Road to #1 Running Back - NFC North

Each year, elite running backs are a necessity for fantasy football rosters. With guaranteed touches each game, these consensus top-tier running backs are some of the first names off of draft boards and consistently perform well throughout the season. However, there is also a good amount of unpredictability at the position, with breakout players appearing […]

Dynasty Discount - Solid Veterans Who Come Cheap In Dynasty Drafts

We all know dynasty football is a young man’s game. Veterans have no place on a roster. That is unless you are looking to actually win this year and possibly next, in which case let us look at some old guys who can help you do just this. Here are veteran players who come at […]

Running Back Committees to Buy in 2018

Training camp is in full swing and so are the daily tweets from beat reporters showing 30-second highlight clips of fades to the corner of the end zone or quick comments from coaches that start to cast doubt on whether we picked the right player this off-season. This is the time of the year where […]

Stop that Hype Train! Marlon Mack

Often, fantasy football sleepers stop being sleepers because so many people have collectively decided that they are sleepers and they start to jump up draft boards. When the players end up being drafted above their worth, you end up with a spot on your roster that isn't giving you maximum value. Don't do that. Don't […]

Dalvin Cook Confident And Ready

Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook (knee) is very ready to begin the season after missing most of his rookie year in 2017 with a torn ACL. "I'm a thousand-percent confident in what I got going," Cook assured NFL Network's Stacey Dales on Wednesday's edition of NFL Total Access. "I put enough work and enough […]

Frank Gore Impressed By Kenyan Drake

Miami Dolphins veteran running back Frank Gore is impressed by fellow teammate Kenyan Drake. “I was like, ‘Man, I kinda see why they traded Jay Ajayi,’” Gore said. “He’s very talented. Jay Ajayi was a great back, too, but Kenyan is a very talented guy. He’s smart. He can do everything on the field. I […]

Ronald Jones II Struggling In Pass Protection

Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie running back Ronald Jones II has had his good and bad days in training camp, but he's struggling mostly with pass protection. He also only had 32 catches in three years in college. "They've improved since he's been here,'' running backs coach Tim Spencer said. "They didn't throw him a lot […]

Akrum Wadley Expected To Play A Lot Thursday

Tennessee Titans rookie running back Akrum Wadley is expected to get a good amount of playing time in Thursday's preseason opener, according to Tennessee Titans staff writer Travis May. Wadley is currently in a battle with veteran David Fluellen for the third running back spot, and this game could give him an edge in that […]

Samaje Perine Could Be Odd Man Out

Washington Redskins running back Samaje Perine could be the odd man out for the final roster. Rookie Derrius Guice and Chris Thompson will be their top two backs, and head coach Jay Gruden continues to praise Rob Kelley in training camp. Washington would like to keep either Byron Marshall or Kapri Bibbs as a backup […]

Ito Smith Third On The Depth Chart

Atlanta Falcons running back Ito Smith is listed third on the running back depth chart prior to the preseason opener. Smith has managed to beat out the competition, despite seeing limited time on the field so far in training camp. The concerning sign for Smith is that he was not listed on the depth chart […]

Derek Watt Blossoming As A Pass-Catcher

Los Angeles Chargers fullback Derek Watt may get some more opportunities in 2018. With the team losing star tight end Hunter Henry to a knee injury, they're looking for more of an inside presence in the passing game and Watt has shown exceptional hands during training camp. Tight end Virgil Green is also stepping up, […]

Colts Backing Up Talk of Rotating Running Backs

Through 11 of their 18 training camp practices, the Indianapolis Colts have reportedly been "backing up their chatter" of using a committee backfield in 2018. While sophomore rusher Marlon Mack appears to be headlining the group, rookies Nyheim Hines and Jordan Wilkins have been showing enough promise to potentially demolish any hopes of a workhorse […]

Chase Edmonds Listed As RB2

Arizona Cardinals rookie running back Chase Edmonds has been listed as the team's RB2 behind David Johnson in their first unofficial depth chart. Edmonds has proven to be electric in training camp, and a good preseason should help his case to see the field as often as possible in 2018. Although David Johnson is going […]

Road to #1 Running Back - NFC West

Each year, elite running backs are a necessity for fantasy football rosters. With guaranteed touches each game, these consensus top-tier running backs are some of the first names off of draft boards and consistently perform well throughout the season. However, there is also a good amount of unpredictability at the position, with breakout players appearing […]

LeGarrette Blount Expected To Be Short-Yardage Back

Detroit Lions running back LeGarrette Blount, who had a career-high 18 touchdowns with the Patriots in 2016, is expected to be the team's short-yardage/goal-line back in 2018. However, he converted just eight of 15 runs (53 percent) with one yard to go for the Eagles last season. Rookie running back Kerryon Johnson scored the only […]

Jordan Howard Held Out For Precautionary Reasons

Chicago Bears running back Jordan Howard (knee) "banged his knee" in practice on Sunday and is being held from practice on Tuesday as a precaution, according to head coach Matt Nagy. Howard has surpassed 1,000 yards in each of his first two seasons, but Tarik Cohen is expected to steal a lot of work in […]

Mike Gillislee Has A Chance To Make Roster

New England Patriots running back Mike Gillislee is projected to make the final roster over Jeremy Hill, in the opinion of The Boston Globe's Ben Volin. Gillislee struggled last year and doesn't contribute on special teams, but rookie Sony Michel is already hurt and Rex Burkhead was also banged up throughout the 2017 season. Gillislee […]

Devontae Booker Listed Atop Depth Chart

Denver Broncos running back Devontae Booker is listed first on the running back depth chart ahead of rookie Royce Freeman and De'Angelo Henderson. Booker was always expected to see the first crack as the lead back in 2018, but Freeman has impressed so far in camp and has more upside in real life and in […]

Nick Mariano's 2018 PPR Sleepers List (Premium Content)

All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. Please unhinge yourself from the word "sleeper" and look past the titles because we live in an information era where you all can just type in "sleeper" and get thousands of hits. You can go through our rankings from top to bottom and see […]

Stack 'Em - Teams with Favorable Schedules for Top Players

Using last year’s results alone to predict this season’s outcomes is borderline foolish. Luckily, when it comes to the task of projecting the upcoming NFL season there are a few other factors which can increase our odds of success. I mean sure, you could draft based on talent and opportunity alone, but the number of […]

Jordan Wilkins "Getting it Done" in Training Camp

According to Indianapolis Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni, rookie running back Jordan Wilkins has been "getting it done" in training camp to this point. “One of the best compliments I think you can give as a coach… is, ‘I don’t know how to explain it, but this guy is just a good football player'," said […]

49ers Regretting Taking Joe Williams?

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan is starting to regret asking general manager John Lynch to select running back Joe Williams in last year's draft despite concerns about his commitment to the sport. Williams didn't play in a regular season game in his rookie season, and Shanahan said in the offseason that Williams needed […]

Sony Michel Out At Least 10 Days

New England Patriots rookie running back Sony Michel (knee) underwent a procedure to drain fluid from his knee after he left practice on Wednesday, and he is expected to be out for at least 10 days, according to sources. The procedure isn't expected to affect his availability for much, if any, of the regular season. […]

Royce Freeman Turning Heads In Running Back Battle

Denver Broncos rookie running back Royce Freeman has been turning heads in the wide-open battle for the starting job. "My expectation would be that he is the starter by the start of the season, if not a couple of games into the season," NFL Network's James Palmer said. The third-round pick has a chance to […]

Dolphins Sign Jeremy Langford

The Miami Dolphins signed free-agent running back Jeremy Langford on Monday, according to a source. Langford hasn't played since 2016 with the Bears. Langford was once expected to open the season as Chicago's starting running back, but that never panned out. In his rookie season in 2015, Langford had 148 carries for 537 yards (3.6 […]

Injury Spin - Five Running Backs To Target

Running backs are a critical component for any winning fantasy football team, and our friends at Inside Injuries are here today to talk about some of their favorite running back draft targets for 2018. In case you weren't aware, Inside Injuries predicts the impact of injuries on player performance by using data analytics, medical expertise […]

Trenton Cannon Turning Heads In Camp

New York Jets rookie running back Trenton Cannon has been turning heads in training camp with his speed and was one of the stars in a scrimmage at Rutgers, running for 50 yards on 10 carries with two catches for 13 yards. He has become the leading candidate for the No. 3 job with Elijah […]

Kenyan Drake, Frank Gore Listed Atop Depth Chart

The Miami Dolphins list running back Kenyan Drake or Frank Gore as their starting running backs on their first unofficial depth chart, but head coach Adam Gase said it doesn't mean anything. “I wouldn’t look too much into this depth chart," Gase said. Drake is fully expected to see the lion's share of the touches […]

Chris Carson Shows Off In Annual Mock Game

Seattle Seahawks running back Chris Carson started the team's annual mock game off with a bang as he hauled in a 65-yard touchdown catch from Russell Wilson. Carson is coming back from an injury-shortened rookie season that was cut short by a fractured leg, but he looked excellent prior to the injury and appears to […]

James Conner Impressing At Camp

Pittsburgh Steelers running back James Conner has been impressing observers in training camp this season. According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, Conner has looked like a different player from his rookie season a year ago. Conner had his rookie season cut short by a knee injury but he is fully recovered and is in a positional […]