The best handcuffs in fantasy football: The Fantasy Chronicles

Life in fantasy isn't always all fun and games, but that doesn't mean we don't appreciate the ups and downs that each season brings. Accordingly, we'll be chronicling some of the ups and downs of the fantasy calendar as the 2024 season progresses. And here's how it continues: We're in Week 2…

Every year there are surprises at every position in fantasy football land. A quarterback or two in the final rounds will blossom, some young wide receivers will make the jump and prove to be real ballers, and maybe even an afterthought at TE will bring enough volume to shoot up the ranks.

This means that no position produces more random producers than RB.

Anyone good enough to make an NFL roster is a great football player, but the fact that RBs are more dependent on their scoring environment and offensive line than any other position generally makes them more replaceable. This is why “zero-RB” is such a popular draft strategy and why the franchise tag for this position (average of the five highest-paid players) is lower than for all others except kickers.

The latest NPC to run away with a new main job and produce tons of fantasy points: 49ers RB Jordan MasonWhile the third-year talent was not exactly an unknown this season –Chris Allen from Fantasy Life and I actually yelled at him as Sleeper worth pursuing in August – Mason’s overall ranking as the PPR RB5 in Week 1 demonstrated the reality that it doesn’t always take a true top-5 talent at the position to achieve elite fantasy numbers.

Mason's fantasy managers are excited to have the handcuffs to Christian McCaffrey (calf/Achilles) is in – but remember, folks: It's only Week 2. We still have A LOT of football to play, which means there are bound to be many more fantasy-relevant moves in the league's RB depth charts over the rest of the season.

This brings us to today's key question: Which handcuff RBs should fantasy managers prioritize today in the hopes that they will be the Jordan Mason?

I tried to find backs that meet the following five criteria:

• Available in over 70% of ESPN/Yahoo leagues
• Theoretical three-down skillset to take on a workhorse role should the opportunity arise
• At least proof that you can't fail in real football
• In a crime that does not absolutely fail
• Apparently only one injury away from a regular place

Handcuffs in fantasy football as a target before week 2

Bucky Irving – Buccaneers

• Yahoo: 29% in the squad
• ESPN: 27.5%

Rachaad White is THE running back in Tampa Bay, folks, although Irving sure looked like THE RB2 in Week 1.

It's always a bit risky to trust rookies on day three in fantasy land, but at this point we have provable evidence that Irving is indeed the clear No. 2 prospect in the league. the most offensive team that has a real RB as a workhorse just a season ago.

And to the credit of the Oregon product: He looked GOOD in week 1.

While the sample size isn't very large, Irving deserves credit for averaging a solid 6.9 yards per carry while White managed just 2.1. Yes, that was in large part due to a single 31-yard run through an objectively huge hole. And yes, White was among the least efficient runners in the NFL earlier in his career and now suddenly has someone behind him who might be ready to apply pressure.

Will Irving displace White as starter? Unlikely. The absence of Chase Edmonds (knee, IR) has cleared the way for Irving to take on a legitimate full-time role should White be out for an extended period this year.

Reminder: Irving scored more PPR points per game through pure reception production (7) than anyone else in the 2022-23 season prominent RB in his draft year. His less than ideal size (5'9″, 195 lbs) may limit his potential for a role as a true workhorse, but on the other hand, that factor hasn't seemed to stop coaches from putting him in the mix as the next man up.

Bottom line: Irving has exactly the receiver-friendly archetype we're looking for at the position, and also seems locked in as the team's No. 2 runner at this point. The Bucs' history of relying on a single person and their status as an average-to-above-average offense make the rookie a more than solid handcuff to stash on the bench.

Tank Bigsby – Jaguars

• Yahoo: 26% in the squad
• ESPN: 13.4%

Last year was abysmal for Bigsby. He averaged 2.6 yards per carry and finished with three or fewer carries in all but three games, although there was much speculation in the offseason that he would help Travis Etienne. Bigsby's work as a pass receiver in particular was a damn horror movie.

And yet the Jaguars have not created any significant competition in the backfield this offseason, and more positive trainer statements has held out every step of the way. While I didn't expect ETN's workload to drop noticeably, it did in Week 1. According to Fantasy Life's Utilization Report hub:

One should not expect Bigsby to take his starting spot away any time soon, but the second-year deficit looked really good out there and is clearly the next man up in an offense that happily gave Etienne 325 touches last season.

Of course, the Jaguars' offense didn't blow anyone away in their 20-17 loss to the Dolphins, but to their credit, the offensive line averaged a solid 1.7 yards before contact per carry (10th), quite an improvement over last year's league-worst 0.7.

Conclusion: Bigsby would be in the conversation for a mid-range RB2 immediately if ETN was on the bench, and he could move into the top-10 conversation if the coaching staff decides not to sign someone like D’Ernest Johnson overly involved in passing attempts. God forbid T-Law and Co. decide to develop anything approaching a high-level offensive tactic and we could be looking at one of the better handcuffs in fantasy.

Braelon Allen – Jets

• Yahoo: 9% in the squad
• ESPN: 7.3%

The Jets backfield is the Breece Hall Show for now. And it should. The man is really good at football and has the explosive skills that make him a workhorse on every down.

Overall, no RB had a higher Utilization value as Hall in Week 1 – we are seriously talking about THE most valuable role in fantasy football right now.

But what if something were to happen to Hall? I hate to talk about a possible injury. So let's say he wins the lottery tomorrow and decides, “You know what? I'm going to take the rest of the season off.” What then?

Newbie join Braelon Allenwho received all sorts of positive reviews during training camp and was the only other Jets running back to touch the field on offense in Week 1.

While all but one of his eight snapshots next to Thomas Taylor Towards the end of the 4th quarter, it was perhaps significant that No. 3 RB Isaiah Davis didn't receive a single offensive snap in a two-minute setting. There's no doubt that Allen would be the favorite to run the most runs if Hall were to miss a game, but we also shouldn't discount the fact that he could step into a real workhorse role in the event of a disaster.

Bottom line: There are far worse backups than someone who is one injury away from running for 15 or more runs in an offense that isn't expected to completely fail. And the ability to function as a check-down option for a 40-year-old quarterback with limited mobility would put Allen on the cover of every waiver wire article in the industry should Hall ever be taken out of the game.

We wish everyone the best of luck this week and always remember: It's a great day to be great!