It’s important to know who to target and who to pass on when it comes to your fantasy football draft. To get a better sense of players to avoid and others to reach for, use our Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) and compare them to a player’s average draft position (ADP). Players that are going higher in ADP versus ECR are likely those that you want to reconsider at their current cost. On the flipside, players that experts are higher on versus ADP are those that could be worth reaching for, or at least targeting at their current ADP.

And you can use our expert accuracy rankings to help determine which experts to select when you are building your custom fantasy football draft cheat sheets.

Here’s a look at players Andrew Erickson, Derek Brown, Pat Fitzmaurice and Ryan Wormeli are targeting at their current ADP.

• AFC Busts & League Winners: East | North | South | West
• NFC Busts & League Winners: East
• Snake Draft Pick Strategy: Early | Middle | Late
• Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator

Best Fantasy Football Draft Targets: Running Backs

James Cook (RB – BUF)

This back is an explosive play waiting to happen that excels in the passing game while operating in one of the league’s best offenses. I’m describing Jahmyr Gibbs, right? Nope. This is the upside resume for James Cook. Cook is the easy discount version of Gibbs and one of the best values in drafts. Last season he ranked 28th in yards after contact per attempt, first in breakaway percentage, and 19th in elusive rating (per PFF). Damien Harris and Latavius Murray are looming goal-line sloths, but Cook has the talent to own the passing downs and eat into the early downs. Cook ranked ninth in yards per route run and sixth in targets per route run last season (minimum 30 targets). If the Bills unleash Cook in a weekly 14-16 touch role, he can be a high-end RB2 weekly.
– Derek Brown

Breece Hall (RB – NYJ)

Breece Hall was averaging 15.1 half-point PPR fantasy points per game before a torn ACL prematurely ended his rookie season. Over a four-game stretch from Week 3 to Week 6, where Hall had at least a 50% snap share in every game, he averaged a little over 120 yards from scrimmage and scored three touchdowns. Hall has an ADP of RB10 and typically comes off the board in the late second round or early third round in 12-team drafts. The Jets put Hall on their training camp PUP list, which should keep his price reasonable as we enter fantasy draft season. Assuming Hall stays on track to play in Week 1, he’s a value as a do-it-all back with high-end RB1 upside.
– Pat Fitzmaurice

Zamir White (RB – LV)

Zamir White is a fantasy afterthought following a rookie season in which he rode the pine behind workhorse RB Josh Jacobs. But Jacobs is unhappy and skipping training camp after being franchise-tagged and failing to work out a long-term deal with the Raiders before the NFL deadline to do so. It’s possible Jacobs’ holdout stretches into the season. Even if it doesn’t, the Raiders have vowed to get White more involved this season. White has little pass-catching upside, but he’s a punishing downhill runner who could be an effective early-down and goal-line back if given the chance.
– Pat Fitzmaurice

Tony Pollard (RB – DAL)

Tony Pollard should be a first-round draft pick. Yeah, I said it. The fact that he isn’t makes him the best value for the Dallas Cowboys. We have yearned to see Pollard as the lead back for Dallas, and we finally get that wish in 2023. Last year Pollard authored an RB8 finish while ranking 30th in snap share (50.9%) and 34th in opportunity share (48.1%). Last season he was top-five in breakaway run rate, yards created per touch, yards per route run, and yards per touch. Pollard SZN is upon us. Embrace it.
– Derek Brown

Rashaad Penny (RB – PHI)

In 2022, Rashaad Penny‘s on-field production was impressive, averaging over six yards per carry and ranking second among all RBs in rushing percentage that resulted in 10-plus yards. However, he missed a significant amount of time due to injuries. Quarterback Jalen Hurts‘ presence at the goal line will obviously hinder Penny’s TD potential to some extent but make no mistake that the former first-round pick has the potential to score beyond just the 5-yard line. Of his 14 career touchdowns, 11 have come on 10-yard-plus plays, with seven of those being 30-plus plays from scrimmage. However, the addition of D’Andre Swift and the re-signing of Boston Scott could hinder Penny’s chances of a significant role in the Eagles’ offense. While Swift and incumbent Kenneth Gainwell are expected to be the superior pass-catchers, Penny’s efficiency as a pure rusher should not be overlooked. With his low-risk contract, fantasy managers should consider Penny as a high-upside late-round selection, but it’s important to monitor his role/injury health status in the Eagles’ backfield throughout the offseason. He is a cheap way to get access to the Eagles’ offense as the RB37 in ADP.
– Andrew Erickson

Roschon Johnson (RB – CHI)

The Bears’ backfield is Johnson’s for the taking. This situation looks muddy now, but all we need is some positive camp news, and Johnson will surge up draft boards. The talent is present for Johnson to be Chicago’s primary back. In college, Johnson was hidden behind Bijan Robinson, so he couldn’t show what he could do with more volume. The glimpses we got of Johnson in college, though, were fantastic. He ranked 11th and 17th in yards after contact per attempt and third and fifth in PFF elusive rating (minimum 90 carries per PFF). Now is the time to pounce on Johnson in drafts before consensus wakes up and pushes him up in ADP.
– Derek Brown

Chuba Hubbard (RB – CAR)

Chuba Hubbard finished the 2022 season as PFF’s 21st-highest-graded rusher averaging 4.9 yards per carry. He also flashed efficiency in the receiving game ending the year tied for 6th in yards per route run (1.55) with Austin Ekeler. Only Derrick Henry bested him in yards per route run over expectation among RBs (+0.67). After the team traded Christian McCaffrey to the 49ers, Hubbard’s role increased from Week 7 onward as he was able to carve out a 1B role in the backfield alongside D’Onta Foreman. With a three-down skillset, Hubbard has massive fantasy football appeal as a handcuff to Miles Sanders in 2023. Hubbard also has a chance to capture the main RB receiving role in the Panthers’ backfield.
– Andrew Erickson

Rachaad White (RB – TB)

Rachaad White‘s rookie season saw him flash his legitimate 3-down back skill set in the Buccaneers’ offense. Despite working in a timeshare with Leonard Fournette, White was able to average 11 fantasy points per game (RB26) and operate as the 1A back in the second half of the season despite averaging just four yards per carry. While he wasn’t particularly efficient on the ground, White was still a better rusher than Fournette. And more importantly, he showed proficiency as a receiver with 50 receptions (11th among all RBs), which helped him solidify his role as the team’s RB1 for the upcoming 2023 season. And with White’s work as a receiver, he could still be valuable in games where the Buccaneers are chasing points. Additionally, the release of Fournette and the additions of cast-off Chase Edmonds and UDFA Sean Tucker gives White less competition for touches in the backfield. He’s a great value as the RB24 in ADP.
– Andrew Erickson

James Conner (RB – ARI)

Crazy to think you can get a massive workhorse like James Conner in Round 7 as the RB26, because he is the ideal first RB to draft on a zero-RB squad. He played essentially six games last year without Kyler Murray and averaged over 21 fantasy points per game. Conner never finished outside the weekly top-15 running backs over that same span.
– Andrew Erickson

Cam Akers (RB – LAR)

Cam Akers as the RB22 in ADP is absurd. We cannot overlook how he finished the season as the RB4 during the final 6 weeks leading the NFL in rushing yards (85 yards/game). His potential for high volume as the Rams bellcow makes him a great fantasy football RB2 target in the middle rounds. The coaches’ trust in him was never more apparent than when he played every snap in the Rams’ season finale in 2022. His 2023 outlook looks even better, considering the team did not select any running backs until the sixth round of this year’s draft, and the only noteworthy veteran addition was Mr. 2.9 yards per carry himself, Sony Michel.
– Andrew Erickson

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | SoundCloud | iHeartRadio