According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Los Angeles Rams running back Darrell Henderson Jr. is doubtful for Sunday's Week 3 home game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Henderson, who earned a larger role when fellow running back Cam Akers went down with a season-ending Achilles injury, has notched a rushing touchdown in both games in 2021, totaling 123 yards on the ground.
Former New England Patriot and recently-acquired running back Sony Michel will now get the lion's share of snaps in the backfield.
The Buccaneers have a stout rush defense that currently ranks fifth against the run per Football Outsiders' DVOA metric, so it might be tough sledding for Michel on Sunday.
Still, getting the lion's share of carries on an offense as potent as the Rams' puts Michel clearly in the RB2 fantasy football picture.
The Action Network's Samantha Previte weighed in with her thoughts:
"Michel is a RB3/flex play based on workload alone, but I would temper expectations in a tough matchup opposite the Buccaneers' run defense, which has allowed the second-fewest rushing yards per game this year.
Tampa completely shut down the Falcons' run game last week and held Ezekiel Elliott to 33 rushing yards in Week 1."
Our Chris Raybon echoed similar sentiments regarding Michel's Week 3 fantasy football value:
"Michel will be a TD-dependent RB3/FLEX play against a Bucs defense that has allowed a meager 44.0 yards per game and 3.52 yards per carry to RBs this season.
The Bucs have been dominant in run defense for a while now.
Last season, they allowed an NFL-low 60 rushing yards and 3.36 yards per carry to opposing RBs, and in 2019 they allowed an NFL-low 56.7 rushing yards and 3.02 yards per carry to opposing RBs.
I have Michel ranked as my RB28."
With this in mind, fantasy football players should certainly check in with their waiver wires to see if Michel happens to be available.
And as always, be sure to check in with The Action Network's fantasy football Week 3 rankings before locking in your rosters for this weekend's NFL matchups.
From an NFL betting standpoint, running back injuries rarely move lines, and that is the case for Sunday's Buccaneers vs. Rams Week 3 matchup.
The reigning Super Bowl champions are 1-point road favorites (click here for live NFL odds) for today's game against Los Angeles.
This game also has the highest over/under of NFL Week 3 at 55.5.
According to The Action Network's NFL public betting data, 64% of spread bets have landed on the Buccaneers thus far, with 66% of tickets also falling on the over.
