Doug Martin & Jalen Richard Fantasy: Which Raiders RB Should You Own After Lynch Injury?

Getty Doug Martin should see an uptick in fantasy production with Marshawn Lynch out.

With Marshawn Lynch expected to miss extended time, it opens up new fantasy football possibilities for Doug Martin and Jalen Richard. The challenge is knowing which Raiders running back you should go after on your waiver wire. My advice is to pick up Martin where you can, but I would hold off on Richard unless you are playing in a deeper league.

Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Michael Gehlken reported that Martin is expected to get the majority of the carries in Lynch’s absence.

Raiders RB Doug Martin expected to handle bulk of carries with Marshawn Lynch (groin) sidelined. Jon Gruden high on him. Believes he’s ready for increased involvement. DeAndre Washington been inactive. Likely now to make season debut behind Jalen Richard.

Martin is a different style running back than Lynch and posses a high level of quickness. I’m bullish on Martin’s chances of being an RB2 with upside in Lynch’s absence. Martin is a must-add in all formats. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that the Raiders are considering placing Lynch on injured reserve, which would put him on the shelf for even longer.

Doug Martin Is a Must-Add in All Fantasy Formats

The Raiders went out and signed Martin this offseason even though Lynch was already on the roster. Raiders head coach Jon Gruden was complimentary of Martin after the signing per Tampa Bay Times’ Rick Stroud.

Doug came to us for almost nothing. He’s got Oakland ties, which is important to me, Bay Area ties. He’s a hell of a player if he’s right now. So April 9 we put him in our system, and we see where we can take him…I’ve seen this guy be dominant. saw him in Oakland, California one day run for about 250 yards. And I know he averaged 2.9 and a lot of the statisticians out there have been on me about that, but what you haven’t seen is all the film and this guy’s a hell of….running back…He’s got a lot to prove.

Martin is far removed from being a top fantasy running back, but did show some flashes in 2017. According to FFToday, Martin scored 15.2 points (PPR) in Week 5, 13.4 points in Week 6 and 13 fantasy points in Week 14. This season, Martin has not had many opportunities to shine aside from Week 4 when Martin had nine carries for 43 yards in Week 3.

Richard does have relevance in PPR leagues. The past two weeks Richard had 13 receptions for 101 receiving yards. The Raiders running back has 31 catches for 253 receiving yards this season. Richard has not had many opportunities for rushing work. Richard has just 11 carries for 32 yards this season. That number is likely to go up with Lynch out, but he is likely only going to be used to spell Martin when it comes to the run game. As of now, Richard is only worth a pickup in deep PPR leagues.