Several early draft picks broke your heart in 2023

The only thing scarier than drafting an early-round running back these days is taking an older running back in those early rounds. The 2023 fantasy football season was not kind to many second-contract backs.

The 2022 fantasy returns at running back weren’t that bad, all things considered. But things got messy in 2023. Ten backs who charted as top-20 backs in 2022 were massive busts this season, and only nine of the top-30 backs in summer ADP graded out as positive picks. It was difficult to find right answers in the backfield this season.

Last year’s Top 20 at running back did not, for the most part, carry over. Using half-point PPR scoring, and ignoring Week 18, here is the damage: pic.twitter.com/xPespdtVth

— scott pianowski (@scott_pianowski) January 17, 2024

Last year I graded the top-30 ADP backs as such: 10 in green (the fun picks), 12 in yellow (manageable, if erratic) and eight in red (look out below). The grades weren’t as clean this season: another 10 greens, but just six yellows, and a whopping 14 reds. Your top-30 picks in the backfield were almost a 50-50 call to break your heart.

The position continues to get younger these days, as teams prioritize first-contract running backs and offer less loyalty to veteran players. Consider that the biggest seven tumblers from the 2022 top-20 finishers had these ages: 28, 28, 28, 28, 26, 29, 28. And the average age of this year’s top 20 was a fairly young 25.15, despite the presence of graybeard Raheem Mostert (31).

Let’s pick through the three colors and see what we can find.

Green-Light Running Backs — Hits

Christian McCaffrey was the biggest right answer in the first round, a guaranteed weekly touchdown and a smash season tied to the best offensive infrastructure in the league.

Maybe it felt convenient to say Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery were “this year’s D’Andre Swift and Jamaal Williams” — but that’s roughly how it played out. Gibbs was more proactively used than Swift ever was, to be fair, and injuries…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/fantasy-football-rb-exit-interview-several-early-draft-picks-broke-your-heart-in-2023-210546722.html

Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-01-17 21:05:46

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