2024 Fantasy Football ADP: Top Running Back Values
Getting ready to draft your 2024 fantasy football league? You monster, it’s only the middle of June! Okay, I forgive you. Besides, we’re only a month from training camp and sometimes hope is all we have, am I right?
Because of that, I’ll throw you a bone and dig into the latest 2024 fantasy football average draft position (ADP) data over at FantasyPros.
I did the same in May to look at some 2024 fantasy quarterback values, and now I want to see which RBs stand out. I won’t waste too much time because ADP is fast-moving, but the following five running backs stand out as possible steals in redraft leagues.
Derrick Henry – Baltimore Ravens (RB9)
I am really mentioning Henry because the last time I saw him, he was RB12. Now his draft stock is rising, possibly because people realized RB12 was a steal.
RB9 might be a steal, too.
Henry is ancient in running back terms, but he’s also just built different. His team was bad in 2023 and he was seemingly in decline, and yet he finished as RB8. He admittedly wasn’t nearly as impressive from a per game basis (16th with 14.5 fantasy points per game), but again – bad situation.
With a superior o-line, better quarterback play, and a defense that should position the offense to play with a lead, Henry could have a real shot at top 5 production.
Sure, there’s concern that he’s washed, could get hurt, or that Lamar Jackson will vulture his TDs, but Henry still possesses league-winning upside and you’re probably taking him in round two.
Take away his injury-shortened 2021 campaign and he has four consecutive top-8 finishes. I don’t think it’s a reach to suggest he can do it again in 2024.
Josh Jacobs – Green Bay Packers (RB12)
Travis Etienne and Isiah Pacheco are the next two guys after Henry in redrafts at the moment. I prefer Henry over both, and I might take Jacobs over those guys, as well.
Why? Because Jacobs is an explosive rusher who turned a career-high 340 carries into a RB3 finish two years ago. He was nicked up last year, playing behind a weak offensive line and coming off of that massive-touch season – so a less than efficient year shouldn’t have been that shocking.
Even though he wasn’t great (and missed four games), he still cracked the top 30 for running backs. We know his talent level and fantasy ceiling, and this off-season he took over for Aaron Jones.
Jones couldn’t stay healthy in 2023, but in the four prior seasons he was a top-10 RB in this Green Bay offense.
Two of those seasons saw him crack the top-5. Green Bay’s offense also did not generate many rushing scores a year ago, and considering the amount of scoring opportunities they had, it stands to reason that number could be in for some positive regression.
Could Jacobs just be used up? It’s possible. But he was signed to be a stud for the Packers and he’s certainly been that before. If he can be anything close to who he was in 2022, this offense could elevate him back to a top-5 finish.
Rhamondre Stevenson – New England Patriots (RB20)
This may very well be the top running back steal of 2024 fantasy football drafts. At least when factoring in talent, role, past production, and ADP, Stevenson is straight up coming in way too cheap.
Here’s what we know about this dude; he’s a bruising back with underrated agility and explosiveness, he’s an elite pass-catcher, and the Pats are probably sliding a rookie (Drake Maye) under center in 2024.
Historically, rookie quarterbacks check down a lot. Stevenson is two years removed from hauling in 69 catches, so approaching those gaudy numbers doesn’t feel like a major reach. His rushing efficiency dipped in 2023, but in theory, he’d have the role worth taking a chance on.
New England did bring in Antonio Gibson, but that’s a depth signing. The team is said to be nearing an extension with Stevenson, too. All signs point to the lead gig still being his, and if that holds true, you’re not paying enough to land him in 2024 drafts.
Raheem Mostert – Miami Dolphins (RB28)
There are several value running backs to fall in love with in June, but one I can’t quit is Mostert. Obviously the team drafted Jaylen Wright and De’Von Achane is impossible to ignore.
But those guys are efficient players who could eat into each other. Achane, in particular, may not even have the frame to stay healthy in the pros.
However you slice it, Mostert is an aging commodity, but he’s still a very effective one.
He averaged an eye-popping 4.84 yards per carry and dropped an insane 18 scores in 2023. Is that sustainable? Maybe not, but he was last year’s RB5 and you’re getting him at a ridiculous discount.
As the RB28, he’s more of an afterthought than a guy anyone is taking seriously as a top 10 threat. Considering the investment, I’ll find it hard not to leave every draft with Moster at his current ADP.
Austin Ekeler – Washington Commanders (RB38)
Is this the year of the grey beard? I am sensing a trend here, as every running back value appears to be an ancient vessel that nobody wants to be seen with.
Maybe I’m wrong about Ekeler, but he does feel like another value bet worth taking. After all, he will at worst be splitting time with the less than versatile Brian Robinson Jr., and he could be catching more passes than expected from rookie signal caller, Jayden Daniels.
Ekeler is aging and had a down 2023, but he also wasn’t healthy and was dealing with a contract situation leading into the season. Should we take one bad season as gospel, or hang out collective hat on the fact that he was RB1 and RB2 in the previous two seasons?
His PPR value should be intact, no matter what. But if Ekeler can find the Fountain of Youth and eat into B-Rob’s early down and goal-line work, Ekeler could be the mother of all running back steals in 2024.
Writer at Daily Fantasy Fade
DFS Keanu has been covering fantasy sports, DFS, and props for the better part of a decade, all while fighting The Matrix and a litany of assassins.
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