Terry McLaurin
vs David Montgomery

“McLaurin: Targets and share held roughly flat (27.0% adjusted → 28.1% adjusted), continuing as Washington’s clear passing-game priority — but for the second straight week, a real, meaningful gain of his was taken away by replay review (see Replay Reversal above).”

“Against two high, McLaurin has had a 24% target-per-route-run rate, but he has produced only 1.12 YPRR. Even if the coverage structure leaned in McLaurin’s favor, I wouldn’t expect much from him against a secondary that has allowed the fourth-fewest yards per target and fantasy points per target to perimeter wide receivers this season. Sit McLaurin this week, if possible.”

“Terry McLaurin has also struggled to start the season, but his outlook for the near future is not as bright as Jamo’s. Jayden Daniels ’ elbow injury makes McLaurin a shaky flex play until he returns. Carnell Tate might end up being a product of a bad situation with Cam Ward struggling so far, and he can stay on your bench until something changes.”

“Though he led the Commanders in targets (9) and receiving yards (50), McLaurin’s season-long outlook is concerning because of the rise of Stefon Diggs and the nasty, dislocated elbow injury Jayden Daniels suffered. We don’t yet have a timeline for how long Daniels will be out, but I expect this injury to cost him several weeks, and veteran Marcus Mariota will fill in his stead. The major thought I had going through this weekend: if McLaurin isn’t able to have a big game against the Dallas secondary, what will it take?”

“Going back to the Commanders’ offense, Terry McLaurin had a scary bad game for a 31-year-old receiver in the late stages of his career. He finished the afternoon with just two receptions on four targets for 14 receiving yards. He managed just an 11% target share and 0.40 yards per route run (YPRR), basically just running cardio the entire game.”

“Terry McLaurin (WR – WAS) Both Finish as Wide Receiver Twos The prediction: both receivers finish this season as at least a top-24 fantasy option. Diggs isn’t washed the way public perception might suggest. He averaged a respectable points-per-game clip last year and ranked top 10 in yards per route run among receivers with 100-plus routes, along with a 90th-percentile mark in targets per route run.”

“Terry McLaurin set career highs across the board in Jayden Daniels ‘ rookie season. If Daniels can stay healthy, McLaurin is set up for another big year.”

“Terry McLaurin is still the top target in the Commanders’ passing game. I expect them to be much more successful through the air with David Blough calling plays.”

“McLaurin is a target of mine because he doesn’t have much competition for targets of his. The Commanders’ passing game is essentially McLaurin and newly signed Stefon Diggs.”

“With Deebo Samuel and Zach Ertz gone, only Antonio Williams and Chig Okonkwo were added to this receiving depth chart; McLaurin should return to his target hog WR2 ways in 2026. He’s a strong bounceback candidate.”

“Through three games, David Montgomery is averaging a whopping 2.7 YPA. He’s seeing about 52% of the touches, nowhere near the workhorse numbers everyone projected in the offseason. Woody Marks looks like the more explosive back of the two, though his numbers aren’t much better.”

“Montgomery has a 4.5% explosive run rate, 1.54 yards after contact per attempt, and a 12% missed tackle rate. If Houston can play with a lead, Montgomery could have a bounceback game this week against Indy’s putrid run defense. Indy has allowed the third-highest explosive run rate, the sixth-highest rushing success rate, the seventh-most yards before contact per attempt, and the fourth-highest missed tackle rate.”

“We have not seen much usage from Woody Marks yet, but David Montgomery should feast and may leave Marks (RB36) with some decent scraps. Blake Corum , RB, Los Angeles Rams The back half of 2025 saw Corum have an increase in workload with significant touches leading into the playoffs. Corum appears to be maintaining a similar workload and is due for a trip to the endzone.”

“On the bright side, Montgomery does still have all four of the Texans’ carries inside the 10-yard line. But goal-line work alone is a recipe for an inconsistent FLEX play, not a viable RB2. The whole thesis behind Montgomery this season was his workhorse volume, and it hasn’t been there through two weeks (he’s also been fairly inefficient, for what it’s worth).”

“David Montgomery will likely operate as the team’s workhorse.”

“David Montgomery (RB – HOU) I’m not buying the offseason narratives that the Texans backfield will be a 50/50 split. David Montgomery will likely operate as the team’s workhorse.”

“Longshot Bet: David Montgomery to Lead the NFL in Rushing Yards (+8000) David Montgomery has bell-cow history.”

“David Montgomery (HOU) At his cost in the middle rounds, Montgomery has the potential to win your league.”

“For all those reasons, David Montgomery is a player I am not leaving any drafts with, especially because this potential top-12 running back can be drafted.” – Adam Dove ( The Fantasy Couriers ) Travis Etienne Jr.”

“Montgomery has played seven seasons in the NFL and has had 201 carries or more in five of them. He fell under that number in the last two seasons (185 in 2024 and 158 in 2025), but that was mostly due to how utterly unstoppable Jahmyr Gibbs is.”