May 22, 2019

When the Minnesota Vikings drafted him, Jerick McKinnon was supposed to be the next Adrian Peterson. And then he wasn’t. He was ravaged by injury throughout the early part of his career, and despite his S.P.A.R.K. score being through the roof, he still could not outpace Matt Asiata to win the outright starting job in the eventual absence of Peterson. This was all supposed to change in the running back-friendly system in San Francisco in 2018. One thing did come true. It was running back-friendly. Just not for McKinnon who again was bitten by the injury bug. This time he missed the entire season after tearing his ACL in training camp. The injury allowed the likes of Raheem Mostert, and Matt Breida to succeed in his place. With Jimmy Garoppolo returning from his own torn ACL, the offense which had to rely heavily on the run game at times last season should see focus more on the passing game. The passing game weapons and incoming runner Tevin Coleman, who Kyle Shanahan is familiar with from Atlanta, will make it difficult for Jerick McKinnon or any of the backs there to separate themselves in this committee. Therefore, the most valuable player for fantasy the one with that requires the least draft investment and still has a substantial role. With McKinnon suffering a setback recently it now looks possible he may not see the field for the majority of this season. Right now it is reasonable to think that McKinnon should be removed from draft boards, and only be considered once he has proven he can stay on the field. Unfortunately, that may not happen this season, so McKinnon might be more of a player to look for in 2020.--Dominick Petrillo - RotoBaller