5 BEST RUNNING BACKS STILL AVAILABLE

BY ADAM GREENE

While important to every offense in the NFL, no position is undervalued like the modern running back. The main problem is that college football continually produces NFL caliber runners and a team can just continually cycle through draft picks (or undrafted free agents) without ever giving a player a second contract.

Unless someone is a next level talent at the position, they’re easily replaceable. And even those guys have to be viewed in the replaceable context as well because, in recent history, only Joe Mixon has managed to even stay consistently on the field in his second contract. Todd Gurley, Christian McCaffrey and Ezekiel Elliott have all dealt with injury issues. Gurley hasn’t been on an NFL roster since 2020.

It’s that same undervalue that can keep a guy on the roster, since none of the free agents (or trade targets) listed below should be that expensive to sign (with an obvious exception).

There’s still plenty of RB talent available with NFL carries (and starts) under their belt, but here are my selections for the five best still on the market.

5. MALCOLM BROWN, FREE AGENT

Age: 29

2021: 33 carries, 125 yards, one touchdown, three catches, 10 yards

Brown was brought in by the Miami Dolphins last year to be a featured back only to spend most of the season on injured reserve. For the previous six seasons he’d backed up the running backs on the Los Angeles Rams (and one year in St. Louis) Rams, serving as RB2 for Todd Gurley and held down the starting job until Cam Akers took it over in 2020.

Brown excelled in his back up role with the Rams, scoring five touchdowns in 2019 and again in 2020 to frustrate every fantasy football manager on the planet. The more carries he got, the better he did, picking up 4.1 yards per carry in 2020. In his three starts and seven game appearances, he still averaged 3.8 yards per carry.

Perfect landing spot: Atlanta Falcons

The Falcons are running back poor, with wide receiver/kick returner and all purpose player Cordarelle Patterson currently atop their depth chart at the position. Behind him is Damien Williams, who has to be the planned for featured back in the offense. Williams served in the same position with the Kansas City Chiefs as the Brown did with the Rams a couple of seasons ago and produced pretty much the same numbers, minus the touchdowns. And that’s really where Brown’s greatest value lies, in his red zone production. Atlanta is going to need all the scoring help they can get.

4. DEVONTAE BOOKER, FREE AGENT

Age: 30

2021: 145 carries, 593 yards, two touchdowns, 40 receptions, 258 receiving yards, one touchdown

Booker flirted with being the featured back for the Denver Broncos when they first drafted him out of Utah, but it never happened. He was productive in Denver, but couldn’t match his rookie season where he put up 612 yards and scored four touchdowns with six starts. He spent a season with the Las Vegas Raiders and last year was probably the most productive offensive player the New York Giants had on the roster.

Booker averaged more than 4.1 yards per carry over the last four seasons, in spite of his light workload as a back up for the Broncos, Giants and Raiders.

Prefect landing spot: Tennessee Titans

After losing D’Onta Foreman, Derrick Henry’s back up, to free agency they need that type of back to replace him. They drafted Hassan Haskins in the fourth round out of Michigan, but there’s no reason not to add Booker to the roster as none of these running backs will be all that expensive. Booker can grind it out between the tackles and while he’s nowhere near as explosive as Henry, he can pick up some hard yardage when the starter needs a breather.

3. ALEX COLLINS, FREE AGENT

Age: 27

2021: 108 carries, 411 yards, two touchdowns, nine receptions, 87 receiving yards

Collins has spent his entire career as an NFL bridesmaid since being taken in the fifth round by the Seattle Seahawks in the 2016 draft. He spent just one season with the team with 31 rushes for 125 yards and a touchdown before getting picked up by the Baltimore Ravens in his second season. He exploded there, with running back injuries up and down the roster, Collins literally carried the load and was a serious Pro Bowl snub, gaining 973 yards and scoring six touchdowns on the ground.

He stayed with Baltimore a season then found his way back to Seattle for the last two years, doing serious work again in 2021 as the Seahawks backfield once again found itself suffering injury issues.

Perfect landing spot: Las Vegas Raiders

Josh Jacobs is RB1 in Vegas and Kenyan Drake is a good change of pace, but Drake can’t take over the starting role if Jacobs gets banged up. Collins has spent a career being that guy, the man that can step in for a starter and ensure the team doesn’t miss a step. Head coach Josh McDaniels is famous for pumping in multiple running backs into his attack, much to the chagrin of fantasy football managers and daily fantasy players. Collins would add another arrow into that quiver and be a significant upgrade over a bottom of the roster dweller like former New England Patriot Brandon Bolden.

2. JAMES ROBINSON, TRADE FROM JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

Age: 23

2021: 164 carries, 767 yards, eight touchdowns, 31 receptions, 222 receiving yards

Considering that the Jaguars drafted Travis Etienne to replace him last year, the team might listen to offers in order to deal him in the final season of his rookie contract. As a rookie, Robinson was a 1,000 yard rusher, gaining 1,070 and scoring seven touchdowns to go with 344 receiving yards. His production took a hit last year as the entire team went down the toilet thanks to the disastrous, franchise killing hire of Urban Meyer.
Robinson is a starting back trapped in a back up role and while he’ll give Jacksonville some important depth behind Etienne (if Etienne beats him out), he could offer a little more value to the franchise traded for a third round pick in the 2023 draft.

Perfect landing spot: Houston Texans

I almost hate to curse Robinson with this, but the Texans have absolutely nothing at running back with cast off Marlon Mack currently sitting at No. 1 on their depth chart. Houston doesn’t have a back that gained more than 137 yards last season on the roster and that guy, Dare Ogunbowale, is on the bottom of the crew at fourth on the depth chart. It’s going to be a long season for Houston, but if they can’t run the ball, they might as well not even show up to the stadium. Considering they have two third rounders next season, there’s no excuse not to ship one off for a starting RB1.

1. SAQUON BARKLEY, TRADE FROM NEW YORK GIANTS

Age: 25

2021: 162 carries, 593 yards, two touchdowns, 41 catches, 263 yards, two receiving touchdowns

At one point, Barkley was considered one of those potential next level backs. But, like the two of them that came before him, Todd Gurley and Christian McCaffrey, he caught the injury bug. He just managed to get hit by it before he could sign that second contract.

Since breaking out on the scene in 2018 with a 1,307 yards, 11 touchdown rookie season, injuries have brought Barkley down to Earth in the worst way. He played in 13 games his second year and picked up 1,003 yards and six touchdowns, but he appeared in just two games in 2020 and has never been the same. His 13 starts last season came with career lows across the board and with his fifth year option picked up a year ago, New York is on the hook for $7.217 million in 2022.

There’s no long term contract in the cards for Barkley and, even if he’s not traded, his future will likely be that as an NFL running back mercenary. Of course, the only way that works is if he has some kind of bounce back season this year. The Giants are probably the best chance to get that, but there’s no way they aren’t listening to any trade offer to get some kind of draft compensation for Barkley and remove that $7 plus million off their books.

Perfect landing spot: New England Patriots

No other head coach in the NFL is more prone to resuscitating floundering former star careers than Bill Belichick. Damien Harris is the RBI in New England right now, but he’s never had to carry a full load. The Patriots are going to be in some offensive trouble this season and looking for an identity with offensive coordinator and playcaller Josh McDaniels now in Vegas. The last time Belichick got his paws on a running back in a similar downward spiral, he got a 1,635 yard, 12 touchdown season out of Corey Dillon in 2004.

Follow Adam Greene on Twitter @TheFirstMan.

Connect with us our socials on Twitter and Instagram for the latest sports news, viral moments, betting odds and the occasional memes.