Why do we love this second year running back from Clemson? How and why do we think he’ll improve next year? Is Andre Ellington fantasy football husband material and how can we commit to him when he was so up and down in 2013?
Here are five reasons:
- Rashard Mendenhall retired. Bruce Arians adored Mendenhall and he tried to best utilize both players. But will Mendenhall leaving football all together the door is wide open for Ellington to make an impact. Most people thought the only thing standing between Ellington and fantasy greatness was more playing time. That will most certainly happen.
- But they signed Jonathan Dwyer… for a one year deal with only $65,000 guaranteed. That is not a vote of confidence.
- When asked about Ellington, Coach Bruce Arians actually said on the team website he wants “to build our offense around him.” That’s nice. And as a reminder, last year Arians said over and over again, no matter how well Ellington played, that he wasn’t going to use Ellington as an every down back. In other words, he’s been pretty transparent as far as running back usage is concerned. We can feel encouraged by Arian’s confidence.
- Andre Ellington has speed, mad skills and ran for 5.5 yards per carry last year. He also caught 39 passes for 371 yards (3.9 yards per catch). And he was a rookie in a time share still figuring out the game. Looking good.
- Ellington will be a steal because no matter what happens in the off-season, he still won’t go as high as Jamaal Charles, LeSean McCoy, Adrian Peterson, Eddie Lacy, Marshawn Lynch, Matt Forte (another one of my favorites, especially in PPR). More than likely he’ll also be behind Arian Foster, Montee Ball, Knowshon Moreno (now with Miami), Ryan Mathews, C.J. Spiller, LeVeon Bell, Alfred Morris, etc. Honestly, he will be there in the draft when you need him. He has the potential to be a RB1, but he will get drafted like an RB2… like taking candy from a baby.
Also, he gained 10 pounds of muscle in the offseason so he could be more durable for a larger work load. Coach Arians said he didn’t lose any speed, just got bigger.
Be still my heart! This guy is on my radar and he should be on yours as well.
Check him out:
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