Is Josh Jacobs’ Fantasy Stock At Risk? Why Now Is the Time To Trade the Raiders RB — And Target Chase Edmonds

Josh Jacobs is the rare player I would recommend considering "selling low" on while you can.

Despite scoring two touchdowns to buoy his fantasy production, Jacobs looked inefficient in the Raiders' season opener, rushing for only 34 yards on 10 carries. That was likely a result of the toe injury that led to his "questionable" status heading into that game, and he's since missed the last two weeks with a nagging ankle injury — but injuries aren't the reason I'm making this recommendation.

I'm worried that, even once Jacobs returns to action, the Raiders' running back situation could turn into a three-way committee with Peyton Barber and Kenyan Drake.

Barber and Drake have been splitting work out of the backfield in Jacobs' absence. Barber has handled most of the work on the ground with 13/32/0 and 23/111/1 rushing lines over the past two weeks, while Drake has continued to fulfill the pass-catching role with 5/46/0 and 3/33/0 receiving lines.

What's concerning is that even before Jacobs was sidelined, he and Drake had a near-even snap rate (52% vs. 48%) in Week 1.

Drake already limits Jacobs' receiving usage, but now Barber could eat into Jacobs' early-down and goal-line work, too.

Derek Carr's breakout could also limit Jacobs' ceiling — the quarterback has a league-leading 1,203 yards through Week 3, averaging more than 400 yards (!) per game. The Raiders also rank sixth in early-down pass frequency through three games, so it’s clear they intend to lean on Carr more heavily, which means fewer touches for Jacobs.

A potential trade target is Chase Edmonds since the Cardinals RB is viewed similarly in the market as Jacobs.

Edmonds has high-end RB2 upside if James Conner was to ever miss time and given that Conner has never played more than 14 games in a season, Edmonds' rest-of-season value might be underrated.