Using the RBBC Report: A look at the Patriots, Panthers, Saints and Chiefs

Let's take a gander at a few RBBCs around the league and see how the RBBC Report can be useful.

The Patriots always have one of the tougher backfields to figure out. They haven't had a feature back since Corey Dillon and have been getting by with a patchwork of RBs. They drafted two RBs this year, Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley, but Ridley had the better preseason and has started to get involved in the last two games:

Ridley has 18 touches in the last two games and has outscored BenJarvus Green-Ellis by a pretty wide margin. He's doing it in both the running and passing game, and if this continues, he's going to eat into the workloads of both Green-Ellis and Danny Woodhead. After 21 touches in the first two weeks, Woody only has 11 in the last two games. BJGE's workload has stayed consistent -- 24 carries in the first two weeks vs. 26 in the last two games. If Ridley keeps running the ball like he has (8.7 ypc) and doesn't turn it over, I could see he and BJGE switching roles by season's end.

Let's look at the Panthers...

The Panthers gave DeAngelo Williams a big contract, but they aren't giving him the touches. On the season, Jonathan Stewart actually has more touches, due to his 17-to-7 advantage in catches. Since entering the NFL, this has never a big part of his game, but he's obviously a better pass catcher than anyone realized. He's getting nearly as many carries as well and is definitely the better play at this point in the season. Note that neither player has a TD yet thanks to Cam Newton vulturing all their goal line carries.

Now, the Saints...

Darren Sproles is only getting 30% of the touches, but he's so productive in those touches that he's clearly the best start in both standard and PPR formats. Mark Ingram may yet earn a bigger role, but he's averaging just 3.5 ypc behind the same line that is blocking for Sproles (8.9 ypc) and Pierre Thomas (5.0 ypc).

Finally, the Chiefs...

Since Jamaal Charles has been out, Dexter McCluster and Thomas Jones have split the work almost evenly. McCluster remains a decent flex start in PPR formats while Jones is not much of a factor. The Chiefs aren't scoring enough to count on TJ getting enough goal line carries to warrant a start. Le'Ron McClain hasn't been a factor -- Jackie Battle is actually getting more work.

In fantasy football, usage is vital, and that's what the RBBC Report is all about.