Hey!
There are 5 running backs I'm hammering in every draft I'm doing right now.
Here's why:
#5 Bhayshul Tuten
Travis Etienne walked out the door and left almost 300 touches sitting there.
Jacksonville already trusted Tuten near the end zone as a rookie, scoring 7 total TDs and posting the 5th-best short-yardage success rate in the NFL.
The only real competition is Chris Rodriguez, who is already dealing with a foot injury…
#4 Breece Hall
Hall just put up over 1400 total yards with maybe the worst offense in football. He had a 73.7% opportunity share (5th in the NFL) and 17 breakaway runs (4th).
Now Geno Smith takes over, a checkdown machine who just fed Ashton Jeanty for over 70 targets in his rookie season.
Breece is a strong pick in Round 3…
#3 Kenneth Walker
He just walked into the Chiefs backfield with nobody in front of him on a 3-year, $45M deal. Pacheco and Kareem Hunt are both gone.
The competition is now a 5th-round rookie, Brashard Smith, and Emari Demercado.
With Mahomes coming off a torn ACL, he could be less mobile which could lead to more checkdowns for Walker. He may be inheriting the biggest workload of his career…
#2 Jeremiyah Love
He ran for 1372 rushing yards on 6.9 yards per carry while becoming a Heisman finalist.
Tyler Allgeier was also brought in this offseason but he doesn’t offer the same explosiveness or versatility to this offense that Love can.
James Conner is still around but he’s now 31 and coming off an ACL.
Brissett also loves to check it down to RBs. He ranked Top 5 in the NFL in checkdown rate to RBs last season. Love has RB1 upside in Round 3…
#1 D'Andre Swift
Swift just finished as a high-end RB2 again at 13.2 PPG with 10 TDs. His efficiency was Top 10 in the NFL.
The Bears run it as much as anyone (5th in attempts, 3rd in rushing yards last season). Expect more rushing success this year in Year 2 in this Ben Johnson offense.
Swift has never finished worse than an RB2, solid pick if you are looking for an RB in the 5th round of your drafts
— Sal
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