Fantasy Football 2020: Ranking the Top Handcuff Running Backs to Target

Fantasy football draft season has almost begun in earnest. And while this entire NFL, and, by extension, fantasy football season remains a question mark, we are one step closer to an on-time start to training camp. On Friday, the NFL and NFLPA reached an agreement on some of the outstanding health and financial questions for the collective bargaining agreement that may have prevented the season from kicking off.

Useful for fantasy football managers to know is that the 80-man roster deadline is Aug. 16, though if teams go with a split-squad setup, they can keep 90 players. Also, keep in mind that players will have seven days from the signing of the agreement to opt out of the season. It won't affect fantasy football drafts, but Kansas City Chiefs starting guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif became the league's first player to opt out of the 2020 season.

Most NFL players will now report Tuesday, save for Kansas City and the Houston Texans, who report earlier because they face off in the scheduled opener on Sept. 10.

By now, you should have a good handle on rankings for top skill-position players in both PPR and standard leagues. So we'll dive in with a little more detailed examination of a useful strategy to employ in your draft this year: handcuffing players, specifically running backs, from the same team.

It's useful in any season with health-status changes and unpredictable breakout performances always around the corner, but especially in 2020, when players could be re-entering quarantine, having a backup on your bench who could become a team's go-to back could change your season. 

The following analysis is for standard, 12-team leagues. 

Top Handcuff Running Backs to Target in 2020

New York Giants: Saquon Barkley and Dion Lewis

On this year's fantasy rosters, Saquon Barkley has an average draft position (ADP) of three, behind only the Carolina Panthers' Christian McCaffrey and the Dallas Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott. 

The managers who are investing their No. 3 overall pick in Barkley are banking on him remaining healthy and active throughout the season. But as we now understand, the chances of that happening for any player this season are far lower than in past years. If Barkley misses time, the New York Giants' next man up will be Dion Lewis. And fantasy managers would do well to have him ready to go on their benches, lest they miss him altogether on the waiver wire. 

The Giants signed Lewis to a one-year deal this spring after he was released by the Titans. Last season, Lewis netted just 54 rushes for 3.9 yards per carry and 25 receptions for 164 yards.

Titans rusher Derrick Henry played in 15 games last season, so there wasn't an opportunity for Lewis to spell him for a bigger role. If all goes as planned in New York, Lewis will likely be a lightly utilized change-of-pace back for Barkley. If Barkley misses time like he did last season, however, Lewis' role will grow substantially. 

While undrafted free agent Javon Leake and Wayne Gallman are candidates for a backfield committee in the event of Barkley's unavailability, Lewis is the best of the three in pass protection, and his 896-yard season with the New England Patriots in 2017, while perhaps never to be seen again, has tempted many teams to try to replicate that success. 

Green Bay Packers: Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon

Mike Roemer/Associated Press

With an ADP of 15, making him RB11, Aaron Jones is coming off the board within the first round of many fantasy leagues this summer. And managers have reason to be high on his potential this year; his 16 rushing touchdowns last season tied for the league lead with Henry, and he added another three through the air.

Jones also became the first Packers running back to surpass 1,000 rushing yards on the season since Eddie Lacy did it in 2014, however implausible that may seem. 

However, some fantasy managers may take a pause on Jones in their drafts this summer after the Packers used a second-round pick to draft AJ Dillon. With 14 touchdowns last season at Boston College, Dillon could absolutely snipe some goal-line work from Jones this season.

But having them both on your roster at least gives you a better chance of playing the right one the right week; the best-case scenario is that there are plenty of touchdowns to go around for both Packers backs.

Indeed, the Packers' moves in this year's draft, together with hints from Matt LaFleur's scheme last year, suggest Green Bay may double down on the ground-and-pound game this season. Any why not? Preserving 36-year-old Aaron Rodgers' arm is prudent, and with a backfield including Jones, Dillon, Jamaal Williams, the share of passing touchdowns to rushing touchdowns will likely tip toward the latter. 

Remember that Jones called his shot ahead of last season, saying on the Rich Eisen Show that he wanted to lead the league in touchdowns. He wound up doing exactly that, including the regular season and playoffs. Now that he's in a contract year, he's not going to let Dillon get all the glory at the goal line. 

Los Angeles Chargers: Austin Ekeler and Justin Jackson

Kelvin Kuo/Associated Press

With Melvin Gordon singing with the Denver Broncos (and himself part of a great handcuff pairing with Phillip Lindsay), Austin Ekeler takes his place as the top running back for the Los Angeles Chargers. However, some fantasy managers have concerns about comments head coach Anthony Lynn made at the NFL combine about wanting "another guy" in the backfield with Ekeler. 

As ESPN Senior Writer Matthew Berry reported, however, the Chargers still "see Ekeler as a 17-to-20 touch-per-game guy."

"They just won't all be runs," Berry continued. "In fact, they, not surprisingly, love Ekeler out of the backfield, lined up in the slot, etc. And those plays work best when you have another running back in the backfield (Justin Jackson?)."

The truth is, most NFL backfields these days operate with some form of committee, as much as the word may scare some fantasy managers. There are few true featured backs in today's league. And Ekeler offers upside whether you're playing in a standard or PPR (or half PPR) league. He will likely outperform his ADP of 25, especially given how much the Chargers plan to line him up all over the field. 

Jackson's ceiling, meanwhile, could even make him a flex option regardless of Ekeler's availability. If Ekeler goes down, however, Jackson's 6.9 yards per carry last season should give fantasy managers confidence if they need to plug him in. 

All ADP information from Fantasy Pros