Running backs remain king in fantasy football. While it feels like there are more elite quarterbacks and wide receivers than ever before, the amount of consistent, dependable running backs is dwindling. This makes it all the more important to find value at running back in fantasy football. In order to help you do that, I will be taking a look at a few backfields each week who stick out based on recent trends or new information we learned.
As we enter the final leg of the fantasy football regular season, the idea of a “league-winner” becomes a hot topic. A league winner is a player you pick up who explodes over the second half of the year to deliver you a fantasy championship. Historically, young running backs have been a potentially valuable group to find these hidden gems in, as they often start to supplant their team’s veteran starter while getting more accustomed to the NFL. In this article, I’ll be changing gears a bit and discussing my five favorite young running backs — all rookies — to stash for the rest of the fantasy football season.
One quick note before we get started — typical “stash” running backs like Tyler Allgeier or Zach Charbonnet and standout rookies like Tyrone Tracy Jr. or Bucky Irving are obviously valuable, but they are heavily rostered already, so it wouldn’t be too helpful mentioning them here. Instead, I’ll be focusing on more available players who are rostered in less than 30% of Yahoo fantasy leagues.
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5. Audric Estimé, Denver Broncos
Estimé’s rookie season got off to a rough start, as he spent Weeks 2-5 on IR with an ankle injury. In recent weeks, however, he has started to become more involved in the Broncos offense, and head coach Sean Payton mentioned that he wanted to get Estimé even more touches moving forward. Estimé has been effective with his limited workload thus far, totaling 95 yards on 15 total carries. While starter Javonte Williams has been fine in his role, it is possible that the Broncos try to get a better look at what they have with Estimé given Williams is a free agent after this season.
Estimé has an admittedly tough road to being an impact player, as even with an injury to Williams, Jaleel McLaughlin would likely step in as the starter. I don’t mind picking up Estimé in deeper leagues (he’s just 2% rostered), as it is possible that his efficiency stays strong over a larger sample size, but I would temper my expectations.
4. Isaac Guerendo, San Francisco 49ers
Guerendo faces an uphill battle to fantasy relevance, with superstar running back Christian McCaffrey potentially set to make his much-awaited return as soon as this week. However, I think Guerendo is still worth mentioning because he could replace Jordan Mason’s role as the top backup in San Francisco. Guerendo has been excellent whenever his name is called — he has 184 yards on 24 carries and a touchdown in the two games Mason has been limited in. Mason has dealt with a left shoulder sprain for much of the season, and his production is less effective than what it was during the beginning of the year.
With McCaffrey’s status for Week 10 unclear, I would consider picking up Guerendo this week on waivers. He’s rostered in just 17% of leagues, but could be a potential spot starter if CMC isn’t ready yet. Even once McCaffrey returns, he has far from the cleanest bill of health and I would not be surprised if the 49ers manage his workload a little bit. Guerendo can certainly be dropped if the next few weeks indicate that he is still behind Mason on the depth chart, but the low risk is well worth the potentially high reward.
3. Trey Benson, Arizona Cardinals
Benson had the best game of his young career on Sunday, turning 8 carries into 37 yards and a score in the Cardinals victory over the Bears. James Conner is still the clear starter in Arizona, but like the Broncos situation, I expect the Cardinals to get Benson a bit more involved down the stretch because Conner’s contract expires after this season.
The Cardinals also have a particularly light schedule during the tail end of the season, playing the Patriots, Panthers and Rams in the fantasy playoffs. So, even though Benson might not have much fantasy value right now splitting time with Emari Demercado as the Cardinals No. 2 running back, he does have a path to fantasy success if he starts seeing a larger role. He’s available in 83% of Yahoo leagues.
2. Blake Corum, Los Angeles Rams
After a few weeks of hand wringing in August, it has become clear that rumors of Kyren Williams’ demise were greatly exaggerated. Williams has been the bell-cow for the Rams this season despite also returning punts, and currently ranks as the RB6 in fantasy football.
Corum, meanwhile, has been scarcely used, which comes as a surprise after his third-round draft capital. Even so, Corum is a valuable fantasy stash because he would immediately become the Rams’ top running back if Williams were to get hurt. Frustrated managers have certainly dropped Corum to the waiver wire by now as he is rostered in just 15% of Yahoo leagues, and I would be glad to pick him up as a next-man-up option.
1. Ray Davis, Buffalo Bills
Davis is currently rostered in 27% of Yahoo leagues, but I think that number should be way higher. Davis’ production as the Bills backup running back has been hard to ignore. When James Cook missed Week 6 with a toe injury, Davis immediately stepped up to the tune of 152 scrimmage yards on 23 touches. Davis has been far more effective than Cook from an efficiency standpoint — he has a higher yards after contact per attempt mark than Cook and has forced six more missed tackles despite 48 fewer carries. Davis has also flashed as a pass-catcher, including a 63-yard catch and run for a touchdown on Sunday.
I am keeping a close eye out on Davis’ usage in the next few weeks, and I think he could become a legitimate 1B to Cook’s 1A in this backfield. If Cook were to miss time, Davis would vault into being a top-15 option, which cannot be said about most of the other guys on this list. I would have been comfortable spending 10-15% of my FAB budget to add Davis this week, as he perfectly fits the mold of a potential league-winner. With waivers already clearing in most leagues, you can add him right now for nothing.