Entering Week 14, Cleveland Browns running back Isaiah Crowell hadn't rushed for more than 72 yards in a game all season. In the three games since, he's done so twice, including a big performance Sunday in the Browns' 17-13 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Fantasy football waiver wire: Isaiah Crowell has second big game in last three
The Cleveland running back has ramped up in recent weeks. We break down the fantasy implications.
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Crowell rushed the ball 16 times Sunday for 88 yards and a score. It was his second-biggest game of the year, behind a 145-yard, two-score outing two weeks ago against the San Francisco 49ers. With rookie Duke Johnson Jr. underwhelming of late, Crowell has again seized the role of the team's No. 1 back.
Fantasy impact: Speaking just as one person, the love for Johnson never really made sense to me; he was never a great runner, offering mostly pass-catching ability, and had too many fumble issues in college to rely on. Crowell, who jumped over both Ben Tate and Terrance West to take the Cleveland job as a rookie last year, was a better runner all along, and now that Johnson has faded and Robert Turbin is gone from the roster, Cleveland is making use of him.
That said, the team’s offense overall isn’t good enough to count on Crowell as anything more than a super-deep flex option. He was owned in 28 percent of Yahoo! fantasy leagues as of Sunday night, and entering Week 17, that seems about right. It’s hard to imagine running Crowell out there in Week 17 of late-ending leagues unless it’s a truly desperate situation.
