Jamaal Charles Is Fantasy Football Sell-High Candidate After Monster Week 4

Jamaal Charles returned from injury on Monday night and finally provided the type of production fantasy football owners were expecting. While it's a welcome sight, it may also be time to consider selling high on the Kansas City Chiefs running back.

Charles ran for 92 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. He also caught three passes for 16 yards, two of which resulted in touchdowns. The final tally was 28 fantasy points in standard formats to make him the highest-scoring player at the position for Week 4.

Most fantasy owners will see that as a sign their investment is going to pay off and move forward with the Texas product locked in as their No. 1 running back. While that's perfectly fine, don't be afraid to test the market for potential trades.

Moving Charles would be a bold move, but it takes some outside-the-box thinking in order to win a fantasy championship. Whether it's speculative waiver-wire additions, sitting a star player during a key week or a blockbuster trade, it comes down to taking chances and hoping they pay off.

There are three main areas of concern when it comes to Charles.

The most prominent one right now is the injury issue. He returned to shred the 23rd-ranked New England Patriots run defense after missing almost two full games with an ankle sprain. While he looked better than he did the first two weeks, he still wasn't all the way back to full speed.

So far, his longest run is 17 yards, and his longest reception is 14 yards. The sample size is limited with just 35 touches under his belt, but fantasy owners are still waiting to see more explosiveness.

Terez Paylor of The Kansas City Star passed along comments from head coach Andy Reid, who admitted his starting back was in some pain after his return to action:

It's also worth noting he was forced into the locker room for a while to receive an IV, as pointed out by the NFL on ESPN during the game:

While the injury problems will take center stage given his sluggish start, the bigger concern is the defenses he's slated to face the rest of the way. It's going to be tough sledding just about every week.

Here's a look at what Charles is going to face starting in Week 5:

Week	Opponent	Run D Rank
5	49ers	2
7	Chargers	9
8	Rams	30
9	Jets	1
10	Bills	3
11	Seahawks	5
12	Raiders	31
13	Broncos	12
14	Cardinals	4
15	Raiders	31
16	Steelers	15
17	Chargers	9

The numbers show Charles, assuming he stays healthy, will be forced to face seven top-10 rush defenses over the final 12 games. Furthermore, he's set to go up against each of the top-five defenses at stopping the run at least once.

Yes, there are some favorable matchups mixed in, including the two meetings with the Oakland Raiders. But the schedule is going to make it difficult for Charles to post top-five overall numbers, which is the investment that was needed to select him.

In the past, it would have been possible to look past those tough defenses with the assumption his workload would make up the difference. That's no longer the case.

Joel Auerbach/Getty Images

Knile Davis has been impressive in relief. The backup is averaging 4.5 yards per carry with three touchdowns through four weeks. By showing he can handle the load, it gives Kansas City the freedom to take some of the burden off Charles' shoulders.

It sounds like that's exactly what Reid is going to do too. Adam Teicher of ESPN.com provided the coach's remarks about the backfield situation, highlighted by the fact he wants two fresh backs late in games.

"

They're both explosive players," he said. "They're completely different players, but they're both explosive players. That makes my job easy. Just give them the ball. "You can keep throwing fastballs at the defense. It allows you to have two fresh backs in the fourth quarter.

"

He didn't explicitly say there will be a timeshare moving forward, but if you read between the lines it sure appears that's the plan, at least in the short term.

Make no mistake, Charles will still be the lead back when healthy. Davis has earned a chance to get playing time on a weekly basis, though. And every touch he takes away, even if it's only a half-dozen or so per game, is one less chance for Charles to break a big play.

It doesn't mean fantasy owners should look to trade him just for the sake of making a move or getting something back before a potential drop in value. As mentioned, most people will simply hang on to him, and it's an understandable approach.

That said, there's definitely some cause for concern moving forward. If another owner who's intrigued by Monday's breakout performance is willing to offer up a different No. 1 back (top 10) along with a significant upgrade at a position of need, it's worth strongly considering.

At the very least, it doesn't hurt to survey the market. Turning Charles, who suddenly has a lot of question marks surrounding him, into two major fantasy assets could very well be a title-winning move.