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It’s taken over a month, but Melvin Gordon fantasy football owners can finally breathe a sigh of relief. After four straight games of middling performance, Gordon has broken through in Week 9 against the Green Bay Packers. He has 80 rushing yards and 29 receiving yards, and has found the end zone twice. Austin Ekeler has 93 total yards of his own.
Fantasy football analysis: Chargers RBs Melvin Gordon, Austin Ekeler
The Chargers fired offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt, after a month of an atrocious ground game. The rushing attack finally got going, averaging 4.3 yards per carry to go along with Gordon’s two rushing touchdowns. It’s worth noting this came against a Packers defense that has been pretty bad stopping the run. They’ve given up the seventh most fantasy points to running backs and entered the game ranked 22nd in run defense efficiency.
The Chargers face the Raiders in Week 10, and it will present a bigger challenge. The Raiders entered Week 9 ninth in run defense efficiency and right in the middle of the pack for fantasy points allowed to running backs. Gordon could be back, but the Raiders game will give us a better handle on this situation.