For a few years now, fantasy football managers have seen a few of the same names and faces in the top 10 fantasy football rankings for running backs. Christian McCaffrey and Dalvin Cook are a couple of examples of these names. When a manager is able to draft a top five or top 10 ranked running back, it is advised for them to draft the second string running back on the same team. By drafting this “handcuff,” they are insuring they still have a starting caliber running back on their roster in the instance that their top pick gets injured. In 2021, the handcuff to McCaffrey was Chuba Hubbard and the handcuff to Cook was Alexander Mattison.
As time goes on, and running backs gain more and more tread on their tires, they fall out of favor in the league, on their team, or both. Aaron Jones and Ezekiel Elliott are a couple of examples of these names. They were ranked in the top 10 in 2021, but have fallen out of favor in 2022. The fact of the matter is, when an NFL running back reaches the age of 27 or older, their chances of finishing the season as a top 10 fantasy football running back decrease dramatically. The likelihood that they are the youngest running back on their roster is slim to none.
It’s less likely that a manager would draft the handcuff of a running back they drafted in the 2nd round, but it’s still not a bad strategy. In 2021, the handcuff to Jones was AJ Dillon and the handcuff to Elliott was Tony Pollard. However, both of these running backs finished as top 30 running backs, despite Jones playing 15 games and Elliott playing all 17 games. These two running backs made the most of their opportunities in 2021 and are primed to do the same, if not more, in 2022.
Younger running backs are on the rise, and older running backs are falling in fantasy football
If you’ve already drafted your team and ended up with one or both of these players, see why you may have come away with some of the best values in 2022. If you still have yet to draft, see how you can end up with prime RB2 or RB1 candidates in the middle rounds of the draft.