Kenny Gainwell start or sit: Week 6 fantasy football advice

The 3-1 Pittsburgh Steelers take on division rivals the 1-4 Cleveland Browns on Sunday. The Steelers are 5.5-point favorites coming off their bye week. Before heading into their bye they beat the Vikings in Dublin off the strong play of backup running back Kenny Gainwell, who rushed 19 times for 99 yards and a two touchdowns, while catching 6-of-6 targets for 35 yards. This offensive explosion came about due to Jaylen Warren missing the game with a knee injury. But, Warren will return this week after practicing in full. Did Gainwell win any extra playing time or is Warren entrenched in the starting job?

Below, we’ll go over Kenny Gainwell’s outlook in fantasy football for Week 6.

We now know that Gainwell has the ability to put together a complete, every-down back, fantasy game, which is great. He makes for a strong bench player in case Warren is injured again. The question this week is whether a split backfield can make him startable against the Browns? That’s not to say this backfield will be split, but I believe that’s the best we can ask for with Warren back.

I believe Warren will get the starting job back, while Gainwell will continue to be his backup and will be trusted enough to get high leverage touches when needed. And if they were playing the Dolphins, maybe that would be enough for a flex play, but the Browns are a different story. They’ve given up three rushing touchdowns to running backs, but are still second-best in fantasy points allowed to the position. They’re also first in run defense DVOA and first in PFF run defense. This is a situation to avoid if possible. Even Warren is a hard sell, but likely startable on volume as a flex.

Sit.

Sit.