Transcription
Just like the wide receivers, this video is not about telling you who to draft. It is telling you who to avoid. Yes, these are five names that we have rarely drafted this summer in our fantasy football leagues, cuz Hayden, we know at times that is equally as important as players to target. So, with that said, give us your first name. Who are you not picking at the running back spot?
>> Let's just go right to the first round here. Achane. Achane is my name. There are 13 running backs that are selected after him before we get to the end of the fourth round. He outscored three of them. Uh, so, most of the players right after him last year outscored him straight up. Obviously, Achane, Achane will have a better football season this year than last year. He has a really high floor. I just think that James Cook, Saquon Barkley, Devon Achane, Derrick Henry, I'll even throw out Kenneth Walker and Chase Brown, these guys I think have as good of a floor, and I think that their pathway to upside based off the team environment is just a little bit better. The Raiders still have a bad offensive line. They upgraded at center, but that does not uh make me feel better about the guard spots, the tackle spots. Kirk Cousins plus Fernando Mendoza should be better than Geno Smith. How big of an upgrade? Uh, I don't know about that as well. And then, Kliff Kingsbury has already said he's going to play a bunch of the snaps. We got that last year, just did not move the needle. So, to me, Saquon Barkley is going to get touch the football a ton. Devon Achane is going to touch the football a ton. Derrick Henry is going to touch the football a ton, and I think that those guys have a little bit more proven commodities. So, I have Achane, Achane ranked 16th overall. It's just that he goes 11th overall, and every little spot that matters in the first two rounds, I think is worth discussing.
>> That is a big discussion because if you're sitting there at the 11th pick or the 12th pick, uh, you have to get both of those selections correct if you're going to win your fantasy football league. And if Achane, Achane, which he is right now, is at the top of the stack of the eight straight running backs, then you have to have the firm belief that he is the one that is separating himself. I, I think while we are both optimistic about Achane's future, I think I do slightly believe in his individual talent a bit more than you do. With that said, him being drafted already as the running back five is the worst part here because the running back five in points per game last year was Devon Achane, and he scored 18 fantasy points per contest. So, you're basically saying to yourself that that's what I'm getting no matter what with Achane, and then the upside is that he can become the running back one in points per game, which was Christian McCaffrey at 21 points per contest. And maybe I'm going to be wrong, but I just don't see that happening in like the 2026 version of this Las Vegas Raiders operation. It might. Maybe Zamir White comes in. Maybe the offensive line is totally fixed with Kolton Miller coming back and adding Tyler Linderbaum, but more so, I kind of think you're already drafting Achane at his ceiling aspect here.
>> Yeah, that's where I'm kind of at with it, too. I just like, I just watched Saquon Barkley finish as an RB1 overall. Devon Achane back-to-back seasons pretty much where he's been a rock-solid player. And then, I still think like the Derrick Henry stuff in half PPR, I mean, Derrick Henry right now is projected for 12 and a half rushing touchdowns on Underdog. Right now, Achane's at 7 and a half. Like, it's not like a given just because he's younger that he's going to outscore somebody like Derrick Henry just because the team environment out there. So, I would just like looking at the projections on Underdog versus the ADP, and he, he's just coming in a little bit too hot in the best-ball markets right now. And I'm not saying he's going to have a bad season. Like, it would be a shock if he's not a top-10 running back in fantasy, but you're drafting him 11th overall. I think I'm just having a little bit of a disconnect there.
>> Okay, let's reverse this, then. How can he get there, right? How can he prove this take wrong? Is it just purely from a receiving back potential and receiving back upside, which we saw towards the latter part of last season? Albeit, that was more like swing and screen passes versus his second to last season at Boise State where to me he showed a lot more receiving chops. And maybe Clint Kubiak can unlock that element of his game a little bit more.
>> I think possibly, but he was the RB9 in receptions per game last season. I'm expecting like him to be in that ballpark. Like, he just has to be more explosive. Like, and we, he, they, the Raiders just got to score more touchdowns. Like, there were just like not enough red zone opportunities and there was not nearly enough explosive plays. Like James Cook, Saquon Barkley, Javonte Williams, I think that Kenneth Walker, Zamarian Hampton, uh, hopefully behind better offensive lines than what they had last year, those guys are going to be ripping off explosive plays. Chase Brown, we know that he's going to be attached to a top-five, top-ten offense. Same thing with Derrick Henry out there as well. So, like Javonte Williams smoked Ashton Jeanty last year, and they're being, they have the same projections right now on the Underdog Pick'em Lobby. And then you look at the ADPs, and they're not even close to each other. So, I know that we're going to get into him in just a second here, but uh, I like Ash- Ashton Jeanty. I think him as a first-rounder, I think that's asking a lot.
>> Well, let's use that as a segue, then, because my name here is Javonte Williams as running back 17, 36 overall. I think you can argue that everything went right for Javonte last year, and he still scored as the running back 12 in points per game for the entire season. The team scored the seventh most points per contest. He had the seventh most rushing touchdowns at the running back position across the league. He had the ninth most rushing yards of any player in the NFL last year. There was absolutely nothing in terms of competition at that spot in the Cowboys backfield. I mean, the next closest running back had 50 carries on the team. So, yes, uh, another season of the running back 12 in points per game would be really nice. But, Hayden, I'm kind of wondering if that's his absolute ceiling here as a player, and it comes in via his lack of receiving upside. I mean, last year he was, was a zero in the receiving game. 35 catches for 137 yards. There's no doubt in my mind that he can match this ADP in terms of the end of the third round, the three-four turn player, and that can just help you with some standard weekly scoring. But to me, if I'm talking about the top three rounds, does he have a top five outcome at the running back spot? Does he have a top seven outcome at the running back spot? Because I think I can make the case that the wide receivers going in that area that we've talked so much about in recent episodes have some top five-seven potential, you know, finishes at their position. Tee Higgins, we've seen that before with him. Lad McConkey in a Mike McDaniel offense. Garrett Wilson, Emeka Egbuka, as we've talked about with Zach Robinson and this Z receiver usage he's going to get. I mean, the pathway for them to finishing near the top and jumping multiple spots in terms of their draft position at their, at their position, uh, I, I think it's more achievable than this profile of Javonte Williams, where it's all about volume in a high-scoring offense, and him as an individual talent just can't push him into a top five score there.
>> Yeah, I think the individual talent stuff's priced in here because he finished 18th overall last year in uh fantasy points over replacement per game. So, even if he's the RB 12, like RBs are what you want in half PPR best ball, and I just don't even think anything's really changed. I think maybe the things that have, the defense allowed the most points uh per game last season. That can get better, where maybe they're more neutral game scripts, which I do think would help out Javonte Williams. The coaching staff's kind of doubled down that Javonte is the man. It's still, you know, Malik Davis and Jaden Blue behind him, and Phil Mafah. So, it's like I don't think that those guys are going to really come for his job. So, I, and I think there's a chance you, What did you say the Cowboys finished sixth in scoring last year? I think there's a chance they could finish even better than that. Uh, their entire offense returns. They had some injuries on the offensive line. We like the coaching staff a lot, and Clayton Adams seems to love Javonte Williams. So, I think if, if Javonte Williams was able to run a 4.44 in the 40-yard dash, he would be a second-round pick. I think just because he's slow, we're getting, I think, a pretty big discount here. So, I have him actually ranked ahead of ADP.
>> Interesting. Yeah, I mean, he's a small win player for me at best. Um, you're saying nothing has changed. Well, this is kind of the profile. It's somewhat like David Montgomery, where we're just imposing a whole bunch of, you know, volume onto him, and that's the most notable thing about it. And in a lot of other seasons, that type of player and fantasy asset, it doesn't always go in their way when that's the case, right? So, that's my big concern here. Like, what if Dak Prescott does miss games? Or what if one does star offensive lineman do? Or, you know, uh, this team just takes a step back in other areas, then this bell cow top in touches and a top seven scoring offense, and then like you're starting to miss some of the pieces that made him just, and I know it's good because he was the running back 40 in drafts last year, and you got the running back 12, but now you're hoping as the running back 17 that you get like the running back 12 in fantasy football.
>> Yeah, I'll just take the running back 12 at the end of the third round if that's, if that's what this is. Um, his projections are just like extremely similar to to Ashton Jeanty right there. Just wanted to say that again. And the other note is the guy that he kind of reminds me of from the last couple years of fantasy drafts is like the Josh Jacobs, the Chase Brown types, where we're like, a lot of people like don't like really believe that they're all that talented, and they're not nearly as good as the guys being drafted in the first round, but they are good at workload and they're good at being the starting running back on a very good offense. And like that's how Josh Jacobs, who gets selected in the third round every year, finishes as a borderline round one guy in half PPR best ball, uh, cuz they're just at the goal line, they catch up passes, and their team's really good. So, uh, I think he's very similar to like the Josh Jacobs profile from the last couple years. One that I think you and I have like really appreciated.
>> One more thing, JJ Zachariason has noted that Javonte Williams 0.4 yards per route run last year, and that in this range, running back 12 to running back 36 with a yards per route run of 0.6 or worse typically go on to underperform expectation by 1 and a half points per game worse the following season. And we know that Javonte Williams has now averaged fewer than 5 yards per catch in three of his past four years. So, like, if he had more receiving upside, then I think you could get to the point where he is a top 10, top seven outcome here. And again, the main reason why I'm fading him here is just because I really love all the wide receivers going around it. And I most likely already have not just one, but probably two running backs ahead of this period.
>> Mhm. Yeah, I think that's fair.
>> Okay, next name.
>> I'm going to go with Jahmyr Gibbs at the very beginning of the sixth round. He was kind of floating in the fifth round there for a while. I just think that he's too similar to the running backs being drafted at the end of the round or in even the next round. I think just starting with Jahmyr Gibbs, I didn't not think that I did not think that he was the best prospect ever. I think you and I had like debates like how much better is he than like Malik Washington, who ended up going much later than that. He's also a little bit smaller than the typical profile that gets drafted where he did. He's only 203 lb. He did not have much of a goal line role just because he was playing behind Jeremiah Love. So, I'm a little bit confused on exactly what role he's going to have. There's a chance that Zach Charbonnet returns around October or November. By the end of the season, I'm kind of worried that this is going to be the same committee that led Charbonnet and Kenneth Walker to be the RB 28 and RB 29 on a per game basis last year. Keep in mind, that's when the, the won the damn Super Bowl and were the best team in the NFL. So, if we're expecting some regression from the offense without Clint Kubiak, JSN was one of the best players in the NFL last year. Like, if all of a sudden this team goes from, I think they were third in scoring in the regular season. If they're now 10th, and then I think that Holani is going to be out there as a receiver cuz J'Juan Price did not do a whole lot in terms of uh, receiving in in college, then he's an early down guy with I think some explosiveness, but nothing too crazy on an offense that I'm expecting more competition to come in by the end of the season. So, I wouldn't be surprised if like J'Juan Price is like the RB 25 early on, and then by the time Charbonnet gets back involved, now we're back to like RB 30-ish. And I just think that his pathway like really going crazy here is pretty limited versus the price tag. So, I'm looking at some of the receivers around him, and I'm like, okay, I think I might like, you know, the Christian Watsons, all the quarterbacks, Tyler Warren. And if I miss, miss out on the J'Juan Price, I'm going to take a very similar shot I think with Jaylen Warren, Roman Wilson, and those guys.
>> He was a huge winner of the draft cycle, but I don't think he's been a winner since. Like, isn't all of his value just in relation to Zach Charbonnet, which by the way, just like the second half of the wide receiver video, we're going to do a second half of this video kind of updating everyone in the health and the recovery, the rehabilitation of all the running backs going through stuff this summer. So, we'll talk about Zach Charbonnet. But like every rep that you see George Holani get or Zach Charbonnet clear the next stage in recovery, I think it's a knock in J'Juan Price's profile. And
>> Yeah.
>> he had an interesting profile coming out of Notre Dame. I mean, just 39 pass per reps the season before that. 19 targets in his three-year career. So, as much as you and I love rushing work and touchdown scored on the ground, that can only get you so far just in terms of being a total breakout, and receiving aspect does come into play, and we just don't have answers on that with him. And I kind of wonder if Mike McDonald, just from a foundational level of his franchise, wants multiple backs to be used, no matter what their name is and who they are, at least for the regular season. So, when you get into the playoffs, and if you do have just one remaining, then you can ride that wave and they can carry you to the promised land, as we saw last year with Kenneth Walker the third. So, I like J'Adarian Price, um, but I simply believe that where he's going right now is actually very fitting of it. And unless something catastrophic, and we'll talk about Zach Charbonnet, and he just carries that primary 1A role throughout the entire year, then you're not going to be able to return value here.
>> Yeah, well, we'll get to Charbonnet in a second. My baseline assumption is that call it week 10 is when he's going to get back in the mix. And I think before that, Holani was like really trusted in some key situations. Like, even in the playoffs last year, he played about a third of the snaps. And I, I would be pretty surprised if J'Adarian Price was playing on any of the passing down situations. So, at that point, we need the goal line work for J'Adarian Price. I think most likely outcome is he does get that, but at the same time, he is smaller than Holani is as well. Um, and I think by the time Charbonnet gets back in the mix, we saw how often Charbonnet was uh, uh, subbing in for, you know, Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker. Uh, where I, I do think the baseline assumption is committee back, uh, with some explosiveness. But, I just didn't, I didn't see a first-round talent here. I know that's he went 32nd overall. I just didn't view him as, you know, like when Travis Etienne, who got drafted in a very similar spot. I think that we're looking at totally different players. Even Kenneth Walker, the early second-rounder, I thought was a way better prospect than Price.
>> Okay, my next name, and this one hurts me. I'm actually going to talk about TreVeyon Henderson here as running back 21, the second pick of the fifth round. Look, I, I'm a TreVeyon Henderson optimist. His top-end speed is simply sensational. His speed to pull away is rare. And we saw that last year that if he handles in a game 70% of the workload, that that athleticism equals fantasy points. I mean, he was a running back 10 in points per game from week 9 through 17 last year, the most important part of your fantasy calendar. But, I don't think giving him 70% of the workload in a healthy backfield is the Patriots' plan. It's that simple. Like, they like Rhamondre Stevenson. They should. Like Rhamondre Stevenson. Rhamondre Stevenson is still an extremely talented running back. Uh, and I guess my concern is one, we are hoping that Trevion Henderson regains his past pro form from his Ohio State days, from college. Two, we are also hoping that the Patriots improve their blocking from tight end to tight end after making moves along their offensive line. And then we are hoping that the coaching staff makes the move when that happens from Rhamondre Stevenson to Trevion Henderson as a lead ball carrier. And I just don't think all three of those things are going to happen uh as smoothly and as confidently as the public does when selecting him two full rounds ahead of Rhamondre at this point. And in a station of backs like David Montgomery, massive volume. De'Andre Swift, yes, wet backfield, but also in a Ben Johnson-led attack. We've already seen how he can sustain fantasy value from about week 4 through week 17. And then, you know, Quinshon Judkins. And in fact, Ian, I think like the Trevion and Bashaun Tuitan um projection and pathway to success is kind of similar. And Bashaun Tuitan's pathway, I think, is clearer than Trevion Henderson's is at this point.
>> Yeah, I think De'Andre Swift, same thing. Like, I mean, this De'Andre Swift is going to get the ball a bunch. David Montgomery is going to get the ball a bunch. Quinshon Judkins, the ball a bunch. And then, I think those guys still have pathways to being like top 12 fantasy backs, as does Trevion. I think there's of things that to go right. So, I'm with you on this. I got Trayveon Henderson at the end of this round, and I got Rhamondre Stevenson pretty much parked right next to Trayveon. Uh, Trayveon reminds me of Raheem Mostert. I don't think he's going to win on contact very often. So, he has to play more decisive so his speed can kind of take over. Even a lot of his big runs last year were like right up the middle. Everyone kind of collapses, then he bounces outside. We just need more hitting the corner on the outside and going upfield. Rhamondre Stevenson was way better in pass protection. He's got 30 lb on him. I thought a lot of Trayveon's weaknesses in pass protection were just I'm too small. Like these running or these linebackers coming at me are way too big and way too fast, and I don't think that's going to necessarily change. And then, uh, I think Rhamondre Stevenson's like a well-paid back, very established, and matched him in every single category last year. Explosive plays, receiving work, all the stuff that Trayveon's supposed to be so good at, Rhamondre was right there with him. So, I really like the Rhamondre price tag, and I think that the Trayveon stuff is taking a very optimistic lens. He could pay off there. I just think that a lot of things have to go right.
>> Yeah, and again, I want to say that Trayveon can pay off. Like you said, if the blocking is better and they give him the second level, then it can be freaking off to the races. And if there are elements like the game slows down for Trayveon Henderson a little bit, then he can go off to the races. There's just a whole bunch of checklist items that I think he then has to prove to Josh McDaniels and Mike Vrabel in order to be like, oh yes, now I'm going to take over as the Jahmyr Gibbs to this David Montgomery situation. And while I think it's possible, I don't right now, at the end and middle of June, don't think it's probable. And unfortunately, everyone's drafting as if it's kind of already happened. And that's my concern with this price tag. Like Rhamondre is the first second running back of all these teams that are selected out there on Underdog drafts right now, and he should be because he is the best second running back that is selected across the NFL right now because you could argue that starting in week one and maybe even to week four and maybe even get to week eight that he is the first one on the field in those situations. But again, if he misses time like he did last year, I will be hyping up Brevion as a top 10 ranking every single week because we know he can do that.
>> Yeah, the splits back you up your point there. Without Rhamondre Stevenson in those three games, he had 16 and a half expected half PPR points that would have been RB4. So that's just like base off his usage. Unfortunately, with Rhamondre Stevenson, he was the RB50. And in the last four games that they did the four post-season games that they had, everything's on the line, Rhamondre Stevenson 12 expected points, Brevion 5.1. So that's a big gap that we're trying to overcome in the second season. And I think a lot of it is just Rhamondre's really big. So when they're at the goal line, more times than not it's going to be Rhamondre. And Rhamondre Stevenson, for how big he is, he can certainly run the routes and catch the ball out of the back field. That was true in college, it's been true in the NFL, it was true last year as well. That's how we score fantasy points. Like I, I would rather take the volume guy that's going to catch the ball and be at the goal line rather than hunt the explosive plays. Especially when it seems like most of the market is obsessed with the explosive play potential. And I'm just like, I'll take the guy that's probably going to get 15 touches in a game.
>> And look, I'm not the person that says how they line up in week one is how they're going to line up in in week 11. You know, things change all the time with young stars and and them emerging. I'm more so saying that Rhamondre Stevenson isn't a pushover. In a lot of these other cases, that veteran that is standing in the way is kind of a placeholder or a pushover. And Rhamondre Stevenson isn't like that.
>> I agree. Great point.
>> Last name of this group, our fifth one, who is it?
>> I'm going to go with Kenny Gainwell here. Last year, he was the Steelers MVP. He was second in all the receiving work. I believe that the the Steelers wide receiver three caught like 20 something passes last year. So, kind of everything broke Kenny Gainwell's way last year. It's his best statistical season. What does that get you? RB 26. So, like when everything's going right, he's a focal point, Aaron Rodgers obsessed with him, he literally wins the team MVP, you get an RB 26 profile. Now, he goes to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I think there's a chance that Bucky Irving can go back to his form. Even if that's not the case, I'm just worried that Sean Tucker would get in there even if Bucky Irving misses time just because Sean Tucker's so much bigger than Kenny Gainwell. So, I just don't see an established pathway to him getting the goal line work. I don't think he's going to catch nearly as many passes in this Buccaneers offense just cuz their depth at all of the skill group is just a lot better than what the Steelers had when it was literally just DK Metcalf and Kenny Gainwell. Not a whole lot else. Now, we have a Mecca, I think's good, Chris Godwin, the reports have been pretty decent, Jaylen McMillan's a way better wide receiver three. And then you get to Bucky Irving himself, who's a very good running back when he's actually healthy. So, like full PPR, you're in a 14-person league and stuff, like I get the appeal there. This is the type of profile that has just been a really bad pick in half PPR best ball. And I think same thing with with your redraft, like his, his eight to 10 points in your flex is just like not going to get it done in this landscape. A lot of like the three running back builds, like your third running back is the Rhamondre Chuba Hubbard types that are like turning out 12, 14 points a week. I'm just concerned that like he's not providing enough even when things are going right.
>> Yeah, I think in this round, the ninth round, because Kenny Gainwell is the running back 36 right now, the ninth pick of the ninth round. I just want to take like the upside swings of Sam LaPorta and Ricky Pearsall and Herndon Fannin.
>> Kyle Pitts.
>> Yeah, then then Kenny Gainwell. This is an interesting one because I actually think that Kenny Gainwell in a lot of other fantasy football shows is going to be one of their favorite selections based on, you know, the Bucky Irving buzz, which we'll hop into a little bit later on. I mean, he's coming off a thousand yards, like you said, eight touchdowns on just 187 touches. But, the vast majority of that was the 73 catches, the fourth most at the position. And, if you look at about week 11 through week 18, that was the real breakout. And that's when he averaged 6.4 targets, 5.5 receptions, 45 receiving yards, and nearly a half touchdown per game. Uh, as you said, it wasn't just like swings or screens, it was like legit downfield routes that Kenny Gainwell was miraculously coming up with and Aaron Rodgers trusting him in those situations. And he goes from that backfield, which was just him and Jaylen Warren, to like you're saying, maybe a 1A with Bucky, who is never going to be a passing down guy and wasn't with Rashad White, to now Kenny Gainwell being the 1B and maybe taking a bit more of the rushing work than Rashad White got, but then I also don't want to forget about Sean Tucker, who, once we get to like the five to the 10-yard line, might have legit, "Hey, we haven't been able to, you know, run the ball in from the two yet when trying these other situations. We're going to bring in Sean Tucker to actually get the touchdown for us." So, I see like, unless there is real pessimism and a really bad season coming up here for Bucky Irving, I think that Kenny Gainwell's ceiling is like totally capped out here. And I wouldn't necessarily even put him at, you know, 66% of the receiving yards and receiving production that he got last year in his new home here in Tampa.
>> Yeah, I see the same exact way. And then, just in comparison to Rashad White, Rashad White's 215 lbs. Kenny Gainwell's 200 lbs. So, like, if something happens to Bucky, I don't think that Kenny Gainwell's just going to be a bell cow back. Like he's never been a running back in the traditional sense. It's always been the receiving profile. Um, so, I, I think that Sean Tucker would kind of get in the mix a little bit too much and he, he would not have the handcuff appeal that some of the other backs uh possibly would like including Jonathan Brooks right next to him. Uh, Brooks has like no floor like in terms of flex value um when week six rolls around, but uh, there's I think a better path to upside. I think ultimately I want to chase the upside. That's what we draft in the in the best ball.
>> I think the running backs for me were a lot more difficult than the than the wide receivers to come up with this list. But uh, let us know in the comments down below uh some of your full on fades at the running back spot uh based on where their selections are at this moment. Okay, why don't we dive into the injury updates? And I know this confused people on the last video. These are all these names are not the ones that we were avoiding. This is just an update on the news of where these players' statuses are at this point in off-season activities. Um, since you started and just brought up Jonathan Brooks, do we want to quickly
>> Yeah.
>> touch on that because we know he didn't play all of the 2025 season after missing a handful of games in 2024 coming off the ACL injury. He did touch the field for two or three contests and retore that knee. So, what are the Panthers saying about Jonathan Brooks and his recovery timeline right now?
>> It sounds like he's on schedule. He's ramping up. He's participating in some of the 11 on 11 work as well. So, I think it's as optimistic as you possibly could be coming off of a second uh torn ACL to the same exact one. Uh, now he's had a lot of time to recover since then. He'll be like what 20-ish months away from it. So, he's had a lot of time to to get back on the on the field. I'm sure they're just going to ramp him up. They'll probably uh test him out specifically in the joint practices. So, that happens. Uh, we're seeing more teams not use the preseason, but more so the joint practices. So, I think the second we get the Carolina schedule for in August, we will definitely be tracking the Jonathan Brooks update. I think right now he's on pace and at the same time, like this is a very significant history that he's coming back from and I just wanted to remind people Chuba Hubbard has been a team captain for this team for as long as the coaching staff has been there. He's a pretty decent player as well. So I don't think this is like as easy of a he's just going to take Chuba Hubbard's job. Like Chuba's paid well, team captain, etc. Um, so I think he's appropriately priced um and he's on pace.
>> At the same time, we did see Chuba get banged up last year and Raquon Smith had, you know, multiple 200 plus yard games. Uh, so that potential is always there for a team that wants to run the football. I mean, Jonathan Brooks is the clear second running back on the scene, which is very notable. I mean, they brought in no one other than AJ Dillon and they have Trevor Etienne, Achane, excuse me, Trevor Achane on the roster opposite him. So he's always going to wear the sleeve on his knee at this point. Uh, there've been moments and who knows in these non-contact practices of long runs, explosive plays, all that type of stuff, but uh, I really liked him as a player. He was just like so smooth as a runner and has a big body. He really would pull away from from defenses and, you know, I think the Panthers need some yards after catch threats and even in his small three game sample, he had a couple plays like against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers where he took a screen pass or a swing pass and made some people miss and that would be a huge element for them that they desperately need.
>> Yeah, I could see him being close to like Manhertz and Blake Corum by the end of August if we get a couple more positive reports. Like this, we got to take this kind of day by day with him um just given the history, but right now so far so good.
>> Hey, if, if he shows 90% health and like 90% of who he used to be, then he's the most talented Panthers running back on this roster. Like, there's, you know, other politicking that goes on behind the scenes even if, you know, he and Chuba Hubbard are really good friends that they always put Chubba back at the front of the the team, but Jonathan Brooks is a heck of a talent in my eyes.
>> Mhm.
>> Okay, let's go back to the top. Let's talk about Cam Akers, who is the seventh pick of the fourth round, running back 19 right now. We know he suffered a right ankle dislocation, fractured fibula, and ruptured deltoid ligament back in week eight. What's his status at this point?
>> He's practicing, you know, 11 and 11, and we got months to go. So, I keep talking about the small sample size of the dislocated ankles. I know like it's like four for four has not gone well the following season, but it's like such a small uh sample, and this is like before we had the peptides and all of the other stuff going on uh in modern medicine. Uh, Cam Akers is doing backflips, and he's fully uh participating in practice, and then the the Giants reporters, I've read a couple of them, just in general like positive vibes for Cam Akers. He's got plenty of uh time to to get even in better shape, but he's like fully cleared. Um, so, you can discount him a a little bit because maybe you don't think the efficiency is going to be there, but uh, efficiency only matters so much in fantasy football when when we're talking about running backs. Like, it's about scoring goal line touchdowns and catching passes, and that's what Cam Akers was placed on this planet to do.
>> My concern isn't like if he's going to play week one, it is how good is he going to be when when back on the field? And, you know, that's actually the same exact injury other than the ruptured deltoid ligament than Quinton Jefferson is coming back from. Albeit, Jefferson did it in week 16, and Cam Akers did it in week eight. I think we did see Quinton Jefferson return to off-season activities earlier than Cam Akers, and looked fluid, and did all that stuff. The eye test passed just like it has for Akers now. Uh, so, we know Jefferson is going earlier than Akers is in these drafts. Uh, are there any updates on him as well?
>> Jefferson also just practicing, you know, this is just they're going to be out there week one. They're going to be out there first day training camp as the clear-cut starters, clear-cut the best backs on their football team. They're going to catch, they're not Scottie's going to catch a lot more passes than Quinton Johnson is, but they're going to run the ball a ton. Both of these head coaches want to run the football. So, like in terms of like volume, I think these guys are pretty set in stone. Are they going to win any awards because of their breakaway abilities coming off this injury? Probably not, but I think both of them are very good. So, you guys can watch our full video on the second-year running backs like going back and watching their tape and whatnot, but even since then we've had more positive updates from the off-season workouts.
>> Yeah, just talk about the sample for the fractured fibula {slash} right ankle dislocations or just ankle dislocations. In recent years it's been Tony Pollard, Mark Andrews, Chris Godwin, Isaiah Pacheco all declined their fantasy points per opportunity. It wasn't just small, it was like a massive drop-down. So, again, that's just four names. That is a small sample. Now we get, you know, 50% of that this year with Quinton Johnson and Ke'Shawn Vaughn. And all those weren't running backs, you know, some of them were wide receivers and tight ends on top of it. Okay, let's talk about Bucky Irving since you mentioned Kenny Gainwell. We know throughout last season shoulder ankle issues. He did retouch the surface in OTAs on June 11th. So, after that Todd Bowles' statement of hey, he might return sometime this fall. It is actually June 11th, Todd. So, thank you very much. Anything you want to add there?
>> Individuals only. So, that's he's not cleared for like full contact or maybe he's been cleared, but they're not like throwing him out there. The fact that he's doing individual drills makes me feel optimistic that by the time training camp actually comes around that he'll be ready to go. So, yeah, I just don't know if Bowles knows when like summer turns to falls and like that's kind of like the thing that he had this uh, internal debate on, but I think most likely Bucky Irving's going to be out there. I will note though, like he did have surgery on his shoulder and like he's not that big guy and he runs really, really hard. So, like it's still an injury that like still is concerning even if he's going to be available in week one. Um, especially when you add somebody like Kenny Gainwell uh, to the mix. So, Bucky Irving, I, I'm feel less comfortable with like his baseline touch projection than Scat Bo and Quinton Judkins. Um, but I think they're appropriately priced next to each other.
>> Chris Rodriguez, free agent signing for the Jacksonville Jaguars, has a history with Liam Coen dating back to their Kentucky days. Uh, we have not seen Chris Rodriguez on the field during off-season activities because apparently he had a procedure on his left foot following an injury sustained early in the off-season conditioning program. What else do you want to add?
>> Yeah, they're saying he's on track to be ready for the beginning of camp and I think that's, you know, if you're out there in week one of camp, then I think we shouldn't be talking about the injury too much. But, injuries can linger. He's a big guy, runs really hard. So, like this thing could creep up at any point obviously. Uh, his ADP has dropped the last couple weeks here and I do think uh, the bottom is kind of in and I would not be surprised like Shipley's kind of talked about this uh, over at SI just talking about they really like Chris Rodriguez and they like this type of player a lot because they were actually flirting with JK Dobbins who Dobbins is the more explosive version of Chris Rodriguez. Uh, and you can read into that how you want to with in terms of Basil Tui. And I think that they want Basil Tui to turn into the guy. He's got a totally different skill set. He's going to be the guy in passing situations. Like, could they trust him to run the ball between the tackles consistently? Does he, could he just handle the mental workload that that takes? Uh, I think that's the the big debate, but he's one of these kind of like zero RB targets where um, I would not be that stunned if Chris Rodriguez like just edges out Basil Tui uh, this this season in fantasy. I don't think it's the most likely outcome, but like I could see that happening.
>> We talked about pushovers earlier on, you know, ascending first and second year players. I'm kind of in the mindset that Chris Rodriguez can't be a pushover here if Bashton shows enough. Uh, again, I understand the Kentucky days and the link in that department. And like Chris Rodriguez might vulture you know, six or seven touchdowns inside the five-yard line, so that keeps you know, Bashton, who right now is being selected as the running back 25, from maybe being the running back 12 versus the running back 15 for example. Um, I am more confident in Bashton doing this than I was, you know, when they immediately signed Chris Rodriguez during free agency uh after, you know, working in this primary workload in this primary position all off-season for this team.
>> Yeah, I think the first, you know, the first practice at training camp there will be tweets [clears throat] when like Chris Rodriguez like takes the first carry and then we're going to have to go through these debates uh all training camp long. So I think the story is largely not over and I would not be surprised if Chris Rodriguez there's a 124th overall RB 41 is kind of uh the bottom and then we just see this ADP chart kind of go back to where he was uh a couple weeks ago. So.
>> We talked about Jonathan Brooks so next one is RJ Harvey who I think back during sometime in the winter had labrum surgery. What's the update on him?
>> Yeah, uh winter spring depends on when you're establishing the the seasonal cutoff. He had it after the season. He suffered a shoulder uh sprain that needed a labrum tear that needed surgery. Um, so that does matter. Like I don't like when my shoulders uh on my running backs are are uh requiring surgery. So I think that's something that we have to monitor. That said, uh Sean Payton said he's he's full go right now. So, I think the injury probably shouldn't be factored in all that much here at all. Uh, I think that the JK Dobbins and the Jonah Coleman factor should matter a whole lot more, but I feel pretty confident that this is just going to be a three-way backfield until there's another injury. I think that RG Harvey's going to be the passing down guy, and then Coleman and Dobbins are going to be the early down rushing guy. And I think that kind of makes sense based off of Payton's history and then all also the the traits of the three running backs.
>> Yeah, I think the timeline was 4 to 6 months, and so that puts him at May or or July being the four or the six months. So, that should be training camp immediately for him to be out there if not at the end of that first week of of training camp. Zach Charbonnet's the last one here. We know he tore his ACL in January. Then Mike McDonald, like this week, was asked if Zach Charbonnet could actually play in week one because they did see Zach Charbonnet like doing some light work on the field without pads and without a helmet. And he said, I think {quote} "Anything is possible." Um, I think that's impossible. What about you? [laughter]
>> Yeah, I mean, we have to like take the context of was the question are you they just trying to hype up their players, you know, like it would be bad if he's like it's impossible. Like if you're Zach Charbonnet, you're like, "Damn, that that does suck." So, the coach is going to be optimistic. They're going to encourage their players. The reality is Zach Charbonnet tore his ACL and didn't have his surgery until February 20th. So, he waited a while. So, it was it was late in the season. Then he waited a while, then got the surgery. I think the baseline would be week 10 to week 12 is when he returns. Um, so, we'll see. I think there were some reports from like actual credible uh reporters that he does feel a little bit ahead of schedule, which would explain why he's slightly I mean, not really, but he's slightly moving up in in ADP here. Um, he's not going to be my favorite click. I just think that he will return and he will make this backfield muddy by the end of the season. I feel good about that. And maybe instead of it instead of week 12, maybe he gets out there week eight, but I would be stunned if he does not start the season on PUP.
>> The consensus out there is it takes 9 months post-op uh from the ACL because if you do it anytime before that, it's like tenfold of the likelihood that it gets retore. And so that would be roughly week 11. Exactly the timeline that you said. So, could it be week nine or week 10? Maybe. Should it probably be week 11? Yeah. Does even like week nine or week 10 change that much for you when it comes to change his ADP? No, because like who the hell knows what happens in the opening eight weeks of the season, you know?
>> Exactly. Yeah. And and even when he gets back out there, he's probably not going to have the exact same role that he had.
>> Correct.
>> Um, and I can see Holani like proving his worth and this is kind of like a three-back committee by by the end of this uh season. So Yeah, I'm kind of fading the Charbonnet like positive buzz. Um, and if he shows up in week eight versus week 12, um, you guys can have that victory. I'll sleep well.
>> That does it for us. Appreciate you all tuning in to the three episodes this week. Actually, tomorrow we have a bonus episode for all of you. Uh, we're going to talk through Brendan Sorsby, quarterback from Cincinnati in the supplemental draft. And uh, I guess it's Tate. Give you our thoughts and uh maybe some teams that might be interested in him. So that's a, again, bonus episode for you on this very Friday. We'll be back next week with some extra episodes and I'll be over my cold by then. All right, everyone. Thanks for watching. Talk to you all next time. See you.