by
Justin Boone from
on
2020-08-19 12:25 (
#571RT )
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Given the rate at which injuries strike the running back position, knowing who's next in line for carries is critical for fantasy owners.
Not all backups are created equal, and though the league-winning potential of players like Kareem Hunt and Latavius Murray may be obvious, many handcuffs aren't getting the respect they deserve in fantasy drafts.
Here's how we're ranking the top backup running backs, broken down into tiers:
More than a handcuff
Rk Handcuff Team 1 Kareem Hunt CLE
Top-five upside if Nick Chubb is injured Proven RB1 during time with Chiefs Could still provide RB2 production without starting Elite options
Rk Handcuff Team 2 Latavius Murray NO 3 Alexander Mattison MIN 4 Tony Pollard DAL 5 J.K. Dobbins BAL 6 Chase Edmonds ARI
RB1 upside if starter is injured Stuck behind an established talent Will flirt with flex value some weeks, even as a backup Don't give up on them yet
Rk Handcuff Team 7 Marlon Mack IND 8 Kerryon Johnson DET 9 Phillip Lindsay DEN 10 Matt Breida MIA 11 Tevin Coleman SF
Top-15 upside if starter is injured Currently in a committee with a more qualified teammate Can provide flex value most weeks, even as a backup Underrated upside
Rk Handcuff Team 12 Boston Scott PHI 13 DeAndre Washington KC 14 Darrell Henderson LAR 15 Zack Moss BUF
Top-20 upside if starter is injured Should have notable role behind a young lead back Can provide flex value some weeks, even as a backup Wild cards
Rk Handcuff Team 16 Antonio Gibson WAS 17 Damien Harris NE
Top-30 upside if starting at any point 2020 role yet to be determined Workload questions due to crowded backfield and/or limited college usage PPR specialists
Rk Handcuff Team 18 Duke Johnson HOU 19 Tarik Cohen CHI
Limited upside as a handcuff Unlikely to serve as workhorse if starter is injured Can offer flex value in PPR formats, even as a backup Unclear situations
Rk Handcuff Team 20 Anthony McFarland Jr./Benny Snell PIT 21 LeSean McCoy/Ke'Shawn Vaughn TB 22 Justin Jackson/Joshua Kelley LAC 23 Jamaal Williams/AJ Dillon GB
Major upside in quality offenses if clear backup emerges and starter is injured Value limited by possibility of committee replacement scenario When in doubt, choose the younger backup option here Half-season split
Rk Handcuff Team 24 Carlos Hyde/Rashaad Penny SEA
RB1 upside if Chris Carson is injured Likely to be a half-season split with Hyde opening as the backup and Penny taking over upon return to the lineup Hyde worth a late-round pick in re-draft; Penny a mid-season waiver pickup Deep targets
Rk Handcuff Team 25 Giovani Bernard CIN 26 Darrynton Evans TEN 27 Ryquell Armstead JAX 28 Brian Hill ATL 29 Reggie Bonnafon CAR 30 Jalen Richard/Lynn Bowden LV
Risky options with intriguing upside if starter is injured Doubts surrounding hold on backup job or ability to produce if called upon Players to draft as bench stashes in final rounds Not worth rostering
Rk Handcuff Team 31 Wayne Gallman/Dion Lewis NYG 32 Frank Gore NYJ
Very little upside if starter is injured Unlikely to handle large workload due to presence of other backs Not worth a fantasy roster spot Copyright (C) 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.