Hero RB has been an increasingly popular fantasy football draft build. It consists of anchoring your fantasy football roster with a stud running back and then filling in other positions from there, returning to RB later in the draft to fill out the roster. Here’s a look at a few of those Hero RBs, top-tier running backs to consider in your upcoming fantasy football drafts.
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Hero RB Running Back Draft Targets
Derek Brown shares his list of running backs he’s willing to target in Hero RB builds. Here’s more on Hero RB fantasy football draft strategy.
McCaffrey remained “THE DUDE” at running back in fantasy last year. He was the RB1 in fantasy, finishing as an RB1 in 81% of his games and as a top 24 RB in every game he played. McCaffrey averaged 21.2 touches and 126.5 total yards per game while ranking second in carries, fourth in targets, and first in red zone touches among running backs. There’s no reason to expect a falloff entering 2024. His deeper efficiency metrics all scream that he remains in the prime of his career after ranking fourth in explosive run rate and 10th in yards after contact last season (per Fantasy Points Data).
The Arthur Smith experiment capsized what could have been an enormous rookie season for Robinson. He ranked ninth in snap share, third in targets, sixth in receptions, and fourth in receiving yards among running backs, but he finished as the RB17 in fantasy points per game. Robinson was the RB12 in expected fantasy points per game, but his opportunity share ranked 31st, and he was also 32nd in red zone touches with Smith’s insistence on utilizing Tyler Allgeier. If Robinson receives the bulk of the high-leverage touches under the new Falcons regime, he should crush in 2024. Last year, he ranked 23rd in explosive run rate, 17th in yards after contact per attempt, and 25th in yards per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). Robinson is a locked-in RB1 for 2024.
Despite recuperating from an extensive knee injury, it didn’t derail Hall in his second season. He finished the season as the RB6 in fantasy points per game with 299 touches and 1,585 total yards. Hall was 12th in opportunity share and second in weighted opportunities, and in Weeks 5-18, he averaged 20.2 touches and 102.5 total yards. A huge part of his value last season came from his pass game usage, as he led all running backs in targets, receiving yards, and receptions. While some of this was part of the fallout of Zach Wilson at the helm, Hall should remain a focal point for the passing attack in 2024. He was a baller as a receiver last season, ranking third in yards per route run and fourth in expected fantasy points per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). Hall is a top-five fantasy running back in all formats.
Every nerd who said the Lions were foolish for selecting Gibbs in the first round has a tiny bit of egg on their face. Gibbs finished the season as the RB8 in fantasy points per game and fantasy points per opportunity. He was a tackle-breaking blur last season, ranking 18th in yards after contact per attempt and 11th in missed tackles forced per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). After David Montgomery returned from injury, Gibbs averaged 14.1 touches and 73.1 total yards per game. Montgomery isn’t going anywhere, but that doesn’t mean Gibbs can’t be a top-shelf RB1 again in 2024.
It was a weird year for Jonathan Taylor all around. From contract disputes to injuries, we rarely got to see Taylor fully ramped up and healthy in 2023. Entering his age-25 season, Taylor remains firmly in the prime of his career. In Weeks 7-18, he handled 21 touches per game, churning out 99.4 total yards per game. While many of his efficiency metrics were depressed last season, Taylor still ranked 13th in yards after contact per attempt, which tells me all I need to know. He’s still one of the best backs in the league and should remain a locked-in RB1 after finishing last season as the RB12 in fantasy points per game. A rushing attack fueled by Taylor and Anthony Richardson should be a nightmare for defensive coordinators this season.
The Philly front office has officially gaslit the entire Giants’ fanbase. Barkley’s move to the Eagles might be met with some blowback because people are worried about his touchdown equity with Jalen Hurts. Barkley and D’Andre Swift are not close to being in the same talent area code. Bringing in Barkley means we likely see a downtick of Hurts’ goalline dives in 2024. While the overall counting stats for Barkley look depressed, he’s still very much an every-down bell cow with juice left in the tank entering his age-27 season. Last season, he played at least 70% of the snaps in 11 of his 14 games while ranking second in opportunity share and ninth in weighted opportunities. Last season, Barkley was still an explosive player, ranking 17th in explosive run rate, but his tackle-breaking metrics took a hit as he was 37th in missed tackles forced per attempt and 33rd in yards after contact per attempt (minimum 50 carries per Fantasy Points Data). Barkley remains a stud RB1.
Some players are simply built differently. Henry has and remains one of those guys. Last year, at age 29, he ranked first in rushing attempts and second in rushing yards while showing little drop-off in his efficiency metrics. Last season, among 68 qualifying backs, Henry ranked ninth in explosive run rate and 11th in yards after contact per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). While he will cross the dreaded age 30 threshold this year, it’s tough to project a drop-off for Henry and any reasons that he can’t continue to chug along as an RB1., especially when Henry has proven over the last two seasons that his pass game utility should increase despite his advancing age. Over the last two years, Henry has ranked 11th and 14th in TPRR and seventh and first in YPRR among backs. The big fellow isn’t slowing down. Continue to believe in the King in 2024 as the Ravens’ workhorse back.
Achane was part of the new wave of explosive young rushers to hit the scene last season. He finished as the RB5 in fantasy points per game. In the eight games he played at least 41% of the snaps, Achane averaged 14.2 touches and 113.8 total yards. Any fantasy gamer who falls in love with efficiency stats will love Achane. He was so damn good last year, ranking first in explosive run rate, third in missed tackles forced per attempt, and second in yards after contact per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). If he can overtake Raheem Mostert (and hold off Jaylen Wright) as the team’s primary goal-line rusher, Achane could finish as a top-three back in 2024.
Fantasy Football Draft Rankings
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