Position battles can be one of the more difficult things to gauge, and you don’t want to get the wrong player, or else your entire team suffers.

These three teams either added some players to the running back room or have a completely new roster of running backs. Let’s take a deep dive into who these RBs are and how to approach drafting them.

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2023 Position Battles to Watch

(Rankings are for PPR formats)

Houston Texans Running Backs

• Dameon Pierce (ADP: 70 | RB 22)
• Devin Singletary (ADP: 150 | RB 48)
• Mike Boone (ADP: N/A | RB N/A)

The Texans are ushering in a new era with DeMeco Ryans as the new head coach and drafting former Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud with the second-overall pick.

The question is, who will be the main back he’ll hand the ball off to?

In his rookie season, Dameon Pierce was the lead back and ran for 939 yards, averaging 4.3 yards per carry. He showed he’s one of the tougher backs in the league as his 2.3 yards after contact per rushing attempt was the second-highest amongst running backs with over 200 carries, and his 27 broken tackles were fourth-best for RBs.

Houston brought in a complimentary piece with starting experience to mix it up. Devin Singletary spent the last four seasons in Buffalo and accumulated 4,122 yards from scrimmage and 20 total touchdowns, while averaging 4.7 yards per carry. He’s been an excellent dual-threat back in his career, and he was ninth in yards per catch among running backs last season.

These two will be the players with fantasy value. Mike Boone is on this roster but won’t see much playing time.

Pierce is still the one who likely leads this backfield in snap share, but don’t be surprised if you see both players on the field at the same time. Just 0.1 separates these two in receptions per game last season, so don’t expect Singletary to have a distinct role on passing downs.

Conclusion

• Target: Dameon Pierce
• Risky: None
• Dart throw: Devin Singletary
• AVOID: Mike Boone

Detroit Lions Running Back

• Jahmyr Gibbs (ADP: 39 | RB 13)
• David Montgomery (ADP: 82 | RB 25)

The Lions have a completely different backfield in 2023, with D’Andre Swift being traded to the Eagles on Draft day and Jamaal Williams signing with the Saints. It started when they signed former Bears running back David Montgomery. Yet, the big surprise was when they took Alabama running back Jahmyr Gibbs with the 12th-overall pick.

While Montgomery has shown flashes of greatness during his time in Chicago, he hasn’t shown consistency. His best year was in 2020, with his only 1,000-rushing-yard season. Still, the bulk of that came in the final six games, where he averaged 99.7 rushing yards per game. Four of those were against teams in the bottom six in run defense. In the previous nine games, he averaged 52.4 rushing yards. In 60 career games, he had back-to-back 100-yard rushing performances just once and seven games in total.

Gibbs, on the other hand, showed pure athleticism and tremendous footwork during his time at Georgia Tech and Alabama. Last year, he averaged 6.3 yards per carry and nine of 12 games averaged over four yards per carry. He’s also shown he can contribute in the passing game, grabbing 42 catches and averaging nine yards per catch.

They didn’t draft Gibbs that high to have him play behind Montgomery. He’s the better athlete. While Montgomery should have a role in this offense, Gibbs will come out as the clear RB1 and get close to or even over 20 touches per game.

Conclusion

• Target: Jahmyr Gibbs
• Risky: David Montgomery
• Dart throw: None
• AVOID: None

Minnesota Vikings Running Backs

• Alexander Mattison (ADP: 58 | RB 18)
• Ty Chandler (ADP: 191 | RB 60)
• DeWayne McBride (ADP: 239 | RB 73)

The Vikings made a huge decision this past offseason and let go of long-time running back Dalvin Cook, who was coming off his fourth-straight 1,000-yard rushing season. With big shoes to fill, who will step in?

The obvious candidate is Cook’s longtime backup, Alexander Mattison. In the past, Cook missed time with injuries, which allowed Mattison to get a full workload, and he has come through. In the last five games that Cook missed with Mattison filling in as the lead back, he finished inside the top-10 RBs four times. He is very similar to Cook in many ways; his size allows him to go up the gut, but he can also catch balls out of the backfield. With the chance at 300 touches, he could produce similar numbers to Cook.

The big question is, who will emerge as in a backup role?

Minnesota drafted Ty Chandler in the fifth round in 2022, and some thought he could have moved in as the next man up after Cook. He didn’t see the field much last season due to a thumb injury but was underwhelming, with only six carries, averaging 3.3 yards. If you look at his tape from North Carolina, there is hope for a sophomore surge; he’s agile, has great cuts and adds value as a dual-threat back.

The Vikings also grabbed another running back this year in DeWayne McBride. He put up cheat code-like numbers at UAB, rushing for 3,523 yards and 36 touchdowns on 7.3 yards per attempt in 30 games. He has ankle-breaking cut abilities and a great second burst that allows him to gain big chunks.

Mattison will be the player to largely invest in, especially if he gets the same volume Cook did. McBride and Chandler should both be change-of-pace backs. What gives Chandler the advantage is that he can catch passes, while McBride had just five receptions in three college seasons.

Conclusion

• Target: Alexander Mattison
• Risky: None
• Dart throw: Ty Chandler, DeWayne McBride
• AVOID: None

More Position Battles: Players to Watch & Predictions

• Steelers WRs, Eagles RBs & Commanders WRs
• Chiefs RBs, Chiefs WRs &  Dolphins RBs
• Giants WRs & Cowboys TEs
• 49ers QBs, Buccaneers QBs & Colts QBs
• Cardinals WRs, Commanders RBs, Patriots WRs

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