Royce Freeman Fantasy Outlook Improves Following Increased Snap Share During Thursday Night Football

The Denver Broncos' backfield has been a tough one to figure out this season, as Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman have battled for snaps, rushes and targets in what has become a full-blown, two-man committee.

While Lindsay has had more fantasy value to date (currently the RB11 in standard scoring leagues), Freeman reigned supreme in the team's Week 7 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, scoring his first touchdown of the season while totaling 67 yards on 14 touches. Perhaps more telling, Freeman out-snapped Lindsay for the third straight week.

Freeman still struggled on the ground, gaining only 35 yards on 10 carries (3.5 yards per carry), but Lindsay was no better in that department, with 11 carries for 36 yards. On the season, Freeman is averaging 4.2 yards per carry, while Lindsay is at 4.6 yards.

Both players seem to have an equal amount of fans and detractors in the fantasy world, but as far as who should be getting the lion's share of the Broncos' RB work, Freeman has the slight edge over Lindsay as far as passing down involvement. Freeman has 25 receptions (on 31 targets) for 177 yards, while Lindsay sits at 20 catches (27 targets) for 143 yards.

It's still a head-scratching endeavor trying to figure which Broncos RB will be more productive week-to-week, but Freeman's use at the goal line in Week 7 and increasing snap share are certainly positive signs going forward. Just know that Lindsay is going nowhere, and offers Denver a change-of-pace option that will likely keep the Broncos backfield close to 50/50 timeshare going forward, unless this recent trend continues.

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