The Fantasy Football Running Back Hierarchy

Photo: Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA Today Sports

We are reaching the home stretch of the NFL preseason positions fantasy football at a focal point. Completing games and roster cuts grant clarity, but fantasy managers still have time to grant action to the available information. Deciphering running back usage is a crucial tool for success. Categorizing and grouping allow for a clear picture.

This piece is a personal view of the backfields throughout the league, compiled using historical usage for coaching staff and running back skill sets. This approach is hierarchical. Ideally, The Bellcow backs are exhausted before stepping into the next tier. A player's talent can transcend tiers; for example, Jonathan Taylor's talent and usage can trump the presence of Nyhiem Hines, who should see backfield usage. Teams can move up and down between categories as injuries or usage creates or alleviate competition for touches.

The BellCows

The backfields in this tier belong to one player with minimal exceptions. The backups require an injury to see fantasy relevance.

Carolina Panthers

• Christian McCaffrey
• Chuba Hubbard
• DOnta Foreman

Minnesota Vikings

• Dalvin Cook
• Alexander Mattison
• Ty Chandler

New York Giants

• Saquon Barkley
• Antonio Williams
• Gary Brightwell

Tennessee Titans

• Derrick Henry
• Dontrell Hilliard
• Hassan Haskins

Pittsburgh Steelers

• Najee Harris
• Jaylen Warren

Cincinnati Bengals

• Joe Mixon
• Samaje Perine
• Chris Evans

Barkley carries the lowest ADP of this group as RB11, but outside him, all the other five are Footballguys top seven backs. Not much analysis is needed on these players, although the injury to Harris's foot needs monitoring. Behind these players creates an opportunity to swing leagues if the need arises. The Steelers and Vikings are most likely to shift toward a bellcow situation with their backups, while the other teams look to have evident passing and rushing down committee situations.

The Committees In Name Only

Players with borderline bellcow usage dominate these backfields, but they feature a second back that plays a complementary role. There is occasional weekly fantasy utility with these backups, but like Bellcow backs, they require an injury for relevance.