Top 5 Breakout Fantasy Running Backs
We are in the heart of fantasy football season right now, so it’s time to go over some breakout stars for this season to help you win your league title! Guys like Jonathan Taylor, James Conner, and Cordarrelle Patterson really helped pushed fantasy teams over the top last season. With all that said, It’s now time to move forward to 2022 and find some more breakout stars. You will see a theme with the 5 players listed below, as 3 of them are 2nd/3rd year backs, while the other 2 are only a slight uptick in playing time away from putting up HUGE numbers. Let’s dive into this year’s 5 breakout candidates at Running Back. Feel free to leave a comment below. I’m always up for some good fantasy football discussion!
1) D’Andre Swift
This may be one of my favorite players going into the season! The reason he isn’t being drafted higher is because of the injury risk. I get it! He has missed 8 games in his 1st two seasons in this league, but you can’t just assume he will be hurt every season. We all thought Keenan Allen was injury-prone until he stayed healthy and became one of the premier WR’s in the league. Swift was on pace for 1,398 yards, 9 touchdowns and around 80 catches! If he put even close to those numbers, he would be getting drafted early in the 1st round. He is more valuable in PPR leagues, but should be great in any league. This Lions offense is expected to improve from last season as well. If you aren’t afraid to take a risk on a back who can pay huge dividends, then this may be your guy! You can always pair him with some safer, high floor type running backs later in the draft.
2) Rhamondre Stevenson
All fantasy football veterans know that it’s always scary to draft a running back on a Bill Belichick led team. They can dominate 1 week, then disappear the next week. Stevenson was a rookie last season, and had a pretty productive year compared to the amount of playing time he received. There is not a lot of competition for touches on this team, especially as James White remains injured. Stevenson is the go-to guy for pass catching out of the backfield right now. He averaged around 7 yards per reception, while averaging around 4.6 yards per carry as a rookie. There is definite room for growth, and he will have plenty of opportunities to show he can be the main back to begin the season. He is being drafted around the 8th or 9th round this season as your RB2/RB3. He is the most talented all-around back on this roster in my opinion. Now, let’s just hope Belichick agrees with us!
3) Javonte Williams
There is a reason lots of experts like Williams this season. This young running back can really play, and the only reason he isn’t going higher in drafts is because the Broncos brought back Melvin Gordon this season. Keep in mind that they brought him back on a 1-year deal, which means he is not their future at age 29. If we just go on talent alone, Williams led all of college football in missed tackles 2 years ago and that didn’t change when he entered the NFL last season. He was at the top of the league for missed tackles and yards after contact as a rookie! Call me crazy, but I don’t think that’s a coincidence. Melvin Gordon may slow him down at the beginning of the season, but it’s just a matter of time before he runs away with this job. Adding Russell Wilson to this team will only help him as teams wont be loading the box daring them to pass the ball anymore. He should see more holes that he did last season. Make sure to draft Javonte as we may be talking about him as a 1st or 2nd rounder next season.
4) AJ Dillon
Here is a player you can get in the middle rounds of your draft that has a very high floor in my opinion. The only thing holding him back from being a 1st round pick is Mr. Aaron Jones. They are expected to share the workload 50/50 this season. Even with sharing the load, Dillon was still able to put up very solid numbers last season. He is one of the most efficient running backs in the league. I wouldn’t be surprised if both Dillon and Aaron Jones both get over 200 touches this season. AJ Dillon may end up getting the majority of carries, while Aaron Jones is more utilized in the passing game. More carries will lead to a lot of TD’s this season. With this offense having to deal with the big loss of Davante Adams, don’t be surprised if they have them both on the field more than usual, since they are 2 of their most talented players. This is a no-brainer for me, and I am very confident he will outperform his ADP (Average Draft Position) of 56. In dynasty/keeper leagues, he should be drafted even higher since it’s only a matter of time before he becomes a fantasy monster for years to come!
5) Tony Pollard
Along the lines of the man listed above, Pollard is a supremely talented back who is slowly getting more and more playing time. It’s easy to see who the more explosive back has been in Dallas the last season or two. The numbers support that as well. Pollard tied for 2nd among all running backs last season at 5.5 yards per carry. The carries and passing game involvement are slowly going up for Pollard as Zeke’s usage is on its way down, as the stats show by him getting just under 14 carries per game last season. Similar to the situation with AJ Dillon, if anything were to happen to Zeke this season, Pollard would become one of the top running backs in the league. Dallas should still have a pretty explosive offense with more touches available now that Amari Cooper has moved on to Cleveland. The worst-case scenario for Pollard is that he is a Flex player, with the possibility of being an RB1 if Zeke gets hurt or doesn’t perform.