Looking for some hidden value at the running back position in your 2024 fantasy football drafts? The team at Yahoo Fantasy highlights five of their favorite RB sleepers to consider in the late rounds.
Chase Brown, Cincinnati Bengals
When Zack Moss signed with the Bengals, I initially imagined I’d have him as a proactive draft pick. Moss is still someone I don’t mind taking a shot on but most of the buzz out of training camp is that Brown is likely to be the 1A back of the committee. Brown is simply going too late on Yahoo, as he’s the 115th overall player off the board and the RB36.
Brown made some explosive plays in limited looks last year and brought some juice to a Bengals backfield that has not hit home runs in years. As teams continue to clamp the Bengals' deep-pass game, Cincinnati must look for explosives elsewhere. Brown is a viable option in the backfield. — Matt Harmon
Rico Dowdle, Dallas Cowboys
Dowdle appears to be winning the RB1 job in Cowboys camp right now. He’s a 26-year-old back who has never started a game in his NFL career. However, he did see the most usage of his career last season, earning 106 total touches. Dowdle was good on this usage, too, ranking 23rd in yards per touch and top 20 in broken tackle rate. This offseason, the Cowboys didn’t draft any running backs and Ezekiel Elliott was the only key free agent they added at the position.
Last season an inefficient, and potentially injured, Tony Pollard was able to post over 1,300 total yards and 6 TDs in this Cowboys offense. If Dowdle sees anywhere near this production, he’ll be a league winner in Round 12 of drafts. — Sal Vetri
Jonathon Brooks, Carolina Panthers
The update regarding Jonathan Brooks’ injury timeline was disappointing but with Brooks dropping in ADP, he’s now in an excellent range for a sleeper pick with true RB1 upside. Despite coming off an ACL injury, Brooks was widely viewed as the top back in the 2024 draft class and landed in a Carolina backfield where he’ll take immediate priority as lead back when healthy. Brooks is expected to be available by Week 4 and has all the skill sets to thrive in Dave Canales’ offense.
Concerns around Carolina’s offense are valid, but don’t let that dissuade you from drafting Brooks. While there will be growing pains, I expect improvement from the entire offense with offensive line investments and receiving corps upgrades. Goal-line opportunities may be scarce, but Brooks will have strong receiving upside in an offense that gave Rachaad White a whopping 64 receptions in 2023. — Tera Roberts
Gus Edwards, Los Angeles Chargers
If we learned anything from Jim Harbaugh’s head coaching tenure at Michigan, it’s that he wants to run the football. This means that Edwards, who projects as the Week 1 starter for the Harbaugh-led Chargers, jumps out as a potential steal in fantasy drafts.
Edwards was quietly very productive as part of the Ravens high-flying offense last season, totaling 810 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns en route to an RB20 finish.
Edwards may see some competition for touches from the oft-injured J.K. Dobbins and rookie Kimani Vidal this year, but I expected him to be the goal-line back for an underrated Chargers offense that still has a top-five quarterback in Justin Herbert under center.
Currently being drafted outside the top 30 running backs, I think Edwards will easily outperform his ADP this season and prove to be a legitimate fantasy starter. — Pranav Rajaram
Blake Corum, Los Angeles Rams
We trust you saw plenty of Corum last year during Michigan’s undefeated national title run. Corum ran for 1,245 yards and an outrageous 27 touchdowns. He found the end zone in every game and finished his season with seven straight multi-TD performances, facing several of the country’s best defenses.
The Rams selected Corum in the third round of the draft, which — given the NFL’s current relationship with running backs — tells you they absolutely love the player. It’s reasonable to think he’s going to have a non-trivial backfield role in support of Williams.
One thing we all should have learned last year is that, when Sean McVay’s team is telling us they love a player, it’s not just meaningless hype. — Andy Behrens
Jerome Ford, Cleveland Browns
We can't say Jerome Ford was a league-winner last year, but he moved the needle. After the gruesome Nick Chubb injury in September, Ford charted as the RB16 through the end of the fantasy season.
Chubb is expected back in 2024, but when, exactly? There's been a light drumbeat of positive Chubb news this summer, but nothing tangible, exactly. Ford is a play-for-now pick and a fade-injury-optimism pick, likely to be a fantasy asset at the mere Yahoo cost of RB42 (123.6 overall). — Scott Pianowski
