Dynasty Buckets, a Different Look at Tiers: Running Backs

Below, you'll find running backs grouped by bucket, along with the tier in which they currently reside in the Footballguys Dynasty Rankings for a little added fine-tuning.

We did our initial run of running back buckets back in the second week of May.

For this second edition, I've used the comments to highlight players who have had recent news out of OTAs, or who have moved up or down since our first go-round.

RELATED: See updated Quarterback Dynasty Buckets here.

We're still a pretty long way from meaningful information. At this point, it's just nice to know who is signed, who is healthy, and who seems to be using the offseason to try out new roles or settle into old ones. I've noted in the lists here where a player has moved up or down within the tiers in our consensus rankings since last month. While it's worth noting, don't go too crazy trying to analyze it. At this time of year, people tend to make small adjustments to their rankings when small pieces of news emerge from these camps. Those small tweaks can move a player up or down in the consensus tiers, but you shouldn't take that movement to be all that meaningful in June. A guy who has jumped a tier this month could easily fall a tier next month. On top of that, the running back position is so fungible that, in situations where things are a little murky, it can be almost impossible to know who will be playing what role come September. So it's worth noting when a player moves up or down a bucket or tier in June, but don't overreact to it.

Starters (with Footballguys Tier in parentheses)

Players I'm comfortable starting, either at a specific position, or at a flex or superflex spot.

• Jahmyr Gibbs, DET (1)
• Bijan Robinson, ATL (1)
• Ashton Jeanty, LV (1)
• De'Von Achane, MIA (1)
• Breece Hall, NYJ (1)
• Saquon Barkley, PHI (1)
• Bucky Irving, TB (2): Irving stays in the starter bucket, but he drops from tier one to tier two in the Footballguys consensus dynasty rankings. That is likely just a reflection of some of the shifting values of players around him, though, and Irving should remain a safe starter as we head into training camp.
• Omarion Hampton, LAC (2)
• Chase Brown, CIN (2)
• Kyren Williams, LAR (2)
• Jonathan Taylor, IND (2)
• Christian McCaffrey, SF (3) CMC has also dropped a tier since last month. I'm not holding him on any dynasty rosters at this point unless I am just about guaranteed to be in the hunt all year. If there's even a question of whether I am a contender, I am trying to ship him out. Unfortunately, it's probably too late to find another manager who will pay a premium for him.
• Ken Walker III, SEA (2) Dealing with an ankle injury early in the summer. Keep an eye on his health as he heads into training camp. Still a great piece for a contending dynasty team if he can stay healthy, but managers might want to insure him with Zach Charbonnet wherever possible.
• James Cook, BUF (3) Cook goes from tier two last month to tier three this month. This could just be a reflection of his ongoing contract situation. He seems on a path to be a "hold-in" -- a player who shows up to camp but doesn't practice -- if the contract isn't figured out by the time players report to camp. I don't get nervous about contract stuff until players start missing training camp time. We're knocking on the door here.
• Josh Jacobs, GB (2)
• Quinshon Judkins, CLE (3) Tier two last month.
• Kaleb Johnson, PIT (3)
• Chuba Hubbard, CAR (3)
• Alvin Kamara, NO (3) He's rightfully a Tier 3 dynasty asset, but he should outperform that spot for at least one more season.
• Derrick Henry, BAL (3)
• Joe Mixon, HOU (3) See below. Likely to see a somewhat reduced workload if Chubb is healthy and plays well.
• Nick Chubb, HOU (FA) The Texans are finished with OTAs, but we are no closer to clarity on what Chubb's role could be in the offense or what it might mean for Mixon. Both players are aging, both players are coming off injury, and both players have produced pretty regularly when they've been on the field. I think pairing Chubb with Mixon might be about attrition as much as anything else. When both backs are healthy (IF both backs are healthy?) Houston coaches are likely to rotate them and to ride the hot hand to keep both healthy all season. But remember, we're talking dynasty here. Chubb is a freak of nature, but Father Time is undefeated. If I am a contender and I have Mixon or Chubb, I'm probably trying to obtain the other one at some point before the season begins. As veteran backs go, these are two I'm willing to bet on being able to produce in the short term. If I am in rebuild mode, I'm looking for any opportunity to move one or both of them before another injury hits.
• David Montgomery, DET (3)
• RJ Harvey, DEN (3) I see a lot of people trying to figure out, now that Dobbins has signed, who is going to be the "Kamara" or the "Ingram" or the "Sproles" or "Reggie Bush" in Denver. Sean Payton is a mad wizard who hates fantasy football players when it comes to running back rotations. It's comfortable to try, but honestly not very informative to compare the Denver backfield to Saints backfields from a decade or two ago. The game has changed, the personnel is different, and even though Payton is Payton, what I remember most from his running back usage in New Orleans is that even when guys seemed to have set roles, it was tough to tell week to week whose turn it would be to score the points. Dobbins' presence doesn't change Harvey's outlook for me from a dynasty perspective, but it might muddle his value a bit in the short term.
• Isiah Pacheco, KC (4) Tier three last month
• D'Andre Swift, CHI (4) Tier three last month
• Najee Harris, LAC (4) Tier three last month
• TreVeyon Henderson, NE (3)