In every fantasy football format, running backs who catch passes are desirable assets. While it’s more pronounced in PPR, a target is worth more than a carry even in non-PPR. We’ve gone through every AFC South team to pinpoint the best pass-catching RB on each of them.
Which Running Backs Are the Best Pass-Catching Options on Each AFC South Team in 2024
Houston Texans: Joe Mixon
Last season, the Texans’ backfield was very much a work in progress. Dameon Pierce opened the season as the starter, with Mike Boone handling obvious passing downs. By the middle of the season, Devin Singletary was playing all three downs. Then, later in the season, Dare Ogunbowale started handling most of the passing downs.
There’s certainly a chance the Texans spell Mixon on third downs for Ogunbowale this year, but C.J. Stroud is not one to check it down often. Even if Ogunbowale plays the majority of obvious passing downs, he will either be blocking or running to clear space.
Stroud threw to running backs 14% of the time last season, the second-lowest rate in the league. Mixon had a 10.8% target share in Cincinnati. If he merely matches that in Houston, it would easily be enough to lead the team.
Indianapolis Colts: Jonathan Taylor
Out of all the teams in the NFL, the Colts are the ones we are guessing the most about who will be the passing-down back. Jonathan Taylor is certainly a capable pass catcher, but the team just doesn’t use him that way. Taylor’s target share was a paltry 7.6% last season.
However, Taylor was targeted at a rate of 10.8% and 10.6% in the previous two seasons. Those numbers came on offenses that featured mostly traditional pocket passers.
The Colts’ current quarterback is Anthony Richardson. Given his mobility, we can project him to throw to running backs less than Gardner Minshew II. That’s a scary thought for the receiving upside of any Colts back, as they only saw a collective 14% target share last season.
With a full season of Richardson, they may very well be at the bottom of the league in running back targets. Given that Taylor is vastly superior to every other back on the roster, even if he is pulled on third downs for Trey Sermon or Tyler Goodson, I suspect Taylor will see more targets on first and second down than the other two anyway.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Travis Etienne Jr.
When the Jaguars drafted Tank Bigsby, they did so intending to lighten the load off of Etienne Jr. Unfortunately, Bigbsy was not ready to play in the NFL. As a result, Etienne was thrust into a near-every-down role, playing 74.3% of the snaps.
As a third-year player, Etienne not only gave us the production in the passing game that we thought he’d enter the league with (13 more catches in 2023 than targets in 2022), but he proved himself more than capable of handling volume (19.1 touches per game). Expect him to continue to handle the bulk of the receiving work this season.
Tennessee Titans: Tyjae Spears and Tony Pollard
I know I’m supposed to give you an answer here, but no backfield in the entire NFL is as even as the Titans’ backfield. Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears have nearly identical skill sets. They can and will be used interchangeably.
Spears earned a 14.7% target share as a rookie playing alongside Derrick Henry last season. Pollard’s target share was 11.1%, which was actually a career-high. While that may suggest Spears is the superior receiver, I expect neither back to have any defined role.
Both will handle early-down work. Both will handle passing-down work. Whichever one ends up with the larger target share will be purely circumstantial. Both backs are worth targeting in fantasy for their receiving upside.
