Fantasy Football: The 4 Most Important Running Back Battles to Watch in Training Camp

Training camps are getting underway around the NFL, and this is a chance for teams to have players compete for starting jobs and roster spots. This is also our first chance to get a sneak-peek into how teams may plan on deploying certain players.

In fantasy football, we can gain an edge by knowing who is going to start at running back for teams that have multiple backs competing for touches. At the moment, there are a handful of teams who have question marks surrounding their running back rooms.

With all 32 teams reporting within the next week, let's take a look at four of the most important running back battles to keep an eye on during training camp.

Running Back Training Camp Battles to Watch for 2024

Cincinnati Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals elected to move on from Joe Mixon this offseason, trading him to the Houston Texans. Upon Mixon's departure, the Bengals signed Zack Moss in free agency, and he's expected to compete with second-year back Chase Brown for the starting job.

Moss excelled as a backup for the Indianapolis Colts last season, giving them a capable rusher when Jonathan Taylor missed time. Across 14 games -- and eight starts in 2023-24 -- Moss had a team-high 39.9% rushing success rate and the fifth-most rushing yards over expected per attempt (0.71) in the NFL, via NextGenStats.

Brown saw a minimal role in his rookie campaign with the Bengals, finishing with only 179 rushing yards on 44 attempts. At the same time, he saw an increased passing-down role down the stretch last season, hauling in 11 of his 12 targets for 149 yards and a score in the final five games.

Being the starting running back in a Joe Burrow-led offense can be extremely valuable in fantasy football. While Moss is the back who received a two-year, $8 million deal following the Mixon trade, offensive coordinator said it will be a 'collaborative' backfield strategy for the Bengals this season.

According to FantasyPros' consensus average draft position (ADP) for half-PPR scoring, Moss carries an ADP of 83 (RB25) and Brown has an ADP of 117 (RB38).

Dallas Cowboys

In his first season coming off a fractured leg and ankle sprain, Tony Pollard logged a career-worst 4.3 yards per touch in 2023-24 despite totaling 1,000-plus rushing yards for the second straight year. Instead of hoping Pollard comes back healthier in 2024-25, the Dallas Cowboys chose to let him walk in free agency while bringing back Ezekiel Elliott.

In his lone season with the New England Patriots last season, Elliott tallied 4.1 yards per touch or lower for the second consecutive year, and he posted a team-worst 36.4% rushing success rate. Entering his ninth season in the league at 28 years old, Elliott will compete alongside Rico Dowdle for touches in Dallas' backfield this season.

Dowdle has operated as a backup for the Cowboys in each of the last four years, but he notched a career-best 4.8 yards per touch on 106 total touches a season ago. At the same time, Dowdle's 37.1% rushing success rate last year isn't impressive enough for him to outright earn the job in 2024-25.

There is familiarity with Elliott as he spent the first seven seasons of his career in Dallas. On the other hand, Elliott has shown signs of decline in recent years with nearly 2,500 career touches under his belt entering the upcoming campaign.

Not many people have high expectations for the Cowboys' current running back room as Elliott has an ADP of 120 (RB41) and Dowdle comes in with a 143 ADP (RB44).

Los Angeles Chargers

With the arrivals of Jim Harbaugh at head coach and Greg Roman as offensive coordinator, many expect the Los Angeles Chargers to adopt a run-first mentality on offense. In response to letting Austin Ekeler walk in free agency, the Chargers replaced him by signing Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins and took Kimani Vidal in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

Edwards became the primary ball carrier for the Baltimore Ravens last season when Dobbins suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in Week 1. As a result of his increased workload, Edwards produced career-best marks in rushing attempts (198), rushing yards (810), and rushing touchdowns (13) in his final year with the Ravens in 2023-24.

Being that Edwards has proven he can be effective on early downs and in short-yardage situations, he should be the leader to receive the most carries in Los Angeles' new-look backfield. On the other hand, Dobbins needs to show during training camp that he deserves a role in the offense.

Dobbins signed a one-year deal with the Chargers that has only $50,000 in guarantees after tearing his ACL, LCL, meniscus, and hamstring in 2021 while recovering from a torn Achilles this offseason. It's tough to trust a running back who has missed 42 games over the last three seasons.

Vidal is an interesting back with Dobbins' health concerns as he tallied the most runs of 10-plus yards (47) and the second-most missed tackles forced (94) among backs with 100-plus attempts in college football last season, per PFF. On top of that, Vidal accrued 72 receptions, 700 receiving yards, and one receiving touchdown in his four seasons at Troy.

Before training camp begins, Edwards is leading the way with an ADP of 123 (RB40). Vidal is carrying the second-highest ADP at 147 (RB48) while Dobbins is slightly behind with an ADP of 156 (RB52).

Carolina Panthers

The Carolina Panthers aren't expected to be an elite offense in 2024-25, but they can't be much worse than they were a season ago. Although second-year quarterback Bryce Young now has Diontae Johnson to target in the passing game, it has yet to be determined who will be the starting running back in Week 1.

Despite signing Miles Sanders prior to the 2023-24 campaign, it was Chuba Hubbard who led the team in rushing yards (902), rushing touchdowns (5), and rushing success rate (37.8%). Even though Hubbard was far from efficient, he also tacked on 233 receiving yards on 39 receptions last year.

During the 2024 NFL Draft, the Panthers took Jonathon Brooks with the 46th overall pick. Brooks is recovering from a torn ACL he suffered this past season at Texas, and he's expected to be eased into action to begin training camp.

To finish out his collegiate career with the Longhorns, Brooks posted the 21st-most yards after contact per attempt (3.91) and the 19th-most missed tackles forced (63) among running backs with 100-plus attempts in 2023. Brooks also achieved the 21st-most yards per route run (1.50) and 7th-most yards after contact per reception (13.3) of the backs with 20-plus targets.

The fantasy football world seems to believe Brooks will be the running back to roster as he possesses an ADP of 89 (RB28) while Hubbard is pretty far behind with an ADP of 152 (RB47).

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.