but he was a game-time decision for TNF in Week 4. He and Melvin Gordon worked in a 50/50 split in the first half of Denver's Week 1 game.
5. D'Ernest Johnson - The Week 4 stat line will lead to attention, but remember that Kareem Hunt was playing through a groin injury, and Dontrell Hilliard also got some work (especially on passing downs). Plus, the Browns have a tough schedule the next two weeks, facing Indianapolis and Pittsburgh. Granted, Nick Chubb (IR - knee) will be out for a minimum of three weeks, and it's possible Hunt's groin issue lingers... so there is some upside.
6. Alexander Mattison - Not getting much work, but still one Dalvin Cook injury away from RB1 status.
7. Tony Pollard - Got a bit more work Week 4. Still not startable, but one Zeke injury away from RB1 status.
8. Duke Johnson - Got five carries and four targets in his first game back from an ankle injury. Could see 15-plus touches per game if David Johnson gets hurt.
9. Brian Hill - Has emerged ahead of Ito Smith as the preferred Gurley backup.
10. Malcolm Brown - Buried too soon, though still stuck in a committee.
11. Darrel Williams - Another backup who sits one injury away from significant touches in a good offense.