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John Laghezza's fantasy football RB breakouts watch for Week 6 based on snap count risers/fallers in 2025. Whose usage and fantasy value is trending up or down?
Without fail, both real-life and fantasy teams know it gets late early every football season. Sadly, those plans of patience go right out the window the instant injuries meet bye weeks -- don't sweat it, it's human nature. The best way to stay ahead of the curve and keep those teams afloat in tumultuous times? Be the first to identify playing time. When the dust settles, regardless of format or flavor, touches, targets, and opportunities rule the day.
Talent mostly be darned (especially at RB), opportunities have always been and WILL continue to reign supreme as the driving fantasy commodity. Players can't score points if they don't see the field. We also need to be cognizant as fantasy players of touch per snap rates, so as not to fall into the trap of starting a player based on name only. I hate admitting how many times I've started flex players without noticing a change in role.
There's something so pure about analyzing playing time, right? The very same coordinators, coaches, and owners who spend the week lying through their teeth get left with no choice but to show their cards via player deployment once the whistle blows -- and that's where we come in. Every week, I'll be right here at RotoBaller, breaking down the weekend's most impactful changes in utilization and what it means to fantasy gamers going forward. As hard as it is to believe when you're losing, it's still anyone's game crossing the quarter pole. With that, the weeks will keep flying by, and every move should be geared toward the future, eyes firmly focused on down the road.
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Usage Bumps I'm Buying
Kimani Vidal, RB - Los Angeles Chargers
Though admittedly sounding cold at times, "next man up" is a mantra understood and adapted by anyone associated with football -- from real-life players on the field to us fantasy gamers in mom's basement. Unfortunately, our favorite game is also one of attrition, with chaos constantly lurking.
Chargers rookie RB Omarion Hampton is our latest victim of the injury bug's bite. Sigh. Just as drafters thought the big payday arrived, poof ... it's gone.
Talk about Hampton being lined up for a massive workload. Jim Harbaugh's 22nd overall pick handled 35 of the Chargers' last 38 RB touches before a nasty ankle sprain landed him on the shelf. That's an automatic low-end RB1 weekly projection.
Sure, the situation could be better, considering the Bolts O-line is currently missing a couple of top-tier assets in Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt. That said, the Chargers are still potentially very dangerous with Justin Herbert under center, and that backfield work's got to go somewhere. For many of us, it's desperate times meeting desperate measures.
Los Angeles Chargers' Backfield Usage After Omarion Hampton Left Week 5:
Hassan Haskins: 8 Snaps (3-5-0; 1-2-0)
Kimani Vidal: 13 Snaps (3-16-0; 1-1-0)
Kimani Vidal saw a slight majority of playing time, showed more explosiveness carrying the ball, and commanded the lone goal-to-go attempt. Add in the state of L.A.'s decimated O-line plus Vidal's chops in the passing game, and it's an easy choice which direction I'll be going in. For transparency's sake, in a very similar situation last week, I just whiffed on the Cardinals backfield.
Isaiah Bond, WR - Cleveland Browns
Name's Bond, Isaiah Bond. Maybe he's no international man of mystery, but luckily, that's not a disqualifier to be a viable fantasy asset. A playing time shift started in Forest City even before Cedric Tillman succumbed to injury -- now it's written in bold marker.
The Browns' speedy undrafted free-agent rookie continues to earn a larger piece of the playing time pie, evidenced in his elevated week-over-week route participation (22.9%, 39.2%, 59.5%, 71.1%, 88.6%).
What if I told you Bond's target totals took the same weekly jumps as routes run without fail? It'd sure be impressive to continually earn looks off the street, which they did by the way (1, 3, 4, 6, 7).
Kevin Stefanski's offense may not light up the efficiency spreadsheet, but you can't argue with the volume whatsoever -- the Browns currently sit top-3 in both offensive plays run (66.5) and dropbacks per game (39.8). Devoid of a true vertical threat opposite Jerry Jeudy, Bond's newfound role should stick, making him an interesting roll of the dice with bye weeks upon us.
As you know, third-round rookie Dillon Gabriel took over shot-calling duties for the Browns. Bond's utilization metrics strengthened through the change -- 84.1% route participation, 28.1% targets/route, 11.3 air yards/target, 25.0% team targets, and 44.9% team air yards. Wheels up for a big second-half run.
Texas WR Isaiah Bond runs a 4.40u on his second try 🤘
📺: #NFLCombine on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/5oGy4Gishl— NFL (@NFL) March 1, 2025
Noteworthy Usage Downturns
Alvin Kamara, RB - New Orleans Saints
For better or worse, the playing time door swings both ways. After all these years, it was bound to land Alvin Kamara on the wrong side eventually.
This season initially picked up right where the last one left off, with Kamara serving a bell-cow role in early back-to-back top-24 finishes. However, three weeks into the year, the veteran's efficiency metrics continued to lack (3.7 yards/rush, 2.4 yards after contact per carry), causing HC Kellen Moore to carve out an increased role for former third-round pick Kendre Miller.
Since then, New Orleans' backup RB outplayed the incumbent Kamara in the ground game, scoring higher across the board in EPA/attempt (+0.05), yards/rush (5.0), yards after contact/carry (4.6%), explosive rush rate (13.4%), and touchdowns (one). Miller's efficiency and extra burst earned him more run with the Saints offense, perhaps opening the door to a midseason Kamara trade.
My advice? Get out of the Kamara business while possible before the lines on our chart below cross for the first time. If you decide to hold, I wish you the best of luck. Hey, it's a non-zero chance Kamara winds up on the Chiefs or another winner.
Jameson Williams, WR - Detroit Lions
No victory lap intended, but this is exactly what I feared when warning readers about drafting Jameson Williams in the first place. Here's a stat-based question sure to drive his fans up a wall.
What does the uninspiring list of Jalen Tolbert, Michael Wilson, Brandin Cooks, Darius Slayton, and Cade Otton have in common with top-60 pick Williams? They represent the only players in the NFL earning targets on less than 14% of routes run with at least 150 on the ledger. Not exactly the sort of list we should be finding a regular fantasy starter on, is it?
Detroit's a fantastic offense, too, which generally makes for a good landing spot, just not this time. Williams' borderline absurd 20.8 air yards per target work against him, and led me to the scariest comp imaginable -- he's actually a worse version of Tyquan Thornton!
Yikes. Highly inefficient deep routes without any layup looks underneath remove his fantasy floor, leaving us with a low-volume boom-or-bust play. Worse still, the Lions defense appears to be figuring things out, more awful news for a player who's literally first to get scripted out of playbooks.
Not exactly what Jame-O drafters signed up for at ADP 55
Say it ain't so... pic.twitter.com/V3ook5wE1t
— John Laghezza MLB / NFL Moving Averages (@JohnLaghezza) October 7, 2025
Honorable Mentions - Usage On The Rise
- TreVeyon Henderson, RB, NE
- Josh Downs, WR, IND
- Cooper Kupp, WR, SEA
- Xavier Legette, WR, CAR
- Isaiah Davis, RB, NYJ
- Ryan Flournoy, WR, DAL
- Raheem Mostert, RB, LV
- Jack Bech, WR, LV
- Keaton Mitchell, RB, BAL
- Ashton Dulin, WR, IND
- Jaydon Blue, RB, DAL
Honorable Mentions - Usage Trending Down
- Alvin Kamara, RB, NO
- Marvin Mims Jr., WR, DEN
- Calvin Austin III, WR, PIT
- Brashard Smith, RB, KC
- Adonai Mitchell, WR, IND
- Adam Thielen, WR, MIN
- Brandin Cooks, WR, NO
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