Running backs 2025 - who will have the most volume? (3 Viewers)

[Long Ball Larry]

I have been getting more and more out of touch with fantasy, but trying to do a little prep here and one of the first things I like to do is look at the rb depth charts and gauge who seems like a safe bet for the majority of the teams’ touches. Going through the list preliminarily, I feel like this is one of the most uncertain years I’ve ever seen. I know we have been moving more and more toward the committee approach, but I am a little baffled at who we can trust.

Bijan seems like a good bet. Is Gibbs that safe? You’ve got guys like Saquon, Henry, mccaffrey and probably Jacobs and kamara who should be big volume guys but all carry a somewhat high degree of injury risk. Kyren Williams is someone to consider, but he is not all that special, though he did just sign that extension, so presumably they want to continue to feed him.

Who do you feel safe with in terms of touch volume?

 

[Ray Barboni]

Jeanty is going to get all that he can handle. I think Bucky is pretty safe as well.

Ken Walker will continue to get everything if he stays healthy.

 

[Birdie048]

Jeanty is going to get all that he can handle. I think Bucky is pretty safe as well.

Ken Walker will continue to get everything if he stays healthy.

Agreed with Jeanty & KWIII but I am not sure Bucky will with new coach & a few new players

 

[Pip's Invitation]

I have been getting more and more out of touch with fantasy, but trying to do a little prep here and one of the first things I like to do is look at the rb depth charts and gauge who seems like a safe bet for the majority of the teams’ touches. Going through the list preliminarily, I feel like this is one of the most uncertain years I’ve ever seen. I know we have been moving more and more toward the committee approach, but I am a little baffled at who we can trust.

Bijan seems like a good bet. Is Gibbs that safe? You’ve got guys like Saquon, Henry, mccaffrey and probably Jacobs and kamara who should be big volume guys but all carry a somewhat high degree of injury risk. Kyren Williams is someone to consider, but he is not all that special, though he did just sign that extension, so presumably they want to continue to feed him.

Who do you feel safe with in terms of touch volume?

I see Gibbs like I did Brian Westbrook in the '00s: No matter what kind of volume he gets, he's going to do a lot with it, and thus is worth a first-round pick, especially in PPR.

 

[Ray Barboni]

Jeanty is going to get all that he can handle. I think Bucky is pretty safe as well.

Ken Walker will continue to get everything if he stays healthy.

Agreed with Jeanty & KWIII but I am not sure Bucky will with new coach & a few new players

Valid concerns. I probably am higher on Bucky than most - he’s a smaller back, but he runs with so much intelligence, seemingly never gets “hit”

I believe he can carry a full load, the new coaching staff isn’t an issue for me. They have a system in place in Tampa. Evidence being that Canales left, we worried, now Coen left -

Similar to the lions, I think Tampa has a structure that will build on past concepts and not just change the way they do things because of an OC leaving.

 

[TheWinz]

Are you asking who we think will lead the league in overall touches or touches per game? I noticed you mentioned injury risk. A guy like CMC should be on the touches per game list, but with his injury risk, he probably should not be on the overall touch list.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

Jeanty is going to get all that he can handle. I think Bucky is pretty safe as well.

Ken Walker will continue to get everything if he stays healthy.

Walker is a good one. What I’m seeing is that white should out-touch Irving if healthy. Not sure how to gauge that one.

I suppose jeanty is who the raiders want to be the guy, so maybe he is safe in terms of volume. Not sure how good he will really be though.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

Are you asking who we think will lead the league in overall touches or touches per game? I noticed you mentioned injury risk. A guy like CMC should be on the touches per game list, but with his injury risk, he probably should not be on the overall touch list.

I am currently thinking about overall touches. That is where I like to start if I’m thinking about early round picks or possibly undervalued rbs who might not be flashy but will end up valuable due to volume.

 

[wgoldsph]

I'm going to turn it around and say "volume =/= fantasy success". At least not any more. Can you get a James Connor type by looking at volume, sure. But Gibbs won't give you near the volume but he's worlds better.
And at what point do we draw the line in terms of what a "bellcow" back even is anymore. If your rb has 180 rushes and 80 receptions does that mean he's not a bellcow? If your rb has 325 rushes and ends up with 975 yards, are they still worth focusing on because of the touches?

I guess the overall question is, does that information help you in your draft, and if not what would? Personally I like yards after contact and targets.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

If your rb has 325 rushes and ends up with 975 yards

... it means every other back on the team was injured, or that the team was tanking.

 

[Chaka]

I have been getting more and more out of touch with fantasy, but trying to do a little prep here and one of the first things I like to do is look at the rb depth charts and gauge who seems like a safe bet for the majority of the teams’ touches. Going through the list preliminarily, I feel like this is one of the most uncertain years I’ve ever seen. I know we have been moving more and more toward the committee approach, but I am a little baffled at who we can trust.

Bijan seems like a good bet. Is Gibbs that safe? You’ve got guys like Saquon, Henry, mccaffrey and probably Jacobs and kamara who should be big volume guys but all carry a somewhat high degree of injury risk. Kyren Williams is someone to consider, but he is not all that special, though he did just sign that extension, so presumably they want to continue to feed him.

Who do you feel safe with in terms of touch volume?

I see Gibbs like I did Brian Westbrook in the '00s: No matter what kind of volume he gets, he's going to do a lot with it, and thus is worth a first-round pick, especially in PPR.

I agree he's dynamic to the point he should be one of the top RBs taken but, IMO, as long as Monty is healthy the Lions will try to manage both of their workloads.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

I'm going to turn it around and say "volume =/= fantasy success". At least not any more. Can you get a James Connor type by looking at volume, sure. But Gibbs won't give you near the volume but he's worlds better.
And at what point do we draw the line in terms of what a "bellcow" back even is anymore. If your rb has 180 rushes and 80 receptions does that mean he's not a bellcow? If your rb has 325 rushes and ends up with 975 yards, are they still worth focusing on because of the touches?

I guess the overall question is, does that information help you in your draft, and if not what would? Personally I like yards after contact and targets.

Fair question. I guess I still want to be able to draft guys who will consistently get volume and points each week, but maybe we’ve reached a tipping point with RBs where it doesn’t work that way anymore. Volatility can be a positive.

 

[wgoldsph]

I'm going to turn it around and say "volume =/= fantasy success". At least not any more. Can you get a James Connor type by looking at volume, sure. But Gibbs won't give you near the volume but he's worlds better.
And at what point do we draw the line in terms of what a "bellcow" back even is anymore. If your rb has 180 rushes and 80 receptions does that mean he's not a bellcow? If your rb has 325 rushes and ends up with 975 yards, are they still worth focusing on because of the touches?

I guess the overall question is, does that information help you in your draft, and if not what would? Personally I like yards after contact and targets.

Fair question. I guess I still want to be able to draft guys who will consistently get volume and points each week, but maybe we’ve reached a tipping point with RBs where it doesn’t work that way anymore. Volatility can be a positive.

Much more eloquently put than I could have said.

I do believe looking for high volume players is useful when you get into those bye week/flex types

 

[JohnnyU]

Jonathan Taylor, Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, CMC, Josh Jacobs, Chase Brown, Ashton Jeanty, James Connor, Chuba Hubbard, Kyren Williams.

I think Dobbins will be a surprise volume guy.

 

[the spanker]

Jonathan Taylor, Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, CMC, Josh Jacobs, Chase Brown, Ashton Jeanty, James Connor, Chuba Hubbard, Kyren Williams.

I think Dobbins will be a surprise volume guy.

No Achane?

 

[Long Ball Larry]

Jonathan Taylor, Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, CMC, Josh Jacobs, Chase Brown, Ashton Jeanty, James Connor, Chuba Hubbard, Kyren Williams.

I think Dobbins will be a surprise volume guy.

Taylor is right, should have included him.

I have been a big Conner fan for a long time, but are we not concerned about Benson?

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Jeanty is going to get all that he can handle. I think Bucky is pretty safe as well.

Ken Walker will continue to get everything if he stays healthy.

Walker is a good one. What I’m seeing is that white should out-touch Irving if healthy. Not sure how to gauge that one.

I suppose jeanty is who the raiders want to be the guy, so maybe he is safe in terms of volume. Not sure how good he will really be though.

White ahead of Irving for the Bucs?
Might want to look into that one

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Jonathan Taylor, Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, CMC, Josh Jacobs, Chase Brown, Ashton Jeanty, James Connor, Chuba Hubbard, Kyren Williams.

I think Dobbins will be a surprise volume guy.

Taylor is right, should have included him.

I have been a big Conner fan for a long time, but are we not concerned about Benson?

Connor vs Benson
236 to 63 for carries
283 to 69 total touches, Benson kind of a non factor
Connor had a career high in touches and total yds clearing 1,500+

 

[Chaka]

I think Dobbins will be a surprise volume guy.

I Love that flag plant...But does he have the receiving chops to be that guy in a Sean Payton offense? He's a guy I root for a ton, but he feels like a two down, between the 20s, role player in this offense.

 

[JohnnyU]

Jonathan Taylor, Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, CMC, Josh Jacobs, Chase Brown, Ashton Jeanty, James Connor, Chuba Hubbard, Kyren Williams.

I think Dobbins will be a surprise volume guy.

Taylor is right, should have included him.

I have been a big Conner fan for a long time, but are we not concerned about Benson?

Not as long as Connor is vertical.

 

[JohnnyU]

I think Dobbins will be a surprise volume guy.

I Love that flag plant...But does he have the receiving chops to be that guy in a Sean Payton offense? He's a guy I root for a ton, but he feels like a two down, between the 20s, role player in this offense.

Dobbins caught 32 last year. He can catch just fine.

 

[Chaka]

I think Dobbins will be a surprise volume guy.

I Love that flag plant...But does he have the receiving chops to be that guy in a Sean Payton offense? He's a guy I root for a ton, but he feels like a two down, between the 20s, role player in this offense.

Dobbins caught 32 last year. He can catch just fine.

Sure, at 4.8 yards per catch.

He averaged 24 catches at 9.1 per in college so, there's hope. But nothing he has done as a receiver in the NFL suggests he can be a Payton style full time back.

Then again, I might have said the same thing about Mark Ingram and he had a nice three year run with Payton at about the same age as Dobbins is now.

 

[coyote5]

I'm going to turn it around and say "volume =/= fantasy success". At least not any more. Can you get a James Connor type by looking at volume, sure. But Gibbs won't give you near the volume but he's worlds better.
And at what point do we draw the line in terms of what a "bellcow" back even is anymore. If your rb has 180 rushes and 80 receptions does that mean he's not a bellcow? If your rb has 325 rushes and ends up with 975 yards, are they still worth focusing on because of the touches?

I guess the overall question is, does that information help you in your draft, and if not what would? Personally I like yards after contact and targets.

guys getting that kind of volume generally aren't going to be putting up that kind of pedestrian numbers... they get the volume because they produce...

 

[wgoldsph]

I'm going to turn it around and say "volume =/= fantasy success". At least not any more. Can you get a James Connor type by looking at volume, sure. But Gibbs won't give you near the volume but he's worlds better.
And at what point do we draw the line in terms of what a "bellcow" back even is anymore. If your rb has 180 rushes and 80 receptions does that mean he's not a bellcow? If your rb has 325 rushes and ends up with 975 yards, are they still worth focusing on because of the touches?

I guess the overall question is, does that information help you in your draft, and if not what would? Personally I like yards after contact and targets.

guys getting that kind of volume generally aren't going to be putting up that kind of pedestrian numbers... they get the volume because they produce...

I'm exaggerating for effect. Was literally the simplest way I could math out 3 yards a carry.

 

[TheWinz]

One name I haven't seen yet is D'Andre Swift. Last year, Swift handled 76% of his team's RB touches. This year, his backup Roschon Johnson is already missing time with a foot injury, and the only things they've done were picking up a 7th rounder and they just worked out Jamaal Williams. It seems the team is happy with Swift for another year.