Do you have a fantasy football draft to prepare for? A great way to get ready is to use our FREE mock draft simulator! Beyond that, you can check out our Expert Consensus Rankings to see where fantasy football analysts feel you should be selecting players. Below our analysts share their 2023 fantasy football rankings, tiers, and player notes for running backs.
You can find our expert consensus rankings here. And here’s our fantasy football ADP.
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2023 Fantasy Football Draft Rankings & Tiers: Running Backs
Our experts share their consensus fantasy football draft rankings and tiers for running backs.
2023 Fantasy Football Draft Rankings
2023 Fantasy Football Draft Rankings Tiers
2023 Fantasy Football Players Notes
Andrew Erickson shares his fantasy football player notes for a few running backs.
Robinson finished the 2022 college football season as PFF’s second highest-graded rusher in the FBS, tallying 18 rushing TDs and 1,575 rushing yards en route to a 37% dominator rating in his final year as a Texas Longhorn. He forced 104 missed tackles (40% broken tackle rate) which has shown to be super predictive of success rushing at the NFL level. Compared to last year’s running back class, only Breece Hall posted a higher dominator rating (40%). Factor in that Robinson also finished third among RBs in yards per catch (16.5) with zero drops and there’s no question as to why he’s the locked-in 1.01 for rookie drafts and top-3-ranked running back in season-long formats. At 5-foot-11 and 215 pounds, Robinson has the requisite size and all the tools to be a successful three-down running back in Arthur Smith’s offense. Last season in Atlanta’s offense, Tyler Allgeier finished as PFF’s highest-graded rookie running back and 6th in rushing EPA as a former 5th-round pick. Allgeier also averaged nearly 18 carries and 96 rushing yards per game from Week 13 onward. If Robinson inherits that workload, he is easily projecting 300-plus carries and 1,500 rushing yards in an offense that ranked first in early down run rate and +13% in run rate above expectation.
Nick Chubb just put together the quietest 1,525 rushing-yard season in recent memory. The Browns running back averaged 5 yards per carry (again) and posted a career-high 13 touchdowns. He finished the year as the RB6 overall with a top 10 backfield opportunity share (64%), but most of his fantasy production came prior to Deshaun Watson returning to the lineup. During Weeks 1-12, Chubb was the RB4 overall and in points per game. From Weeks 13-17 with Watson at quarterback, he was the RB23 overall and RB33 in points per game. These splits likely won’t carry over into 2023 based on Watson likely boosting the offense’s overall efficiency making Chubb a near-bust-proof draft pick based on his track record of consistency. Chubb also can capture a more prominent role as a receiver with Kareem Hunt and D’Ernest Johnson no longer on the roster. 2022 5th-rounder Jerome Ford is pegged as the No. 2 RB. In Week 18, Chubb played a season-high 75% snap share, ran a route on 71% of dropbacks and caught 5-of-6 targets (22% target share) for 45 yards.
Coming back from major knee surgery, J.K. Dobbins‘ 2022 season debut was delayed until Week 3. And he posted middling results, failing to surpass 50 rushing yards or 13 carries in any game with little receiving usage to speak of (6 targets). It was revealed that Dobbins needed another knee surgery after Week 6 and he was placed on IR until Week 14. It wasn’t until Dobbins came back later in the year that fantasy managers got a glimpse of what the talented RB displayed as a rookie. The Ravens RB1 played in five games (including playoffs) averaging 6.6 yards per carry, 92 rushing yards, and 14 carries per game. Although he still split time with Gus Edwards – nearly identical carry totals in the Wild Card Round loss to the Bengals – and Dobbins’ receiving usage remained obsolete with just 7 targets total to close out the year (5 of which came versus Cincinnati).
James Cook was used in a limited fashion during his rookie season, topping out at just a 56% snap share in Week 18 versus the Patriots. However, it should be noted that Cook forced a 60-40 split from Week 13 onward with veteran Devin Singletary. The first-year rusher averaged a 40% snap share over the team’s final seven games, matching Singletary point-for-point (RB25 in points per game). Cook was also the superior rusher in the season’s totality capping off his year by averaging 5.3 yards per carry (5th). He earned PFF’s No. 1 ranking in breakaway run rate (44%). The spurts of explosiveness and receiving ability will work in Cook’s favor as he enters Year 2 with the potential to emerge as Buffalo’s Day 1 starter, with Damien Harris as his main competition. The Harris signing signifies that the second-year pro is locked-in to the elite pass-catching role vacated in the backfield. In 2022, Singletary finished third among all running backs in route participation (57%). Considering Cook’s 27% target rate per route run – equal or better than Christian McCaffrey and Alvin Kamara in 2022, 5th among all RBs with at least 30 targets – I fully expect him to take on a much larger role as a receiver in a Bills passing attack that is shrouded with question marks behind Stefon Diggs. Nyheim Hines‘ season-ending injury further solidifies Cook as the No. 1 pass-catcher out of the backfield.
What is Fantasy Football?
Fantasy football is a game that allows you to act as a virtual general manager for a football team. In fantasy football, you select and manage a team of real NFL players. The players on your team earn points for your team based on their real-life performance in games each week. These points are then totaled and compared to your opponent’s team each week to determine the winner.
At the beginning of the season, you participate in a draft with other fantasy football players. During the draft, you take turns selecting players from the NFL to add to your team. The goal is to build the best team possible with the players you select.
During the season, you can make trades with other players, pick up new players from the free agent pool, and even drop players from your team who aren’t performing well. You can also make strategic decisions each week about which players to start in your lineup.
Overall, fantasy football is a fun and exciting way to get more involved in the NFL season. It allows you to put your knowledge of the game to the test and compete with others to see who can build the best team. And with the right strategy and a bit of luck, you could be the one taking home the championship trophy at the end of the season!
Fantasy Football 101: The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide
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