The San Diego Chargers got Ryan Mathews back from injury on Sunday and in Week 12 he is a top fantasy football start option over Branden Oliver and Donald Brown, as he should be the lead running back for Philip Rivers as long as he remains healthy and while the Rams are a tough defensive matchup, Mathews looks ready to carry the full load.
Oliver has been excellent this season while filling in for Mathews and Brown while they were injured and now he is only a RB2 or RB3 starter with Mathews back in the mix. Last week Mathews had 17 touches against the Raiders and he could be in line for even more after missing the majority of the season with injuries. Mathews has now played in three games and it is very likely that he is around 20 touches on Sunday against the Rams and that means less for Oliver and Brown.
Mathews was limping a bit after the game on Sunday, but the RB said that his knee was fine and it won't be an issue for next week. Mathews had his first healthy season last year and while he has missed the majority of the season this year, he is expected to get a full workload next week. This season Mathews has 141 yards and he had his best game of the season with 70 yards on 16 carries against Oakland. Last season Mathews set a career high with 16 games played and 1255 rushing yards and he also scored six TDs, which was the most since his rookie season.
Mathews had a knee issue after the game in Week 11, but he is fine and now he is set to start against for the Chargers and they have the chance to bounce back this week. The Rams have a solid defense, but expect Mathews to get his hands on the ball quite a bit. This season he now has 141 yards and while Oliver has been impressive, Mathews is still the lead back. Oliver has moved past Brown in the depth chart and for the time being he is worth starting over Brown.
Oliver still at least put up some numbers on Sunday, as he had 36 yards on 13 carries and he also added a reception. Oliver now has 407 yards and two TDs on the season along with 23 catches. The Chargers like getting Oliver in space and that could be part of the game plan this weekend. The Rams are playing well of late and the Chargers need to get things going and that could come this week for Oliver, Mathews and Brown.
Brown only had one carry in the game last week and had one catch and he is not worth anything in fantasy right now. If Mathews goes down again or Oliver is injured Brown will be worth a look, but right now he is not worth starting. Mathews was impressive last season while not getting injured and he is looking to stay healthy down the stretch for the Chargers.