Rachaad White or Austin Ekeler: Fantasy Football Start or Sit Advice for Week 6

It isn’t exactly a foreign concept for a starting running back to get injured, but this Commanders backfield is a little more complex than simply accounting for Jacory Croskey-Merritt’s groin issue. In fact, it’s been a rollercoaster all season long.

Rachaad White has missed time with a shoulder ailment. Rookie sixth-round pick Kaytron Allen was waived after just four games. Austin Ekeler wasn’t even on this roster until late September. To say there’s been a lot of moving pieces would be an understatement.

And now here we are. Washington has a Monday Night Football matchup with San Francisco, and all of fantasy football world is wondering if White or Ekeler is the better play. Let’s break it down and try and sort through the mess.

Rachaad White vs. Austin Ekeler

These two backs have only been active for the same game once this season: Week 5’s tie against the Giants. It doesn’t take more than a cursory glance at that box score to see that Rachaad White is likely going to be the “work horse” RB of this duo. Even with the aforementioned Croskey-Merritt healthy and registering 82 rushing yards on 11 attempts, it was White who led all Commanders running backs with a 59.7% snap share — though that volume only ended up amounting to eight touches.

Conversely, Austin Ekeler only saw the field on six offensive snaps, though he garnered a touch on four of those opportunities, and one was a 15-yard reception. That feels like the lane for the 31-year-old to be fantasy relevant in this contest. Remember, it was only 2022 when Ekeler finished the season with 107 receptions for 722 yards with the Chargers. He’s always been a PPR savant and a skilled pass-catcher. This could be a pretty nice matchup for that specific skill set, too.

The 49ers are surrendering the 10th-most FPTS per game to opposing RBs, but a majority of that damage is coming through the air. While San Francisco is one of only 11 teams conceding fewer than 100 rushing yards per contest, it has allowed running backs to thrive as receivers all season long. In fact, the 49ers are giving up an average of 7.4 catches a game to opposing backfields — easily the highest mark in the NFL. The 8.4 targets and 48.4 receiving yards to the position are also the second-highest figures in the league. Some of this trend is certainly tied to San Francisco’s undefeated record and the negative scripts it often puts its opponents in, yet the why doesn’t really matter. The stats speak for themselves.

The Bottom Line

If I had to project the Commanders RB touches in this primetime affair, I would put Rachaad White around 12-15 carries, with Austin Ekeler slotting in at five or six targets. Obviously, those figures could change dramatically if the score gets incredibly lopsided in either direction.

The issue White has going for him in fantasy is the presence of Jayden Daniels, who was Washington’s most effective runner in Week 5, ripping off 103 yards and a pair of touchdowns. In theory, White is the volume back that would see any possible goal line carries in this contest, but even that role isn’t secure with the mobility of the Commanders’ QB. Daniels simply limits White’s upside.

Price has to be factored in, too. In DraftKings’ showdown slate, White’s $6,600 salary is nearly double Ekeler’s, as the veteran comes in at $3,600. That differential makes sense if you’re basing value off the amount of snaps this tandem is likely to see on Monday evening, but not when you’re considering the PPR scoring system or the likelihood of Washington — a 7.5-point road underdog — having to play from behind in this tilt.

While White is the safer option to see double-digit touches against the 49ers, I’d much rather save some salary and take my chances with Ekeler and his reception-aided ceiling. Let’s also not forget familiarity. Yes, Ekeler was a free agent prior to Week 4, but he was on this Washington roster in 2024 and 2025, beginning his Commanders tenure at the same time as offensive coordinator David Blough. He’s no stranger to Ekeler’s abilities.