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Brandon Murchison's fantasy football analysis for offensive line busts and potential running back fallers in 2026. His OL breakdown for the Dolphins, Cardinals, Saints, and Browns.
In fantasy football, running backs are the ultimate heartbreaker position. You draft a talented back with high expectations, only to watch him deliver a string of frustrating, low-output games that tank your weekly score. The culprit is often hiding in plain sight: a poor offensive line. When the big guys up front can’t create lanes, sustain blocks, or control the line of scrimmage, even the most explosive runners get stuffed at the line, bounced into crowded boxes, and limited to minimal yardage. What looks like a bust on your roster is frequently just a victim of bad blocking.
The numbers paint a brutal picture. Teams with below-average offensive lines produce above-average fantasy rushing points just 25% of the time, while only 8% of running backs behind weak units manage to beat expectations. In contrast, backs running behind solid lines clear the bar roughly half the time. Poor lines destroy efficiency in every scheme. In zone blocking—where linemen move laterally to create cutback lanes—bad communication leads to defenders shooting gaps untouched, spiking tackles for loss, and killing big-play potential. Gap/power schemes, which rely on pulling blockers to open specific holes, become even more punishing when assignments break down. Missed pulls or weak double teams turn designed runs into negative plays, crushing a back’s yards per carry and fantasy consistency.
This article digs into how subpar offensive line play directly sabotages running back production, using advanced metrics such as adjusted line yards (which explain nearly 30% of half-PPR scoring) and real-game examples across schemes. You’ll learn to spot the backs who are truly limited by their protection versus those with the talent to overcome it, so you can avoid the trap of drafting disappointment and build a much smarter fantasy roster this season.
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Offensive Line Chart
De’Von Achane - RB, Miami Dolphins
De'Von Achane is the kind of back who can turn a single broken tackle into a highlight-reel touchdown, thanks to his elite speed, vision, and yards-after-contact ability.
In 2025, he delivered exactly that kind of production even as the Dolphins offense struggled overall. He rushed for 1,350 yards on 238 carries at a league-best 5.7 yards per carry, added 67 catches for 488 yards through the air, and scored 12 total touchdowns on 305 touches.
A big reason for his success was his 4.1 yards after contact per attempt (top among qualifying backs), which shows how much he creates on his own once he gets a sliver of daylight.
That said, Bobby Slowik’s zone-heavy scheme, built around lateral movement, double teams, and creating cutback lanes, relies heavily on the offensive line executing cleanly to spring explosive plays like Achane’s.
The Dolphins’ line has been a weak spot in recent years, often ranking in the bottom half (sometimes the bottom 10) in run-blocking metrics and overall grades, with issues at guard and tackle and injury concerns (especially at right tackle).
Even with 2026 additions like first-rounder Kadyn Proctor and building blocks such as Patrick Paul and Aaron Brewer, subpar play up front could limit creases, increase negative plays or stuffed runs, and cap Achane’s big-play rate.
In 2026, Achane is locked in as the clear alpha back with a big new contract and high expected volume, but a shaky line in a rebuilding offense (new QB Malik Willis, fewer weapons) could turn some of those explosive opportunities into grind-it-out games.
His YAC magic and receiving skills give him a high floor, yet consistent subpar blocking would likely drag down efficiency, limit goal-line work, and make his weeks more boom-or-bust than his talent deserves.
Fantasy managers banking on another top-5 or top-10 RB season should keep a close eye on how the trenches perform in training camp and in the early weeks because even the fastest back needs holes to hit.
Jeremiyah Love - RB, Arizona Cardinals
Jeremiyah Love bursts onto the scene as one of the most complete running back prospects in years, flashing elite vision, power, and receiving skills at Notre Dame.
In his 2025 senior season, he piled up 1,372 rushing yards on 199 carries (6.9 yards per carry) with 18 touchdowns, plus solid receiving production, earning Doak Walker honors and going third overall to the Arizona Cardinals.
Fantasy managers are excited about his three-down potential and athleticism (including a 4.36-second 40-yard dash), but landing with the Cardinals brings a big red flag. Their offensive line has been a consistent weak spot.
The Cardinals offensive line ranked among the league’s worst in 2025, posting bottom-10 marks in adjusted line yards (around 3.7-3.9) and high stuffed-run rates while dealing with injuries and inconsistency.
New head coach Mike LaFleur, who comes from the Sean McVay/Kyle Shanahan coaching tree, figures to emphasize zone-running concepts with outside and inside zone plays, pre-snap motion, and complementary run-pass action.
While additions like guard Isaac Seumalo, right tackle Elijah Wilkinson, and rookie Chase Bisontis (an athletic zone blocker) should help, the unit projects as average at best, with lingering questions about tackle play and overall cohesion.
In a zone-heavy scheme, success hinges on linemen creating lateral creases and sustaining blocks—something a subpar group often fails to do consistently.
Love could face more negative plays, clogged lanes, and fewer explosive opportunities than his talent deserves, dragging down his yards per carry, big-play rate, and touchdown upside even with solid volume as the lead back.
For a player going early in fantasy drafts and carrying massive hype as a potential RB1, these OL limitations raise real bust risk in 2026. High expectations could turn into frustratingly inconsistent or capped production if the trenches don’t deliver.
Love has the skill set to overcome some issues long-term, but Year 1 could be a tough adjustment behind an imperfect line in a new scheme. This results in a player who may have a hard time meeting expectations to produce as a high-end RB2 and is more of a fledgling mid-to-low RB2.
Travis Etienne Jr. - RB, New Orleans Saints
Travis Etienne Jr. has the speed, receiving skills, and durability to be a fantasy difference-maker, but landing with the New Orleans Saints in 2026 puts him in a spot where offensive line issues could cap his upside hard.
After a solid bounce-back 2025 with the Jaguars (260 carries for 1,107 yards, seven rushing touchdowns, plus 36 catches for 292 yards and six more scores), he signed a big free-agent deal with New Orleans.
The Saints’ line has shown flashes but remains inconsistent overall, with young tackles like Kelvin Banks Jr. and Taliese Fuaga still developing, injury concerns at center (Erik McCoy), and a mix of veterans that haven’t consistently dominated run blocking.
In a scheme that leans on zone concepts and play-action under the Saints’ offensive staff, subpar line play often means fewer clean creases for a back like Etienne, who thrives on getting to the second level.
His 2025 efficiency sat right around league average despite solid volume, and metrics like yards after contact per attempt hovered in the middle of the pack.
Even with additions like guard David Edwards, if the Saints’ front doesn’t consistently win at the point of attack or sustain blocks, Etienne could see more stuffed runs, lower yards per carry, and a committee role alongside aging Alvin Kamara. This could turn what should be a high-upside RB2 into a frustrating bust relative to his contract and draft cost.
Add in the possibilities of negative game scripts coming into play (underdogs currently in 12 of 17 games), and head coach Kellen Moore’s willingness to lean more into pass-heavy game plans, and you have all the makings of a scenario in which Etienne has to achieve obscene amounts of efficiency to meet his current draft cost.
Quinshon Judkins - RB, Cleveland Browns
Quinshon Judkins arrived in the NFL with serious hype as a powerful, three-down back, but his rookie year with the Cleveland Browns quickly highlighted how much the offensive line can derail even talented runners.
In 2025, he carried the ball 230 times for just 827 yards (a dismal 3.6 yards per carry) and seven touchdowns, while adding 26 catches for 171 yards.
He showed real grit by creating a ton after contact, ranking near the top in percentage of rushing yards after first contact. Yet the Browns’ line, one of the league’s worst (PFF ranked it 31st), left him with almost no room to work. He was the RB5 with 51 stuffed runs and the RB12 in stacked front alignment at 12.2%, resulting in some of the lowest yards before contact in the league.
Cleveland is rolling out a heavily rebuilt offensive line in 2026 with new additions like Tytus Howard, Zion Johnson, and Elgton Jenkins, but it’s still a unit full of question marks and chemistry issues.
The scheme under the new staff relies on gap/power elements, mixed with some zone looks, to get Judkins downhill, yet subpar execution in either system often leads to missed assignments, poor double teams, and defenders flooding gaps.
For a second-year back already coming off a serious ankle/fibula injury and being drafted as a high-upside RB2, another year of mediocre blocking could mean more stuffed runs, capped big-play ability, and frustrating inconsistency. This could turn the former Ohio State star into a classic fantasy bust despite his clear talent.
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