2017 Fantasy Football Draft Prep: Emergence of Kareem Hunt, Christian McCaffrey, Dalvin Cook makes running back strategy more important in Tier rankings 5.0
The rookie running backs are all anyone can talk about, and Dave Richard has them flying up in his last round of positional tiers.
By
Dave Richard
•
3 min read
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Spencer Ware's injury sent Kareem Hunt way up the tiers -- and Fantasy owners into a tizzy.
Face it -- any running back in any offense set to get 15-plus touches per week and work the goal line deserves a top-30 pick. It only helps Hunt that he's in an Andy Reid-coached offense.
But more significantly, Ware's injury made the talent pool that much thinner. Before, we were taking two Chiefs running backs between Rounds 4 and 7. Now it's one before Round 4. We might prefer the clarity of having one stud to pick from rather than two guys sharing, but it started a process where other backs with pretty big workloads began getting pushed up.
Now, expect at least 29 running backs to be gone before the end of Round 6.
In Round 7, expect to be ill.
That No. 3/Less Upside Tier isn't the spot to pick starting running backs from. Fool around with other positions early, and you're left with the uncertainty of guys like Danny Woodhead, Thomas Rawls and Paul Perkins. They're great for Fantasy depth, but not so great for your starting lineup.
Make it a point to land at least one running back with your first two picks, two with your first five picks and potentially three with your first six picks. You do not want to be caught without good running backs.
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Everything you need for Draft Day can be found on our Fantasy Football Draft Sheet.
If you want a customizable version of the tiers, click on this Google Docs link. From there, you can download as an Excel document and tweak the tiers to your heart's content.
| Non-PPR | PPR |
| Elite | Elite |
| Round 1 | Round 1 |
| David Johnson | David Johnson |
| Le'Veon Bell | Le'Veon Bell |
| Melvin Gordon | Melvin Gordon |
| LeSean McCoy | LeSean McCoy |
| Devonta Freeman | Devonta Freeman |
| Non-PPR | PPR |
| Near-Elite | Near-Elite |
| Round 2 | Round 2 |
| DeMarco Murray | DeMarco Murray |
| Jay Ajayi | Jay Ajayi |
| Jordan Howard | Jordan Howard |
| Non-PPR | PPR |
| Excellent | Excellent |
| Round 3 | Round 3 |
| Isaiah Crowell | Isaiah Crowell |
| Todd Gurley | Todd Gurley |
| Ezekiel Elliott | Ezekiel Elliott |
| Dalvin Cook | Christian McCaffrey |
| Kareem Hunt | Dalvin Cook |
| Leonard Fournette | Kareem Hunt |
| Christian McCaffrey | |
| Non-PPR | PPR |
| Very Good | Very Good |
| Rounds 4, 5 | Rounds 4, 5 |
| Carlos Hyde | Carlos Hyde |
| Lamar Miller | Leonard Fournette |
| Joe Mixon | Lamar Miller |
| C.J. Anderson | Joe Mixon |
| Doug Martin | Ty Montgomery |
| Mark Ingram | C.J. Anderson |
| Ty Montgomery | Mark Ingram |
| Marshawn Lynch | Doug Martin |
| | Marshawn Lynch |
| | Danny Woodhead |
| Non-PPR | PPR |
| No. 2/Upside | No. 2/Upside |
| Round 6 | Round 6 |
| Mike Gillislee | Bilal Powell |
| Ameer Abdullah | Ameer Abdullah |
| Rob Kelley | Mike Gillislee |
| Terrance West | Terrance West |
| Bilal Powell | |
| Non-PPR | PPR |
| No. 3/Less Upside | No. 3/Less Upside |
| Rounds 7, 8 | Rounds 7, 8 |
| Danny Woodhead | Rob Kelley |
| Derrick Henry | Derrick Henry |
| Thomas Rawls | Paul Perkins |
| Paul Perkins | Frank Gore |
| Frank Gore | Thomas Rawls |
| Adrian Peterson | Darren McFadden |
| Darren McFadden | Tevin Coleman |
| Tevin Coleman | James White |
| | Adrian Peterson |
| Non-PPR | PPR |
| High-End Reserves | High-End Reserves |
| Rounds 9, 10 | Rounds 9, 10 |
| LeGarrette Blount | Jonathan Stewart |
| Jonathan Stewart | LeGarrette Blount |
| James White | Darren Sproles |
| Jacquizz Rodgers | Duke Johnson |
| Jamaal Williams | Theo Riddick |
| DeAndre Washington | Jacquizz Rodgers |
| Jeremy Hill | DeAndre Washington |
| Darren Sproles | Jamaal Williams |
| D'Onta Foreman | |
| Jonathan Williams | |
| Jamaal Charles | |
| Non-PPR | PPR |
| Call Your Shot | Call Your Shot |
| Round 11+ | Round 11+ |
| Rex Burkhead | Jeremy Hill |
| Eddie Lacy | D'Onta Foreman |
| Marlon Mack | Rex Burkhead |
| Matt Breida | Alvin Kamara |
| Chris Carson | Jamaal Charles |
| Duke Johnson | Jonathan Williams |
| Alvin Kamara | Eddie Lacy |
| Theo Riddick | Marlon Mack |
| Samaje Perine | Matt Breida |
| Tarik Cohen | Chris Carson |
| Devontae Booker | Giovani Bernard |
| Wendell Smallwood | Tarik Cohen |
| Orleans Darkwa | C.J. Prosise |
| | Chris Thompson |
| | Devontae Booker |
| | Wendell Smallwood |
| | Orleans Darkwa |
