Leonard Fournette fantasy outlook: Start or sit Bucs RB in Wild Card round?

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Dallas Cowboys meet up in the NFC Wild Card round Monday night. While pundits might be expecting an air-it-out contest, let’s not overlook the awesome talent that each of these teams has at running back. For the Bucs, it will be Leonard Fournette and Rachaad White commanding the backfield. But which one is more reliable for fantasy purposes this week?

Fantasy Football analysis: Bucs RB Leonard Fournette ($5,300)

Fournette, or “Playoff Lenny” as he’s known in the football community, is currently the 14th-most expensive RB on the DFS market. White is priced a tad lower, at $5,100.

Week 18 didn’t do us any favors in narrowing down which running backs should be top-tier performers throughout this Wild Card weekend. However, the Bucs did slightly hint that Fournette will be a focal point of the offense for Monday’s matchup. He didn’t see a single rushing attempt and was only targeted once in the passing attack. Given his 262 total touches on the year, last week was simply a resting tactic from the Tampa Bay coaching staff.

Fantasy Start/Sit Recommendation

Start. Fournette is a risky play because of the Buccaneers’ tendency to throw the football in most games, but his receiving upside should be enough to give him some opportunities to rack up fantasy points even if White handles more of the carries.