Khalil Herbert

With Chase Brown unable to play, Herbert not only was the lead back for the Bengals, he was the only back. No other Cincinnati player received a carry. He finishes the season with all of 114 yards on 28 carries as he was well behind Brown and Zack Moss on the depth chart. Herbert will be a free agent at the end of the year and well off the fantasy radar for 2025.

Herbert is in line to be the Bengals' primary running back Saturday in Pittsburgh with Chase Brown (ankle) inactive for that contest, Geoff Hobson of the team's official site reports.

Bengals RB Chase Brown (ankle) is inactive for tonight s game vs. the Steelers. He tried to suit up, but warmups didn t go well. RBs Khalil Herbert, Trayveon Williams, and Kendall Milton are active for Cincinnati tonight. Neither Williams nor Milton has a single offensive touch this season. Herbert has eight carries and one target over his seven games as a Bengal. Herbert will likely handle most of the backfield work tonight, but we re also expecting Cincinnati to go even pass-heavier without Brown.

Rapoport had previously reported that Brown "must improve greatly" to play this week. However, the 24-year-old running back participated in walkthrough Friday, which could be a good sign for his availability against the Steelers. Brown is still listed as questionable and will be a game-time decision. Even if he's active, there's the potential Brown won't be able to make it through the game without re-injury, but he's certainly going to try. Khalil Herbert would be the main beneficiary from Brown either being inactive or limited in Week 18.

Bengals RB Chase Brown will "work out pre-game while attempting to play" tonight against the Steelers, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Brown missed the team's three official practices of the week but did participate in a Friday walkthrough. We'll see about his status for the game, but Brown looks risky for fantasy use even if active. If he sits, then Khalil Herbert could be a sneaky RB2.