There are several ways to dominate your fantasy football draft. One of those ways is finding running backs outside the top 24 that end the year as an RB1.
Last year Tony Pollard (RB30), Rhamondre Stevenson (RB34) and Jamaal Williams (RB50) all had an ADP outside the top-24 running backs, according to FantasyData. Yet, all three ended the 2022 season inside the top-12 running backs. Meanwhile, Josh Jacobs was the 23rd drafted running back last season but finished the year as the RB3, averaging 17.8 half-point PPR fantasy points per game, a career-high.
Which running backs drafted outside the top-24 have a chance to finish as an RB1 this year? Let’s look at five potential candidates.
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RB3s with RB1 Potential (2023 Fantasy Football)
David Montgomery (DET) – ADP 72.7 | RB28
Last season, David Montgomery was the RB23, averaging 10 half-point PPR fantasy points per game, totaling 201 rushing attempts for 801 yards and five touchdowns while splitting the rushing workload with Khalil Herbert and Justin Fields. Meanwhile, he has been a consistent RB2 despite playing on a poor offense, never finishing lower than the RB25 any year in his career.
More importantly, Montgomery is replacing Jamaal Williams and his 22 goal-line touches from last season (the second most in the NFL) in Detroit. Last year, Williams led the NFL in rushing touchdowns (17) and was the RB8. While he won’t have the same touchdown luck, Montgomery is a better player and can do more for the Lions than Williams.
James Cook (BUF) – ADP 83.3 | RB31
The fantasy football community had high expectations for James Cook last year. Unfortunately, he was only the RB45, averaging six half-point PPR fantasy points per game. However, things could change this season with Devin Singletary out of town. The Bills signed Damien Harris in free agency, but the veteran has missed 24% of the games over the past three years because of injury.
Meanwhile, 13.5% of Cook’s rushing attempts went for 10 or more yards last season. He also finished first among RBs in breakaway run rate (12.1%) as a rookie. Buffalo is determined to run the ball more this season. Cook only needs a few lucky break goal-line touchdowns to potentially finish inside the top 12.
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Mike Fanelli is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @Mike_NFL2.