Free Agent RB moves - first reactions

 

Free Agent RB moves - first reactions

Kenneth Walker - Chiefs

The Chiefs made a massive upgrade to their RB room, signing the reigning Super Bowl MVP to a 3 year deal.  It’s a great landing spot for fantasy as there is very little competition for touches. Brashard Smith is the only other RB on the KC roster who will mix on passing downs. Walker vaults into the low end RB1 range.

Now that he is officially out of Seattle, Zach Charbonnet vaults to the top of the depth chart, however he’s coming off a massive injury and unknown if he will be ready to start the year. George Holani is the current backup to Charbs but a good chance the Seahawks add another RB in free agency or more likely through the draft.




Travis Etienne - Saints

ETN lands in a terrific spot with the Saints. Kellen Moore has a strong history of strong production from his backfield.  Kamara’s time as the featured runner has come to an end. Both Audric Estime and Kendre Miller are holdovers vying to be the change of pace back but the majority of touches belong to ETN.  He has top 15 upside as a borderline RB1.

The departure puts 2nd year RBs Bhayshul Tuten & LeQuint Allen into the spotlight in Jacksonville. Tuten appears to have the lead ball carrier duties for now giving in a real boost in value. Allen could be a nice short yardage & change of pace complement should the Jags not add any additional competiton. Tuten would be the one with real fantasy value.

David Montgomery - Texans

This was a trade but still worth mentioning as it is a change of scenery for Monty. He lands in Houston to be the lead ball carrier for the Texans. Joe Mixon & Nick Chubb are no longer with the team which only leaves Woody Marks to compete for carries. Monty has been part of a time share most of his career & expect that to be the same here, however he projects to be the majority ball carrier. The OL in Houston is a problem, so I don’t expect a major improvement in production. Expect low end RB2 numbers from Monty & limited to no value left for Marks for now. 

Isiah Pacheco - Lions

The Lions quickly found a Monty replacement in Pacheco, who specializes in the north-south run game. The Lions will continue to run their offense through Jahmyr Gibbs but he was never going to be a bell cow. Pacheco can slot into the Monty short yardage role well in this offense. Pacheco’s impact will do little to Gibbs as one of if not THE top RB in fantasy. In fact, I would think Monty was more of a threat based on his versatility.  Because of the offensive philosophy & explosive nature,  Pacheco should end up a decent RB3.

Tyler Allgeier - Cardinals

There’s not much to like about this landing spot for Allgeier. A career change of pace runner, he lands in a RBBC with James Conner & Trey Benson. The Cardinals do not have a high volume offense so there’s not much upside as long as all 3 runners remain healthy.  He’s going to be largely a TD dependent play, much like he was in Atlanta.