Fantasy football managers rostering Titans RB Derrick Henry were dealt a huge blow on Sunday as they potentially lost the NFL’s leading rusher for the rest of the season due to a broken bone in his foot. He underwent surgery on Tuesday and as this article is being written, there is no timetable for his return. 

With the high incidences of injuries to fantasy RBs, Henry’s setback is a good example of why it’s sometimes very important to protect your first round RB investment by also rostering his handcuff. Unfortunately, the Titans have also added a high-profile RB to their roster who may end up stealing some playing time away from Henry’s handcuff. We’ve got a lot to cover. Please enjoy this week’s RB Handcuff Report.

Titans

Replacing a player like Henry is extremely difficult but the Titans are certainly going to try. Expect Jeremy McNichols to be the Titans’ lead back for the short term but as newly signed future hall of famer Adrian Peterson gets in game shape, he should also have a regular role in the offense. He’s likely to get some early down work and as a back who at 6-1, 220lb can still move the piles, Peterson could get some goal line work as well. He scored seven rushing TDs and averaged just under 10 carries and 38 rushing yards per game for the Lions last season. McNichols already has 21 catches on the season and while he’ll likely also get his share of early down work, the Titans will probably continue to take advantage of his receiving abilities. The Titans also signed a potential sleeper in 24-year-old D’Onta Foreman on Tuesday. Some expected Foreman to develop into a fantasy stud with the Texans but while he has the raw talent, he hasn’t reached his potential yet. He played parts of six games for the Titans last season and joins Dontrell Hilliard and Mekhi Sargent on the Titans’ practice squad. The Titans also have FB Khari Blasingame on their roster and as a team that loves to run the ball, he may be called upon to carry the rock occasionally as well.

Jets

It appears that Michael Carter has officially taken over as the Jets’ lead back. In his first five games of the season, he averaged 43.2% snaps played. Over the past two weeks he’s averaged 71% snaps played. Carter is not only being used in early down situations, but he’s also become a big factor in the Jets’ passing game as of late. Carter has been targeted 23 times and has 17 receptions over the past two weeks. He and Alvin Kamara are averaging 25.3 fantasy points per game in PPR scoring over the past three weeks, and that’s the most among fantasy RBs. 

Panthers

When Panthers head coach Matt Rhule was asked when Christian McCaffrey would return to action, he said "if it’s not this week, hopefully next week." Even if McCaffrey is active this week or next, if you roster Chuba Hubbard, hold onto him. The Panthers distributed their carries among three RBs this past Sunday. Hubbard had 24, Ameer Abdullah had eight and Royce Freeman had six and it sounds like Rhule would like to continue to rotate his backs in and out of the game even when McCaffrey returns to action. According to Rhule "it's not just about Christian; it's about those guys that have really emerged for us, and we want them all to play. So, we'll see where Christian's at this week. But I think just in general with him coming back, forget about what's happened, I want to see Chuba Hubbard on the field too, and Ameer on the field too. It's a good problem to have." Fantasy football managers who roster McCaffrey might get a little worried after reading that quote but hopefully Rhule is referring to easing the Panthers’ star RB back into things and not limiting his workload for the long term.