Ollie Gordon II or Jaylen Wright: Fantasy Football Start or Sit Advice for Week 4

Ollie Gordon II or Jaylen Wright Start or Sit Advice for Week 4

The Miami Dolphins are 0-3 coming into a tough matchup in Week 4 against the Vikings. To add insult to injury, star running back De’Von Achane (knee) was lost for the season last week. Achane was the centerpiece of the offense, so Ollie Gordon II and Jaylen Wright will both be in position to step up this week and take on a larger role. Is either running back a solid option to start in Week 4 or should you sit them on the bench to see how the new timeshare shakes out? Let’s take a look at what to expect this week.

Last week when Achane went down, Gordon took over as the top running back for the Dolphins since Wright had already been ruled out with a foot issue and a stinger. Gordon finished the game with 14.5 FPTS on 17 carries for 41 yards and added three catches on three targets for 14 more yards. He got into the end zone late in the first quarter, and he ended up playing 84% of the snaps.

Gordon did have to leave the game for an IV at one point in the game after experiencing cramping in the third quarter, but he was able to return to the game.

Last year with both Gordon and Wright on the roster, Achane played 16 games, only missing the season finale. In that game, Wright had 13 carries for 23 yards, and Gordon had nine carries for nine yards in a loss to the Patriots.

This week’s depth chart had Wright listed as the RB1, and Gordon listed as the second RB. Wright was upgraded to a full practice on Thursday and should be good to go for Week 4, according to Dolphins coach Jeff Hafley.

Wright has flashed upside in the past, running for 107 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries against the Jets in a game last season that Achane left in the second quarter. The fourth-round pick from Tennessee has been floated in trade rumors since he has always seemed like a player who could contribute if he had a meaningful opportunity.

He should get his chance for the rest of this season, since the Dolphins will need to lean heavily on Wright and Gordon with Malik Willis running a conservative and run-focused offense. The team ranks 27th in total yards per game (290.7) and 31st in points per game (12.0) so far this season.

There may not be a lot of fantasy value in the Dolphins’ offense, but both Gordon and Wright have the potential to get enough work to be worth a look as FLEX plays in deep leagues, especially with bye weeks just around the corner.

The problem with starting either RB this week is that the Vikings have been very strong against the run this season, allowing the third-fewest fantasy points to the position through the first three games. They have not allowed a running-back touchdown and are only averaging 66.7 rushing yards against them by running backs through three weeks.

Between the struggling offense and the uncertain time share, the ideal situation would be to stash Wright or Gordon on your bench for this week and see how the situation plays out. In Week 5, the Dolphins are home against the Bengals before their bye week, and then they go on the road to face the Jets in Week 7. Further down the road, there will be some favorable spots for whichever of these backs emerges as the lead option, so it’s worth grabbing them in season-long leagues, even though they’re difficult to start this week.

I would give a slight advantage to Wright coming into this week, since he has a higher ceiling and has been used ahead of Gordon in the past, so if you have to start one of them this week, Wright would be my slight preference. Both will be touchdown-dependent, and with the matchup against the Vikings’ strong run defense, that puts them in a very high-risk spot.

For DFS purposes, Wright is a very interesting option at only $5,000. He is a boom-or-bust play that makes sense as a value option for tournament lineups if you’re playing contests like the NFL $2.75M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st]. He is too high-risk for cash builds because of the matchup, but he’s cheaper than Gordon, even though it’s likely that he’ll get more playing time.

Unless you’re in a very deep league or an emergency, both Dolphins RBs should be left on the bench this week.

Start or Sit: Sit Ollie Gordon II and Jaylen Wright