On a recent episode Sports Gambling Podcast, Sean (@SeanTGreen) and Ryan (@KramerCentric) named their top ten fantasy football RBs for 2019. While they both name Saquon Barkley as their top RB, the rest of their Top 10 lists really vary.
Never mind the rankings, six different names (Kerryon Johnson, Le’Veon Bell, Phillip Lindsay, Todd Gurley, James Conner, David Johnson) didn’t make it on both lists. That’s unique since in most years, people usually agree on the the best eight or so guys – in some order – just based on workload alone. There’s much more debate this season, just look at Sean’s ranking of Phillip Lindsay.
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Sean Green’s Top 10 RB
10) Kerryon Johnson
“118 attempts, 5.4 yards per attempt…a nice jump up, nice second season…32 catches in 2018…a true receiving threat.”
9) Melvin Gordon
“I like his consistency…he’s had issues with injury…I think Hunter Henry is gonna be the guy getting goal-line touchdowns…to me this is a volume thing for me.”
8) Damien Williams
“I love taking the Andy Reid running back, especially when I don’t see him splitting a lot of carries, and Tyreek Hill was involved in the screening game a lot…”
7) Le’Veon Bell
“You forget how awesome this guy looked…this guy is gonna get a shitload of touches…I just don’t see how he doesn’t get the volume that makes him valuable…especially in PPR.”
6) Ezekiel Elliott
“A guy in three years has over 1,000 touches…is that not marker for a down year?!”
5) Joe Mixon
“He’s hitting his stride at the right time. With Zac Taylor coming in with that Sean McVay offense…4.9 yard per attempt, 43 receptions (up 30 receptions from the previous year, and nearly doubled his rushing yards from his rookie year)…it’s also a volume thing.”
4) Phillip Lindsay
“He’s a fuckin’ beast: 5.4 yards per attempt, 35 receptions (that was in 15 games)…Vic Fangio, a defensive coordinator from Chicago is coming to coach the Denver Broncos, Joe Flacco is their quarterback…he [Lindsay] got a giant ‘UNDRAFTED’ tattoo on his arm…you don’t think that guy wants to fuckin’ run people over?!”
3) Alvin Kamara
“81 receptions in his rookie and second year, Drew Brees in a dome, no more Mark Ingram possibly stealing carries from you…”
2) Christian McCaffrey
“I don’t like Christian McCaffrey as a person, I find him kind of annoying and obnoxious…13 touchdowns last year, and am I the only one who’s noticed Cam Newton doesn’t have a shoulder?…the numbers game with McCaffrey…you just have to give the ball to McCaffrey.”
1) Saquon Barkley
“They got rid of their best quarterback, so it’s gonna force them to check it down more…I think if you’re a Giants fan, you’re no longer a fan of the team, you’re just a fan of Saquon Barkley’s fantasy numbers…”
Ryan Kramer’s Top 10 RB
10) Damien Williams
“Andy Reid running back…it seems like the floor is also high because Andy Reid uses the shit out of his running backs, [and] he’s gonna be involved in the passing game.”
9) Todd Gurley
“If that offense is a fraction of what it was last year, gonna be a lot of red zone opportunities…”
8) James Conner
“The way that offense plays, the way that Big Ben plays, he’s gonna continue to catch those passes, you could see he dropped right into that Le’Veon Bell role and was able to do it both through the air and on the ground.”
7) Joe Mixon
“Who’s not in Cincinnati this year? Marvin Lewis…whoa, Zac Taylor, where’s he come from? Lord McVay’s coaching tree…and what does Lord McVay love to do? Pass to the running back.”
6) Melvin Gordon
“As high he’s going [drafted], as high as 1 and low as 10…again, my [third] tier kind of goes…is Melvin Gordon, Joe Mixon, and James Conner.”
5) David Johnson
“It’s the same reason you like Kyler Murray…Kliff Kingsbury will get him involved in the passing game…I think he has a very high floor…he’s in my second tier.”
4) Christian McCaffrey
“They have to not get him killed…they have to have plans to scale him back…”
3) Ezekial Elliott
“Workload, he’s a big dude, I do think he can handle better than these other guys.”
2) Alvin Kamara
“For me, I like the fact that Kamara has those massive game upsides…because of his involvement in the passing game, and Drew Brees’ arm isn’t getting any stronger, I would imagine he’ll continue to get those targets and just make his floor super enticing.”
1) Saquon Barkley
“He finished as the #1 running back in 75% of his games [each week] last year…Daniel Jones is just gonna be check-down city…he caught 91 passes last year…”
