After losing Joe Mixon this offseason, the Cincinnati Bengals entered the season with Zack Moss as their lead running back, and some questioned how productive he would be.
Now in Year 5, Moss is on pace to have his second-best season running the ball, only trailing the Indianapolis (794 yards, five rushing touchdowns). Through just four games, Moss has 187 yards and two rushing touchdowns. How has his strong start impacted his fantasy football value?
Should Fantasy Football Managers Trade Zack Moss?
As a running back whose name doesn’t read like Saquon Barkley or Jahmyr Gibbs in the fantasy football community, Moss has been relatively average through the first four weeks of the 2024 season.
However, his stock has risen in the last two weeks.
- Week 1: Nine rushes, 44 yards / one touchdown, two receptions, 17 yards
- Week 2: 12 rushes, 34 yards / one reception, 13 yards
- Week 3: 12 rushes, 58 yards, one touchdown / five receptions, 39 yards
- Week 4: 15 rushes, 51 yards, one touchdown / four receptions, 27 yards, one touchdown
When looking at running backs who are part of a committee, as Moss is, snap shares are important. Not only does it show who’s getting more opportunities per game, but it also forecasts how the future could play out in a particular backfield.
Through the first three weeks of the season, Moss saw significantly more snaps than backup Chase Brown. However, in Week 4, Brown was given more chances than usual.
Coming into Week 4, Brown never saw more than 24% of offensive snaps. Against the Carolina Panthers, Brown saw a season-high 40% of snaps, in which he had the best performance of his NFL career.
Every Chase Brown carry from his 80 yard 2 touchdown performance pic.twitter.com/u7FkB4kxbz
— mike (@bengals_sans) September 30, 2024
So, while Moss has been the lead back to this point, that tide could change if Brown continues to excite with his limited workload.
That said, it could be smart to trade Moss while he still has value. If Brown takes over the backfield, Moss’ value could plummet.
Who Should Fantasy Managers Look To Acquire When Trading Zack Moss?
Looking at the PFN Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer, Moss is valued at 17.5 points.
As a lower-ranked starting running back in terms of trade value, Moss likely yields a solid return in trades. That will become even more true if Brown continues performing the way he did in Week 4.
The list of running backs with similar value as Moss consists of the following:
- Najee Harris (19.4)
- Jerome Ford (18.0)
- Devin Singletary (16.6)
- Zach Charbonnet (14.6)
Now, if running backs aren’t the ideal return for fantasy managers, here are the wide receivers in a similar range:
- Terry McLaurin (17.1)
- Michael Pittman Jr. (16.2)
- Calvin Ridley (15.0)
Among the players Moss shares similar value with, there are a few names that managers should consider trading him for.
With Brown potentially seeing more snaps in the upcoming weeks — and the apparent talent difference between the two — the Bengals could have Moss transition into a more rotational role as the season progresses, lowering his fantasy value at a rapid pace.
For fantasy managers on the fence about trading him, it would be better to do it now than to wait for Brown to take over completely.