Act quickly to grab these running backs for critical fantasy football depth

After another week of watching Jonathan Taylor, De’Von Achane and Jahmyr Gibbs dominate, the fantasy football community can officially declare this to be another Year of the Running Back.

This week they were joined by Kyren Williams and Breece Hall among the stat leaders from Week 10, and we even witnessed the breakout of TreVeyon Henderson — who finally gave the Patriots a reason to turn away from Rhamondre Stevenson.

But as all of this lays itself out, those fantasy managers who lack a true bell cow back are scrambling to the waiver wire in desperate need of some help. Fortunately for them, the Week 11 waiver wire just might have a couple of options to add.

Your search for help starts in Houston, where rookie running back Woody Marks has seemingly supplanted veteran Nick Chubb. His usage increase over Chubb has been a pattern over the past four games, and though his 80 percent snap share in Week 10 may have also been linked to being the third-down pass-catcher and the Texans playing from behind throughout the game, his explosiveness and ability to also run between the tackles might have just sealed the deal.

Marks averaged 4.5 yards per carry against a fairly strong Jaguars run defense, and his versatility allows the Texans to be more creative with their play-calling.

Chubb is a plodder. If he is on the field, the defense knows he is running straight ahead. With Marks’ strength and speed, the Texans can go inside, outside or just throw the football, depending on what they read from the defense. We’ve been anxiously awaiting a changing of the guard in Houston, and this might have been it. With Marks still available in 40 percent of leagues across ESPN and Yahoo, he should be added immediately.

Betting on the NFL?

If your leagues are deep or super-competitive, adding a running back who starts regularly is a near-impossible task. But you can still fill in the gaps with someone like Arizona’s Emari Demercado. We know Trey Benson will be coming off IR soon, but Demercado has carved out a role as the Cardinals’ pass-catching back, and he is the one who is on the field for the two-minute drill. Rostered in fewer than 20 percent of leagues, he should be an immediate add.

Most remember Demercado from his goal-line fumble while celebrating what should have been an easy touchdown in Week 5. He languished in Jonathan Gannon’s doghouse for a week or so then missed time with an ankle injury. Not only is he back, but his 100-plus yards from scrimmage this past week are not a fluke. He should be in this role the rest of the way.

Running back depth is the most difficult thing to acquire in fantasy football right now. If someone becomes available, you need to strike immediately. If it truly is another Year of the Running Back, your championship dreams depend on it.

Howard Bender is the head of content at FantasyAlarm.com. Follow him on X @rotobuzzguy and catch him on the award-winning “Fantasy Alarm Radio Show” on the SiriusXM fantasy sports channel weekdays from 6-8 p.m. Go to FantasyAlarm.com for all your fantasy football news and advice.