Key usage stats to know from week 8 onwards

Credit: Kevin Wexler-NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

You should never really lose your job due to an injury. However, sometimes a coach needs to see things happen in the game instead of on the practice field to change his mind.

Whether it’s money, or real-world evaluation, or a little bit of both, Devin Singletair was the starting running back out of the gate for head coach Brian Daboll. It took an injury to shake things up for Big Blue.

Singletary was sidelined for Week 5 in Seattle and was a rookie Tyrone Tracy Jr. got the chance to start. He racked up 129 rushing yards on 18 carries, and he stormed into the fantasy world.

The rookie out of Purdue had to share the load last week when Singletary returned, but neither did anything. The two shared the backfield Monday night in Pittsburgh, and Tracy was once again the dominant defender. After his performance against the Steelers, where he rushed for 145 yards on 20 carries, it’s hard to imagine Singletary regaining his starting job barring a Tracy injury.

Tracy indeed left the game early due to a shoulder injury, but returned to action. However, after a hard tackle he hit his head on the turf and had to be checked for concussion. He could not return, so it is worth closely monitoring this situation.

Tracy should be trusted as an RB2 in most fantasy leagues when healthy, while Singletary should be treated as a low-end RB3 or flex fantasy option in leagues of 12 or more teams.