San Diego Chargers running back Ryan Mathews is practicing in full on Wednesday and set to make his return against the Oakland Raiders in Week 11. Mathews is expected to start and could see around 15 touches in his first game since Week 2.
Ryan Mathews practicing, on track to make fantasy return in Week 11
The Chargers fully expect Ryan Mathews to come back and start against the Raiders in Week 11. We break down the fantasy implications.
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After playing 16 games for the first time in his career last season, Mathews got bit by the injury bug once again in 2014. He went down with a sprained MCL in the second game of the season and was initially expected to miss 4-5 weeks, but the Chargers ended up holding him out through seven games and the Week 10 bye. With Danny Woodhead and Donald Brown also getting hurt, Branden Oliver has been the Chargers' lead back in recent weeks.
Fantasy impact: With an expected full workload and tasty matchup with the Raiders defense, Mathews could easily jump back into RB2 territory. Oliver is still worth owning in PPR leagues, filling Woodhead’s role as the pass-catching back. We recommend sitting on both players until we see just how the backfield committee shakes out on Sunday.
