NFL

Fantasy Football: 5 Running Backs Who Easily Outperformed Their 2016 Preseason Rankings

Joe Kacik  —  @JKacik Feb 1st, 2017
Mike Gillislee went undrafted in most fantasy football leagues, but ended up being quite the asset in 2016. Which other running backs exceeded expectations?

When looking at running backs who exceeded fantasy football preseason expectations in 2016, two names quickly jump out: Jordan Howard and Jay Ajayi. Both ranked outside of the preseason top 100, but finished among the top 50 overall scorers in standard leagues.

Since both have been featured in several articles, we'll focus on the next five backs who finished well above their preseason rankings. The following group proved that reserve backs carry significant fantasy value -- two of the five are backups, while a third was a backup for half the season.

Here are five running backs who didn't get taken before the 10th round in fantasy drafts, yet finished among the top 30 at the position in standard leagues.

Start The Slideshow