Some may see last season as an indictment on the running back position in fantasy football.
No need to get too comfortable with that opinion yet.
Last season’s injury-riddled, disappointing top-of-the-draft backs are justification of why it is so important to draft running backs early…and often. There’s no rhyme or reason to a running back’s rise or fall.
What is clear, though, is that running backs are important, and once the season starts, it’s nearly impossible to find a consistent, points-scoring back on the waiver wire. For every David Johnson and Devontae Freeman found late in the fantasy football drafts, there’s three times the amount of late-round flops.
The running back position is a must at the top of the draft board. For many leagues, fantasy owners start two running backs and have a flex option. It’s difficult to find three quality starters at the running back position. It’s impossible to find them if you ignore the running back position in the first two rounds.
Don’t be spooked from looking at the top running backs based on last year’s top-heavy letdown. And if you swing and miss again, here’s three sleepers to find later in the draft for the 2016 season.
Justin Forsett, Baltimore Ravens
I love the Ravens to bounce back this season and that adoration also goes to Forsett.
He currently owns an average draft position of 90 at FantasyPros, which aggregates draft rankings and positions from several fantasy football platforms. In a standard 12-team league, that puts him in the eighth round, which would make him a steal.
Getting a starting running back with proven experience at that rate would be a boon to any fantasy team. Forsett’s value has greatly diminished from last year, all because of injuries.
While we can’t always pinpoint injuries, I don’t see that being a major issue for Forsett. Despite this being his ninth season, he doesn’t have much tread on his tires, with only 733 carries in his career.
Getting a person only two years removed from a 1,266-yard season in the eighth round is the epitome of a quality sleeper.
T.J. Yeldon, Jacksonville Jaguars
His rookie year wasn’t horrible. He managed 15 carries a game and averaged 61.7 yards per game.
I’m expecting more out of him this season, even with Chris Ivory in the backfield. The Jaguars should be stellar on the offensive side of the ball, so expect more touchdowns out of a player also capable of catching the ball out of the backfield.
He managed only three total touchdowns in 12 games last season, but that should improve this season.
What makes him even more attractive, though, is that his ADP is 84, putting him at the tail-end of the seventh round in a typical 12-team league.
At that position, he could fit in as a nice Flex option, and could continue to get more carries, depending on how well Ivory adjusts to his new role in Jacksonville.
Jerick McKinnon, Minnesota Vikings
Sometimes, you have to speculate to register quality depth on your fantasy roster.
McKinnon has been on the cusp of becoming a solid contributor for the Vikings since entering the league in 2014.
And while his numbers took a bit of a hit last season with Adrian Peterson returning, he still was able to make plays and showed flashes of what to expect as he becomes more experienced.
Obviously, with McKinnon, he’s not going to be a bell-cow in the beginning. It’s still Peterson’s team and McKinnon won’t get enough carries to justify a starting spot.
That’s why he has an ADP of 162. But if Peterson’s health wanes, then McKinnon will get the first crack at manning the responsibilities of a run-first offense.
