Murray joined the Bills in the offseason, and if recent history is any indication that could be bad news for James Cook and Damien Harris. Murray has at least 162 touches in seven of his past eight seasons and more than one of those teams didn't intend on giving Murray that much work when they signed him. As he has in the recent past, he'll probably need an injury to be Fantasy relevant, but James Cook has never been a full-time back and Damien Harris is coming off an injury. Leave Murray on the waiver wire in all but the deepest of leagues, but don't be surprised if we're telling you to add him and start him as a flex by the middle of the season.
Murray carried the ball six times for 22 yards and one touchdown in Sunday's 38-10 win over the Raiders. He added two receptions on two targets for nine yards.
James Cook served as the lead back for the Bills, but Murray mixed in as early as the second possession. He capped that drive with a four-yard touchdown plunge and was also regularly on the field when the ball was inside the opponent's 10-yard line. That role will leave him as a touchdown-or-bust option, but it appears that he has jumped Damien Harris on the depth chart.
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Bills' Latavius Murray: Modest role in team debut
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Murray rushed two times for eight yards and caught one of two targets for nine yards in Monday's 22-16 overtime loss to the Jets.
Starter James Cook saw 59 percent of the offensive snaps, but Murray actually saw more work than teammate Damien Harris, getting a 23 percent share to Harris' 13 percent. Harris was presumed to have some fantasy value this year in Buffalo due to his likely goal-line use, but Murray is no slouch in the red zone either with 55 career rushing touchdowns. It looks like the Bills are going to run their offense through Cook and Josh Allen, so for now Murray and Harris don't offer much upside.
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Bills' Latavius Murray: Survives roster cuts
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Murray remains on the Bills' roster following Tuesday's cutdown day.
The 33-year-old Murray seemed like a good bet to make the team all along once Nyheim Hines was lost for the season due to an off-field knee injury, but that's been put in ink unless the Bills see someone younger they really like on the waiver wire. The Buffalo backfield will have a bit of a committee feel to it, though Murray -- based on his age and a few other factors -- seems to be the third option behind James Cook and Damien Harris.
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Bills' Latavius Murray: Rested for preseason finale
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Murray was held out from Saturday's preseason finale against the Bears, Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic reports.
The implication is that Murray is in good position for a roster spot and perhaps is even a threat to overtake Damien Harris for the No. 2 RB role. James Cook and Harris both got work with the starters Saturday, though Cook came out of the game after a couple drives while Harris continued playing deep into the second quarter.
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Bills' Latavius Murray: Debuts with new team
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Murray carried five times for 18 yards and caught all three targets for 21 yards in Buffalo's preseason win over the Colts on Saturday.
Murray has been in the league since 2014 and is the league's fourth-leading career rusher among active players, so it's not like he needs a ton of work to be ready for another campaign. However, with Damien Harris out with a knee injury, Murray has a chance to state his case for a more meaningful role for the start of the season, and perhaps a clear-cut No. 2 role if Harris' injury lingers. James Cook looks like the starter, but this is a high-powered offense and one that has historically rotated running backs, so Murray's preseason usage and output is worth monitoring. Murray also appears to have a roster spot locked up following the season-ending, off-field injury to teammate Nyheim Hines (knee).
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Bills' Latavius Murray: Set for backup role
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James Cook has been seeing most of the reps in training camp with the starters, while it appears that Murray and Damien Harris are battling for positioning behind him, Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com reports.
Murray is 33 years old and is working under a one-year deal, so he seems like the most likely to be slotted third in the pecking order. He was also thought to have some work to do to secure a roster spot, but that was before Nyheim Hines went down for the season with an off-field knee injury. While Murray looks to be on firmer footing to make the Week 1 roster, it looks like he has little chance to unseat Cook or claim anything resembling a heavy workload.
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Bills' Latavius Murray: May be more in need
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Murray's teammate Nyheim Hines will miss the entire 2023 season after suffering a serious knee injury during in a recent jet-ski accident, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
Murray is 33 years old and is working under a one-year deal, so he was thought to have a bit of work to do in order to secure a spot on the Bills. While he and the versatile Hines have different skill sets, Murray may be more needed now with one of the team's key pieces out for the season. We'll see if the Bills bring in another running back. If not, Murray looks to have fairly firm footing for the No. 3 job behind James Cook and Damien Harris heading into camp.
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Bills' Latavius Murray: Inks one-year deal with Buffalo
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Buffalo signed Murray to a one-year contract Monday.
Murray provides quality veteran depth for the Bills after the team passed on adding a running back in the 2023 NFL Draft. The 33-year-old averaged 4.4 YPC across 12 games with Denver last season, to the tune of 703 rushing yards and five touchdowns, with Javonte Williams (knee) having gone down early in the year. With Buffalo, he profiles as a depth option behind Damien Harris, James Cook and Nyheim Hines.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Strong finish to season
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Murray rushed 15 times for 103 yards and a touchdown and brought in his only target for 15 yards in the Broncos' 31-28 win over the Chargers on Sunday. He also committed a fumble recovered by Denver.
The veteran running back closed out the season with another strong effort, and he posted a pair of 100-yard tallies in the last four games. Murray was an afterthought languishing on the Saints' practice squad earlier in the season, but a solid 11-carry, 57-yard, one-touchdown performance in Week 4 for New Orleans caught the eye of the Broncos, who were reeling from the loss of Javonte Williams (IR-knee) at the time. Murray went on thrive to the tune of 703 rushing yards and five touchdowns along with a 26-124 line through the air across 12 games in Denver, and although he'll be an unrestricted free agent at the start of the new league year and turns 33 later in January, his body of work this past season suggests he still has plenty of tread left on his tires.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: RBs to Sit
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Chase Edmonds was active for Week 16 at the Rams, and the Broncos used a three-headed backfield with Edmonds, Murray and Marlon Mack. That left Murray with a reduced role of just eight carries for 34 yards and one catch for 6 yards on three targets. He will likely share touches again, and he had minimal production against the Chiefs in their first meeting in Week 14 with eight carries for 32 yards and three catches for minus-1 yard on five targets. Murray is a low-end flex at best in the rematch in Week 17.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Sit Him (Lineup Decisions)
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The Broncos can't be trusted to instantly right their ship just because they fired their coach, especially given the scenario of playing on the road against a productive Chiefs squad. That means Murray might not see the 14-plus touches you'd normally want. I would bench the touchdown-needy back for Isiah Pacheco, James Cook and both Dolphins RBs.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Suits up versus Rams
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Murray (foot) is listed as active for Sunday's game against the Rams.
After sitting out Thursday's practice, Murray returned to a limited session Friday and he'll give it a go Sunday. Assuming no in-game setbacks, he should continue pace Denver's rushing attack after having carried 24 times for 130 yards and a TD and catching one pass for 12 yards in the team's Week 15 win over the Cardinals. Also in the Broncos' Week 16 backfield mix are Marlon Mack and Chase Edmonds, who was activated off IR on Saturday, but Murray's strong effort versus Arizona should earn him enough touches versus Los Angeles to maintain fantasy utility.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Sleepers (Start/Sit)
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Murray is coming off a standout game in Week 15 against Arizona with 24 carries for 130 yards and a touchdown and one catch for 12 yards, and he scored 24 PPR points. He should have another game with a lot of work against the Rams in Week 16, and Murray is worth trusting as a low-end starter in all leagues. He now has at least 21 total touches in three of his past five games, and he scored at least 16 PPR points in two of them. The Rams have allowed five running backs to score at least 12 PPR points in their past five games, with Josh Jacobs, Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon all scoring at least 19 PPR points in the past three outings.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Sleeper RBs
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Murray is coming off a standout game in Week 15 against Arizona with 24 carries for 130 yards and a touchdown and one catch for 12 yards, and he scored 24 PPR points. He should have another game with a lot of work against the Rams in Week 16, and Murray is worth trusting as a low-end starter in all leagues. He now has at least 21 total touches in three of his past five games, and he scored at least 16 PPR points in two of them. The Rams have allowed five running backs to score at least 12 PPR points in their past five games, with Josh Jacobs, Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon all scoring at least 19 PPR points in the past three outings.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Says he's ready to play Sunday
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Murray (foot), who is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Rams, indicated after returning to a limited practice Friday that he's ready to play in the contest, Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post reports.
It's still worth verifying Murray's status ahead of Sunday's 4:30 p.m. ET kickoff, but if the running back is able to play this weekend, he'd be in line to continue pace Denver's backfield on the heels of carrying 24 times for 130 yards and a touchdown and catching one pass for 12 yards in his team's Week 15 win over the Cardinals. Also in the Broncos' backfield mix versus Los Angeles will be Marlon Mack and quite possibly Chase Edmonds (ankle), who is a candidate to come off IR.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Listed as questionable for Week 16
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Murray (foot) is questionable for Sunday's game against the Rams, Aric DiLalla of the Broncos' official site reports.
Murray, who was limited Wednesday, sat out Thursday's practice, but he was back on the field Friday. With the Broncos kicking off at 4:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, added context with regard to Murray's Week 16 status will ideally arrive before then. If Murray sits out or is limited versus Los Angeles, Marlon Mack and potentially Chase Edmonds (ankle) would be in line to see added backfield work for Denver.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Returns to practice
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Murray (foot) is practicing Friday, Zac Stevens of DNVR Sports reports.
Murray sat out practice Thursday, but the Broncos said he was sitting as a precaution with the team practicing on turf. Friday's return to action is a step in the right direction, though the extent of Murray's participation has yet to be revealed. He's poised to take on the lead role Sunday against the Rams after a 24-carry outing in the Week 15 win over Arizona.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Start Him (Lineup Decisions)
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Murray isn't as good as Aaron Jones or A.J. Dillon. He's not really that good at all. But he's in the right place at the right time against an opponent who shouldn't be in a spot to contain him fully for four quarters. He's got a shot to score and get decent yardage. That's more than enough to be a No. 2 Fantasy running back this week over Travis Etienne, Isiah Pacheco, Brian Robinson and both Lions RBs.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Misses practice Thursday
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Coach Nathaniel Hackett noted that part of the reason Murray (foot) didn't practice Thursday was that the Broncos were practicing inside on turf, Mike Klis of 9News Denver and Zac Stevens of TheDNVR.com reports
Per Klis, Hackett hopes Murray can play Sunday against the Rams, a notion that would be supported by the running back's return to practice Friday, in any capacity. In the event that Murray is sidelined or limited versus Los Angeles, however, Marlon Mack and possibly Chase Edmonds (ankle) would be in line to see added work out of Denver's backfield in Week 16.
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Broncos' Latavius Murray: Listed as limited Wednesday
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Murray was listed as limited participant at practice Wednesday due to a foot injury.
In this past Sunday's 24-15 win over the Cardinals, Murray logged 44 of 69 snaps on offense while carrying 24 times for 130 yards and a touchdown and catching one pass for 12 yards. The Broncos haven't indicated whether the foot issue is something Murray picked up in the Week 15 win or during Wednesday's practice, but his status is worth monitoring in any case as Sunday's game against the Rams approaches.
