Kansas City Chiefs

Fantasy Football: Kansas City Chiefs Backups Are A Strong Play

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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In Fantasy Football many owner fear injuries as the wrong player going down can ruin a season. Savvy players though, are prepared by having the right backups. Two Chiefs backups are strong plays this week.

Fantasy Football teams can be destroyed by ill-timed injuries to the right player. Losing one key player can take a team from the top to the bottom in a hurry. That is why having the proper backups, also known as “handcuffs”, is very important to a successful season. Any fantasy player who owns a Kansas City Chiefs running back this year knows that all to well.

Last week against the Indianapolis Colts, both starting quarterback Alex Smith and starting running back Spencer Ware had to leave the game. As of now, neither player is expected to be on the field this week. Fortunately, the Chiefs have a pair of backups with a good bit of NFL experience, and success.

With Smith and Ware out, the starting jobs will fall to Nick Foles at quarterback and Charcandrick West at running back. Foles has previously been a starter for both the Rams and Eagles. West, meanwhile, actually started ahead of Spencer Ware just this past season. That should give Fantasy Football owners a bit of confidence in using either player.

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Nick Foles

Quarterback Nick Foles brings to the table a big arm that may allow him to exploit downfield match ups. Foles also has a familiarity with Andy Reid’s offense, so there should be very little hiccups in transition from Alex Smith. That is a huge advantage that not many teams have. Nick Foles could be in position for a surprisingly big day.

The Chiefs provide a number of athletic targets to their quarterbacks. Jeremy Maclin, Travis Kelce, and Tyreek Hill are capable of breaking big plays at any time. If Nick Foles can get the ball to any of them in space, the Chiefs could end up putting a lot of points. Obviously, that would be attractive to Fantasy Football owners.

Adding to the optimism is that last week Nick Foles looked very solid against the Colts in relief duties. Of course, the Colts may have the worst secondary in the NFL. That isn’t the concern that I have though. On film review, Foles wasn’t quite as solid as his stat sheet would indicate. His top plays were actually a little flawed. So there does remain some question as to what he will do moving forward.

Charcandrick West

Fantasy Football owners looking for a more reliable play should turn to Charcandrick West. The Kansas City Chiefs running back has had a lot of success in the past for Andy Reid. The Chiefs will likely lean a little bit more on their running game with Alex Smith out. That is especially true with a running back they know and trust like Charcandrick West.

Charcandrick West is a quality one-cut running back who is capable of hitting the hole quickly and getting up field. West is capable of providing a solid yards per carry average, but can also explode for a big play. Furthermore, he is a reliable pass catcher out of the backfield.

Fantasy owners shouldn’t expect Charcandrick West to be the dominant presence that Spencer Ware had been this year. However, West is still very capable and there is little downside to playing him this week.

The Kansas City Chiefs should have very little trouble with the Jacksonville Jaguars this week, even with backups in key spots. The Chiefs have a quality depth chart with strong players in key spots. Both Nick Foles and Charcandrick West should be solid plays in Fantasy Football this week, despite being backups.

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