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Matt's running back (RB) fantasy football start 'em, sit 'em picks for Week 6 of 2025. His RB lineups advice for Week 6 fantasy football start/sit decisions.
First off, how about that performance from Rico Dowdle last week? In one game, Dowdle went from obscure to 18th in rushing yards and now has more yards on the ground entering Week 6 than Saquon Barkley, Christian McCaffrey, De'Von Achane, and Bucky Irving.
The byes this week don't really affect fantasy managers all that much, as the Texans and Vikings are scheduled to sit this week out. The loss of Jordan Mason, Woody Marks, or even Nick Chubb is something most fantasy enthusiasts won't lose too much sleep over.
Here are the RotoBallers must start and sit options for Week 6 at the running back position.
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Week 6 - Fantasy Football Booms
Josh Jacobs - RB, Green Bay Packers vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Entering Week 6, Josh Jacobs is sitting eighth in fantasy points per game, averaging 18.1 per contest. By all accounts, Jacobs is a workhorse back who has commanded 83% of the Packers' backfield opportunities this season. For those not wanting to do the math, that has equated to 22-plus opportunities (carries and targets) per game this season.
Looking at production, only McCaffrey and Jonathan Taylor have a higher expected PPR fantasy points per game than Jacobs' 18.4. Of the 266 yards Jacobs has churned out on the ground this season, 142 yards have come after contact, working out to 53.4%.
This week, Jacobs may not get touched and do his Dowdle impression. 200-plus yards is a distinct possibility when facing the Bengals. In five games this season, the Bengals' defense has allowed 613 rushing yards on 135 attempts, 4.5 yards per carry, and an additional 225 yards to backs in the passing game on 23 receptions.
Between the futility in defending backs on the ground or through the air, Cincinnati has surrendered eight total touchdowns and a league-worst 31.78 fantasy points per game to the running back position. Cincinnati's run defense ranks 28th in Rush EPA, and is an open invitation for Jacobs to go off this week for fantasy managers.
Kyren Williams - RB, Los Angeles Rams at Baltimore Ravens
Another defense that has struggled mightily against the run this season is the once-vaunted Baltimore Ravens unit. Entering Week 6, Baltimore has allowed an average of 31.12 fantasy points against opposing backs, second only to the Bengals in that category, and that's not a good thing. The 585 rushing yards allowed on just 93 attempts (6.29 per carry) is the fourth-most, while the six rushing touchdowns surrendered are the third-most.
Kyren Williams with his 2nd receiving TD of the night!
SFvsLAR on Prime Video
Also streaming on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/tDtpKeCPTD— NFL (@NFL) October 3, 2025
Kyren Williams has entered the chatting ranking as the RB10 in fantasy points per game with an average of 16.9 per contest. He is coming off a season-best 31.1-point performance last week and Thursday Night Football against the San Francisco 49ers. Williams averaged 4.6 yards per carry in that contest, his third straight week averaging more than 4.5 yards per carry, on his way to 65 yards on the ground.
However, his fantasy worth is coming in the passing game, where he and Matthew Stafford connected on eight of 10 targets for a pair of touchdown receptions and 66 receiving yards.
During the Ravens' three-game losing skid, their defense ranked last in EPA per drop-back and drop-back success rate, next to last in EPA per rush attempt, and 27th in rushing success rate. Given how the Ravens' defense has performed in recent weeks and the injuries they are currently dealing with, they lack an effective answer for Stafford, Williams, or Puka Nacua.
Blake Corum is another excellent option this week, and the expectation is that there could be a larger role later on in this contest that could yield positive results for fantasy managers needing to dig a little deeper this week for production.
Ashton Jeanty - RB, Las Vegas Raiders vs. Tennessee Titans
The Las Vegas Raiders offense has been putting the "fun" back in dysfunctional this season. Geno Smith has been absolutely atrocious under center, which may be putting it politely, as there are children who read this, already tossing nine interceptions in just five contests.
Remember a few weeks back when everyone said Ashton Jeanty was at risk of being considered a "bust"? Well, the narrative changes quickly in fantasy football. Over the last two weeks, Jeanty has churned out 205 rushing yards on 35 carries and added 59 yards receiving on nine receptions. Over that period, only McCaffrey has averaged more fantasy points per game than Jeanty's 24.7 fantasy points.
Of Jeanty's 349 rushing yards, 203 have come after contact, which averages out to 2.48 yards after contact per attempt. A significant reason for that is that Jeanty's missed tackle rate of 0.28 has created 23 missed tackles already this season, which is tied for the most in the league with Taylor despite 12 fewer attempts.
You have a good reason to be concerned if you are the Titans. Not only has Jeanty brought back the Michael Myers stance just in time for Halloween, but Tennessee can't stop the run. The eight rushing touchdowns they have allowed to backs are the most in the league, and the 613 rushing yards they have conceded are the second-most behind Miami.
Jacobs and Williams are must-start options as they face the two most generous defenses against backs in fantasy, so why not include Jeanty, who faces the third-most generous unit allowing 30.43 per game to the position?
Elsewhere, six more NFL games have kicked off!
And Ashton Jeanty is doing Ashton Jeanty things pic.twitter.com/8XXvgh3RB4
— NFL UK & Ireland (@NFLUKIRE) October 5, 2025
Week 6 Sits - Fantasy Football Busts
James Cook - RB, Buffalo Bills at Atlanta Falcons
While this week's additions to the "Sit-List" aren't traditional sits, all three should have managers tempering their expectations and proceeding with caution as they enter their lineups.
First up is James Cook of the Buffalo Bills, who, despite averaging 19.2 fantasy points per game and producing 20 or more fantasy points in four of five contests this season, enters this week's Monday Night contest on the heels of a 4.9-point outing against the Patriots. New England's is as good as it gets this season against the running back position, having held opposing backs to 321 rushing yards in five games and 18.10 fantasy points per contest, the fifth-lowest.
However, as good as the Patriots' defense has been, Cook has been just as successful. The Atlanta Falcons' defense, meanwhile, has been just as good or even better than the other moving parts of this equation. Atlanta is the only team in the NFL allowing less than 15 fantasy points per game to opposing backs in fantasy.
They have limited production to 318 rushing yards on 74 carries and 39 receiving yards on 13 receptions. Cook has the talent to "pop off" any given week; however, the circumstances he faces this week make that less realistic.
Derrick Henry - RB, Baltimore Ravens vs. Los Angeles Rams
Looking at fantasy production, you have to scroll down to RB23 before finding Derrick Henry's name. That means scrolling past Mason, Cam Skattebo, and Jacory Croskey-Merritt. Has Henry finally hit the wall?
That is a very legitimate question we must ask ourselves. Every year, we think Henry is about to hit it, and every year, it seems that we are wrong. This season has a different feel than past seasons. After erupting in the season opener for 169 rushing yards against the Bills, Henry's best outing was a 50-yard performance in Week 30.
Henry has been held to 50 rushing yards or fewer in four straight contests.
It's hard to imagine Henry's fate changing this week as the Ravens host a Los Angeles Rams defense that has allowed the third-fewest fantasy points per game to running backs this season and has allowed 359 rushing yards, an average of 3.45 yards per carry thus far. With how Henry has been playing recently and the matchup at hand, Henry is a fade for fantasy managers in Week 6.
Henry is currently giving off Emmitt Smith vibes. I'm not talking about Smith's Dallas days either; I'm talking about his time in the desert.
Alvin Kamara - RB, New Orleans Saints vs. New England Patriots
Look, the New England Patriots just held Cook to less than five fantasy points last week, holding the Bills' star running back without a catch and just 49 yards on the ground. Is that a defense you want to mess around with this week? Fantasy football is about managing risk. Knowing when it makes sense to take necessary risks and when to avoid them.
Plugging Kamara into your lineup this week is the epitome of unnecessary risk.
In a Week 5 victory over the New York Giants, Kamara gave way to Kendre Miller in the ground game, being out-touched 10 to eight and being out-produced 41 rushing yards to 27 rushing yards. While Kamara earned more opportunities than Miller, a 41% backfield opportunity share to a 35% opportunity share isn't going to put fantasy managers' minds at ease, especially with the return of Taysom Hill, who also got himself included in the mix with six carries of his own.
The backfield is fantasy roulette, and Kamara is a fade until things get sorted.
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