WAS · RB
Projected Points (PPR)
This week
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Jacory Croskey-Merritt sits atop the depth chart at his position in Washington, listed as the RB1 ahead of a roster that otherwise centers on quarterback Jayden Daniels, receiver Terry McLaurin and tight end Chig Okonkwo. That designation on paper has translated into real snaps but not full control of the offense: across two games in 2026 he has played 42.6% of the offensive snaps, which is more than a change-of-pace share but well short of a workload that dominates the game plan. He has carried the ball 28 times for 106 yards, a 3.8 yards-per-carry mark, with one rushing touchdown. The passing-game work is thin — two targets, two receptions, and negative-two receiving yards — which tells you Washington is not using him as a check-down option or a route-runner out of the backfield. His role, distilled, is early-down and red-zone rushing volume inside a snap count that leaves the door open for a complementary back to soak up passing situations. Last season's shape backs this up: 175 carries against just 13 targets, with 31 of those carries coming in the red zone, a sign the coaching staff trusts him near the goal line even when it does not fully trust him on third down. Seven starts out of 17 games played last year also suggests his path to the lineup has not always been a straight line. The current 42.6% snap share is actually a step up from last season's 38.7%, which argues that the role is expanding rather than shrinking, even if it has not yet reached three-down status.
The case for Jacory Croskey-Merritt starts with volume concentrated in the most valuable part of the field. Thirty-one red-zone carries in 2025 is not a marginal number, and it produced eight rushing touchdowns, a scoring rate that flattered his overall numbers even when his per-game output was modest. His 2026 opening is on pace with that trend in one respect — a touchdown in his first two games — and his snap share has ticked up rather than declined, which is the kind of early-season signal managers look for when trying to project a bigger role as the year goes on. An offense that already leans on Jayden Daniels' legs and a passing attack funneled through Terry McLaurin does not need its running back to be a receiving weapon for that back to matter; if Washington keeps feeding him carries in scoring position, the touchdowns can keep the fantasy line respectable even on modest yardage. The case against him is just as easy to build from the same numbers. A finish of 33rd among all players at his position in PPR scoring last year, on 140.3 points and 8.3 points per game, is replacement-level production, not something to build a roster around. Early in 2026 that pattern has essentially repeated — 18.4 points and 9.2 points per game is a marginal step up, but a finish of 28th at his position through two weeks says the league has not moved him into a different tier. The receiving profile is the biggest red flag: two targets in two games and negative receiving yardage on his two catches mean he is providing almost nothing when the offense throws, and passing-down snaps almost certainly belong to someone else on early downs when the game state changes. A 3.8 yards-per-carry mark this year, down from 4.6 a year ago, also raises the question of whether the per-carry efficiency that made 175 attempts turn into 805 yards last season is repeatable, or whether defenses are keying on him more with the passing-down back removed from the equation. A 42.6% snap share, while up from 38.7%, is still not the number you see from backs who dominate a game plan; it leaves real touches on the table for whoever handles the other snaps. The honest read is that he is a carries-and-touchdowns proposition inside a timeshare, dependent on Washington continuing to trust him in scoring range, without the receiving floor that protects backs in low-volume rushing weeks.
Treat Jacory Croskey-Merritt as a flex option in most formats, not a lineup lock. His value is tied almost entirely to rushing volume in scoring range, so weeks where Washington is expected to control the game plan and lean on the run make him more startable than his overall line suggests. In pass-funnel matchups or game scripts that push Washington behind, his lack of receiving work becomes a real problem, since he offers almost nothing on targets — two receptions and negative receiving yards this year is not a foundation to lean on when the score dictates more throwing. Bench him in points-per-reception formats against defenses that are difficult to run against, and prioritize him when the red-zone carries look likely to flow his way. Keep an eye on the snap-share trend — it has moved from 38.7% to 42.6%, and a manager should watch for further growth as a sign the role is consolidating rather than splitting. If that number keeps climbing and the touchdown rate holds, he becomes a more confident everyweek flex. If it stalls or another back starts eating into his red-zone work, he settles back into streaming territory — a name to plug in only when the matchup is favorable, not a piece to build a bench strategy around.'
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