The Cleveland Browns are only 1-5 this season, but they do have some very interesting rookie talent at skill positions. One early-season standout has been second-round pick Quinshon Judkins, who missed training camp and preseason but quickly contributed once he signed and joined the team in Week 2. He had a rough Week 6, but will look to bounce back in Week 7. After his down game, though, can you trust him as a starting option in your fantasy backfield?
Let’s take a look at Judkins’ upside and his potential to bounce back as the Browns host the Dolphins in a matchup of disappointing 1-5 teams on Sunday afternoon.
A rising talent
After signing a fully guaranteed deal just before Week 1, Judkins didn’t make his Browns debut until Week 2. He dealt with offseason legal issues after being drafted in the second round. He was initially arrested on a misdemeanor domestic battery charge this offseason, but the charges were later dropped.
On the field, he had 10 carries for 61 yards and 10.1 fantasy points in his debut, and in each of the next three weeks he totaled over 16 fantasy points. He had 16.5 fantasy points in Week 3 on 18 carries for 94 rushing yards and his first NFL touchdown. The Browns pulled off the upset against the Packers for their one win of the year.
In Week 4, he had 82 yards on 21 carries and another score against the Lions on his way to over 20 fantasy points. In Week 5 in London, he set a new career-high with 23 carries for 110 rushing yards. Judkins seemed to be taking over the backfield timeshare and rising as a fringe RB1, but then he hit a major pothole on Sunday.
Week 6’s stop sign in the Steel City
The Browns’ offense was all out of sorts on Sunday against the Steelers. Judkins only had 36 rushing yards on his 12 carries and didn’t catch his one target. The Browns went extremely pass heavy and asked Dillon Gabriel to throw 52 passes. Gabriel completed 29-of-52 (56%) of his passes for 221 yards but the Browns couldn’t get into the end zone.
Judkins never really got going and his longest run was just a six-yard carry in the fourth quarter.
Poised to bounce back?
Judkins should be ideally positioned to bounce back from that letdown, though, since he’ll be at home against the struggling Dolphins.
Miami has allowed the fifth-most fantasy points to running backs this season and has been torn up the last four weeks by James Cook, Breece Hall, Rico Dowdle, and Kimani Vidal. Each of those running backs had huge days against the Dolphins, and Judkins will look to add his name to that list. The Browns should be able to play from ahead or at least close in this game, allowing them to feed Judkins and get him a big enough workload to get in gear early in the game.
The bottom line
The Browns’ rookie rusher was my No. 10 RB in my rankings this week, so I think he’ll be a strong play as a low-end RB1 or a very strong RB2. The matchup makes him a great value play at only $6,000 in DFS contests, with DraftKings’ main slate is highlighted by the NFL $2.75M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st]. The Dolphins’ defense is definitely not as sturdy as the Steelers’, so I’m confident Judkins will bounce back with a big game this week.
