Running Back By Committees: Things to Think About (NFC Edition)

More and more fantasy football is seeing the emergence of the running back tandems and committees. Drafting an elite running back, who takes the bulk of his team’s carries, has gotten about 10 times more difficult than it used to be. You’re going to have to select running backs who share carries whether you like it or not, but RBBCs may have more than one valuable fantasy contributor. In the second part of this two part series, Bruno Boys Jimbo will take a look at those tandems that will prosper and those that will flounder with analysis of five RBBCs from the NFC.

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Dallas Cowboys – Marion Barber and Felix Jones

The Dallas Cowboys are looking to run the ball more in 2009 than they did last season, and to do so, they’ve put Marion Barber back in his traditional role in a RBBC where he was a fantasy star despite sharing the carries. Not only should Barber lead the team in carries, but he’ll also get the goal-line looks, making him a top-10 RB.

Jones showed last year that he’s capable of making big plays, and now that he’s healthy, he should take a larger role in this offense. Jones has become so highly regarded as a 2009 sleeper that he may as well have sleeper written on the back of his jersey instead of his last name.

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New Orleans Saints – Pierre Thomas and Reggie Bush

If Reggie Bush can stay healthy, this could be a very formidable duo on a high-octane offense. Pierre Thomas will be the guy getting the bulk of the handoffs and will see most of the goal-line carries, but Reggie Bush still has good fantasy value, if he’s healthy. When he was in the lineup last season, he was one of Drew Brees’ favorite targets. In fact, in just 10 games played a year ago, Bush was second on the team in receptions (52). Slot receiver was where he excelled at USC and it’s where he’s going to excel on the New Orleans Saints—if he can remain healthy. Do you notice a pattern with this paragraph? Reggie Bush needs to stay healthy or it’s a one-man show in this backfield. Either way, it’s a nice win-win situation for Pierre Thomas owners.

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New York Giants – Brandon Jacobs, Ahmad Bradshaw, and Andre Brown

The wind is gone from the Earth, Wind and Fire trio, but there’s still two pieces of that puzzle in place. Brandon Jacobs remains the top back of a group that will lead the New York Giants to any success they may have in 2009. With no strong receiver for Eli Manning to throw to, you can expect these three RBs to get numerous carries. Jacobs will likely still have a case of the injury bug this season, which gives Bradshaw and rookie Andre Brown the potential for some legitimate fantasy value. Keep a close eye on who emerges as the man to spell Jacobs, although that job looks as though it will be Bradshaw’s as of right now. If Brown is strong out of the gate, it’s possible that he could replace Derrick Ward as the wind in this backfield.

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Carolina Panther – DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart

Everybody seems to love this tandem. When I examine these two backs, as much as I think they will produce in 2009, I can also see a couple red flags that need to be brought to people’s attention, specifically regarding DeAngelo Williams’ value as a first-round pick. Let’s start with the most glaring point – the schedule. The Carolina Panthers have a pretty difficult schedule lined up for 2009, including two trips to the Meadowlands and a December trip to Foxboro. Also, Jonathan Stewart isn’t going anywhere, despite Williams’ tremendous 2008 season. Stewart, as a rookie, carried the ball 184 times and had 10 TDs of his own. This could easily become a 50-50 timeshare between the two. Stewart is perfectly capable of punching in the goal-line TDs, as well.

Everybody is still in awe of what Williams did last year, but that was then, this is now. When you factor in how much Stewart will get the ball, do not draft Williams expecting a duplicate of 2008. For how much these two backs will be effective this year, waiting to try to snag Stewart later and using your first pick for a different elite RB doesn’t sound ignorant.

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Arizona Cardinals – Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells

The addition of Beanie Wells makes this a tandem that will probably split the carries almost evenly, and I wouldn’t be shocked in the least if Wells surpasses Tim Hightower as the team’s top back. The Arizona Cardinals are armed with arguably the league’s best aerial attack, so taking either of these running backs probably isn’t the greatest of choices. If you’re one of those guys who thinks this will be the year when Warner finally gets a wicked hit and finds himself watching Matt Leinart from the training table, then watch these two backs closely as they may see a more prominent role then. Until that happens, don’t expect much to change from this offense.

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