D'Andre

Swift

Apparently Swift sustained a groin injury in Week 10 against Green Bay, a game that saw him run for 71 yard and a score on 14 rushes. Fantasy managers should keep an eye on Swift’s late-week practice participation before they put him in lineups for Week 11. Roschon Johnson would become a top-15 fantasy play if Swift were to be sidelined this week against Minnesota.

Thomas Brown saw the backfield a little differently than Shane Waldron did. Swift had seen at least 16 carries in every game since Week 4, but Roschon Johnson came roaring out of the gates to claim a real role in the backfield — worse, Roschon saw goal line carries. Swift’s touchdown run left Xavier McKinney seeing stars, but a Johnson role expansion would be terrible news for his long-term fantasy prospects. Swift is only a borderline RB2 against the Vikings in Week 12.

Swift had an inefficient day against a Patriots defense that swarmed the Bears’ struggling offensive line. Caleb Williams didn’t throw too many checkdowns, either, with Swift seeing just one target on the day. Roschon Johnson took a few snaps, getting one carry for a loss of four yards, catching one pass for five yards, and rotating in on the Bears’ final offensive drive with the game out of reach. Swift is the clear lead back. Seeing high volume, Swift is a back-end RB2 for Week 11 against the Packers.

Swift was largely invisible here, averaging just 3.2 yards per carry in the Bears’ touchdown-less offense. Swift benefitted from the Bears’ slow-developing plays, eagerly awaiting Caleb Williams’ check-down targets. Swift is a volume-based RB3 against the Patriots in Week 10.

Swift was utilized often in this one and was, at one point, the only effective offensive weapon the Bears had. While the passing game struggled through three quarters, Swift kept them somewhat on track and gave them their first touchdown of the day when he broke off a 56-yard touchdown run down the left sideline. Swift evaded several Commanders defenders on his way to the end zone and surpassed 100 yards on the ground for the first time this season. After his slow start to the year, Swift has now rushed for 73 yards or more in his last four games and has scored a touchdown in each of those games. He’ll be a fringe RB1 in Week 9 against the Cardinals.

Homer played a combined 31 offensive snaps the first two games of the season before suffering a hamstring injury that required a stint on injured reserve. Primarily a special teams contributor, Homer is unlikely to return significant fantasy value in a backfield led by D’Andre Swift. On that note, Swift leads the league in expected fantasy points per game over the previous month of play.

Swift’s strong run continued in a dominant win over the Jags. He has now touched the ball over 20 times in three consecutive games and has turned his high-volume role into 404 yards over his past three appearances. He also has three scores during that stretch. Swift’s dramatic turnaround has been spurred on by Caleb Williams turning the corner and that change is here to stay. He has earned his spot in the RB2 ranks after the Bears’ Week 7 bye.

Swift has not-so-quietly been the biggest beneficiary of the Bears’ recent turnaround. They have scored 50 points over the past two weeks in what have been Caleb Williams’ best performances of the year. In turn, Swift has 37 carries for 166 yards and three touchdowns plus another 119 yards through the air. Swift could have had an even bigger day versus the Panthers. He had a touchdown called back by a penalty but got another crack at the goal line a few plays later. He came up inches short and Roschon Johnson ultimately punched in his first of two short touchdowns. Johnson only saw 10 carries and was not targeted. Swift has worked his way back into the RB2 ranks ahead of the Bears’ Week 6 game against the Jaguars.

Swift had his best game as a Bear, becoming the first Bear since 2015 with 70+ yards rushing and 70+ yards receiving in a single game. Despite a largely inefficient 2024, he was impactful taking checkdowns from Caleb Williams and showing burst on big chunk runs against the weak Rams run defense, highlighted by a 36-yard touchdown rush in the second half. It looks like Swift will keep his job as the Bears’ No. 1 RB, and while he is unlikely to regularly see this kind of production, Swift is a low-end fantasy RB2 for Week 5 against the Panthers.

“Chicago has struggled mightily to run the ball and turned to Johnson, more of a bruiser, for eight carries in Week 3 vs. the Colts,” Fowler said. “The Bears need to get downhill faster.” Fowler might be understating it. The Bears through Week 3 have 218 rushing yards, the second fewest in the NFL. D’Andre Swift has been downright miserable as the team’s lead back, averaging 1.7 yards per carry on 38 attempts. Johnson, meanwhile, showed some burst in Week 3 against the Colts. He had 30 yards on eight carries along with 32 yards on four receptions. If he gets lead back duties in Week 4, Johnson could exploit a plus matchup against a Rams defense allowing the league’s highest rushing success rate.