BALLER MOVE: Target Around ~170 Overall
CURRENT ADP: 180+ (Undrafted)
ANALYSIS: Whether you load up on running backs early in the draft or employ the zero-RB strategy, a fantasy player’s ability to identify late-round upside running backs (and super-handcuffs) is massively important to winning a fantasy championship: enter Titans' rookie-rusher Darrynton Evans. The now-former Mountaineer ran the ball 255 times for 1,480 yards and 18 touchdowns while adding 21 receptions (28 targets) for 198 yards and five touchdowns in his last year at Appalachian State before becoming a third-round draftee.
It makes sense for Evans to have a defined role as a third-down compliment or change-of-pace/breather back for the Titans in his rookie season. Dion Lewis filled that role the past two seasons for the Titans to mixed results. Realistically, it would make perfect sense for Evans to have a season that looked similar to Dion Lewis’ 2018 with Tennessee. Lewis had 155 carries (33% of the team’s total) for 517 yards and a touchdown while adding 59 receptions on 67 targets (15% of the team’s target share) for 400 yards and a touchdown. While a long-term contract locks Derrick Henry into the lead running back role in Tennessee for the foreseeable future, it doesn’t necessarily mean he will ever see 300 carries again in a season. Locked into a deal to stay in Tennessee for at least four more years, it makes more sense to reduce his workload to get the longest amount of production out of him.
Evans will have an excellent chance to be productive as a rookie whenever Henry needs a break. If Henry were to get injured, Evans would have a chance to see an expanded role behind one of the best offensive lines in the NFL. Evans is being drafted as the RB55 with an ADP over 180 (that is, undrafted in most 12-team redraft leagues). He is well worth that late-round investment given his skill set, the Titans’ run-heavy play style, and the upside he would provide if Derrick Henry struggles after the wear and tear of a 300-carry season.
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