The running back landscape in fantasy football seems to get a bit odder each season, with more committees, unknowns, rookies, and an overall lack of that go-to bell cow.
Also, we can’t forget about PPR leagues that make a fantasy football strategy like ZeroRB relevant, especially if you target a back who catches a lot of passes.
Speaking of backs that catch a lot of passes, I’ll be doing a side-by-side comparison between Washington Commanders running back Austin Ekeler and Carolina Panthers rookie running back Jonathon Brooks. Ekeler is currently RB32 in PPR leagues, whereas Brooks is RB31.
Below, I’ll examine their value and decide who you should draft this season.
2024 Fantasy Outlook for Austin Ekeler
After seven seasons with the Los Angeles Chargers, Ekeler will play for the second team in his NFL career in 2024, joining the Commanders.
Last season, he finished as RB26 in PPR leagues despite missing four games. According to TruMedia, Ekeler had 179 carries for 628 yards (3.5 yards per carry) and five rushing touchdowns. He also had 51 catches on 74 targets for 436 yards and one score.
Again, this all came after missing four games.
Of course, as a runner, he wasn’t efficient whatsoever. Going to the Commanders, he joins a depth chart with Brian Robinson Jr., who averaged 4.1 yards per carry on 178 rushes (and 4.7 yards per carry on 64 second-down rushes).
This situation seems to suggest that Robinson will get the carries on first and second downs, while Ekeler will be out there on third downs, primarily in a pass-catching role.
With that, I believe Ekeler really only has PPR value.
The Commanders have a Week 14 bye week.
2024 Fantasy Outlook for Jonathon Brooks
The Panthers selected Brooks at No. 46 overall in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft. He was the first running back off the board and jonins a depth chart with Miles Sanders and Chuba Hubbard.
Hubbard saw 238 carries last season and barely broke 900 yards. He did catch 39 passes, which helped make up for the value, but he was, like Ekeler, inefficient as a runner.
In 2023, Sanders played in his first season with the Panthers after signing a multi-year deal, and he was, to be blunt, terrible. He carried the ball 129 times for 432 yards, recorded one TD, and averaged just 3.3 yards per carry.
It’s also worth mentioning that this is a totally new Panthers regime — including head coach Dave Canales and general manager Dan Morgan — who took Brooks with a top-50 pick, indicating that it doesn’t think too highly of this running back room.
KEEP READING: PFN’s Consensus Fantasy Football Rankings
The one caveat, though, is that Brooks is coming off a torn ACL in November.
According to David Newton of ESPN, Panthers head coach Dave Canales is shooting for Brooks to be in the lineup in Week 3 or Week 4. However, that appears to have been optimistic, as Brooks will now start the season on the Non-Football Injury list, meaning he will not be active for at least the first four weeks.
Having that clarity certainly helps this situation because, when Brooks is healed, I expect maybe a couple of weeks of ramp-up time (three or four at most) before officially becoming “the guy” when he’s fully healthy.
At Texas in 2023, Brooks averaged 6.12 yards per carry on 187 total. He had over 1,100 yards and 10 TDs, catching 25 passes.
Who Should I Draft in 2024?
I’m taking Brooks.
Ekeler is a veteran and has proven to be a reliable pass catcher, but Commanders rookie quarter Jayden Daniels only threw 13.3% of his attempts at LSU behind the line of scrimmage last season.
Brooks, on the other hand, is the new regime’s second-round draft pick. He was fantastic in college and is immediately better than Carolina’s other options.
Due to Brooks missing time and getting into the flow of the NFL’s pace, Ekeler could finish the season with more points. What that said, I think Brooks does better on a per-game basis and will be a bonafide RB2 when he’s up to speed.
Take Brooks’ ceiling as opposed to Ekeler’s floor.