There's a ton to love about each of the high-priced backs this week. Alvin Kamara is Alvin Kamara. Melvin Gordon's Los Angeles Chargers are at home as 10.5-point favorites. And Saquon Barkley should be a lower-owned way to get access to another potential shootout on Sunday.
In all the excitement, don't forget about Ezekiel Elliott.
Elliott is $8,200, priced firmly between those three aforementioned studs. Not only is he also at home on a team that is favored, but Elliott's matchup seems pretty spicy.
The Detroit Lions have been getting shredded by opposing running backs through the first three weeks. They've allowed the most expected points per carry to running backs and the third-highest success rate, according to numberFire's Brandon Gdula. We just haven't noticed yet because of the teams the Lions have faced.
Each of the offenses to go up against the Lions this year has used a two-headed attack at running back. But even with that, both Matt Breida and Isaiah Crowell have topped the 100-yard barrier on fewer than 12 carries. In all, they've allowed 65 carries for 435 yards and 3 touchdowns to running backs, amounting to 6.7 yards per carry.
Elliott has had at least 15 carries in each game and has averaged 91.3 yards per contest. He could let us know the full extent of the Lions' defensive struggles.
The concerns with Elliott, though, likely have nothing to do with volume. They do -- and should -- revolve around the state of his offensive line.
Center Travis Frederic is still out due to illness, which is a huge loss up front. His absence is likely a majority of the reason the Cowboys have allowed 11 sacks already, the seventh-highest mark in the league. But the run blocking hasn't suffered yet.
The Cowboys enter Week 4 ranked first in the league in Adjusted Rushing NEP per play, which takes into account the teams they have played. And they're first by a pretty wide margin. The rushing efficiency is still there.
Passing efficiency does matter for a running back's fantasy output, as well, as efficient passing leads to more touchdown opportunities. As a result, we shouldn't just brush off Frederick's absence when evaluating Elliott. But given the matchup -- and the three-point spread in Dallas' favor -- it makes sense to plug in Elliott at $8,200 and see if he can flash that spicy ceiling for the first time this year.