The 2023 NFL Draft is over, and landing spots have been declared. In your dynasty leagues, you have a plethora of picks in all rounds and are eager to fill up a position of need; running back.
Who do you target? When do you make the selection? How do you know who to pick and why? Worry not. This article is here to help guide you through your running back woes. I will often reference my final ranks, so take a quick glance if you haven't seen them.
The first thing to mention is to never force a pick of a running back if it's unnecessary. That's how people were burned with Ke'Shawn Vaughn and Trey Sermon in the previous drafts. If you need a running back and are on the clock, take the best player available.
The number one rule of dynasty is to draft for talent and trade for need. You have four months to trade to fill the void, so don't force something that's not there. You'll have plenty of time between now and then to get something done.
FIRST ROUND
In this draft, we have Bijan Robinson and Jamyr Gibbs going in the top two in nearly all drafts. In my opinion, Robinson is in a tier all by himself. While Gibbs is an entire tier below him, he's also a quality pick who could be a surefire stud in Detroit if appropriately used—Draft Robinson with confidence and Gibbs with positivity.
After that, we have two who sneak in towards the end of the draft Zach Charbonnet and Devon Achane. It's a shame that Charbonnet was selected to a team that already had a competent back in Kenneth Walker, which likely means a split-back scenario in the run-heavy offense in Seattle.
While this is upsetting, let's not forget the recent two-back systems that have been able to produce two startable fantasy players. We had Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt in Cleveland, Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard in Dallas, and Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon in Green Bay.
Based on the above, it's not impossible that Charbonnet and Walker are both decent fantasy options starting this season. His value dropped after being selected by Seattle, but a spot ranging from tenth to 12th overall is still fair value. If you need a back and sitting at the tenth spot, there's no shame in pulling the trigger.
Devon Achane, on the other hand, is a huge question mark that I cannot get on board with. Sure, he has excellent speed, and yes, we've seen the Dolphins put together a great game plan before, but that offense can't possibly be run through a 5'9", 185-pound speedster.
I like speed, but I like it better when it's in the body of a player who weighs 30 pounds more than Achane. I think you can do better as a dynasty owner drafting a player from another position or trading back into the second round, where some real values can be had. Don't reach on Achane. You'll be sad if you do.
