Another look at the ongoing saga of running back productivity vis-a-vis snaps played. The methodology is laid out in the original article, but this week I’m adding a twist. Normally these charts display a player’s fantasy points on the Y-axis and their snap percentage on the X-axis. I did that so that players on low or high volume offenses wouldn’t be punished for either a paltry or excessive number of snaps. Sounds good. But a reader last week pointed out that there’s still value in knowing the raw snap count; many RBs play a similar number, and it’s helpful to know who is more or less efficient with a similar workload. So, bubbles. On this week’s chart, the size of the bubble corresponds to the player’s raw snap count. Bigger bubble, more snaps. Mostly they look to be of a similar size, but I included a table at the end of the post with the actual data for your perusal. Let’s dig in.
Week 5 Only
Surprise! two charts! Aren’t you glad you took today off? What? You’re still at work? Screw it, from a distance these charts look very workish.
Since several running backs are now playing due to injuries elsewhere, I thought it would be good to look at just the Week 5 results. Otherwise, guys like Branden Oliver wouldn’t really show up on the season-long chart.
- Arian Foster. Nice game. Wish I could count on his hammies holding up.
- Andre Ellington with the uber-productive day. Not sure he can stay that far above par though. He has a reasonably difficult schedule going forward. I actually traded him away in one league. YMMV.
- Stevan Ridley out-snapped and out-produced Shane Vereen.
- Solid performance by Pierre Thomas.
- Antone Smith is glued to that spot on the chart.
- Know who played bad? Matt Asiata. Know who performed worse? Jerick McKinnon.
- Know who else had a sub-par game? Ahmad Bradshaw. Know whose was worse? Trent Richardson.
- Andre Williams and Benny Cunningham have similar points and snap percentages, but Williams was more efficient with his work.
- Remember last week, when I said “Timber” regarding Darren Sproles?
- Know who else had a bad game? Darrin Reaves. Know whose was better? Silent G, the man otherwise known as Chris Ogbonnaya.
Season to Date
Here’s the top 50 PPR backs through Week 5.
- I could get a lot more resolution on the main cluster of RBs if I just left DeMarco Murray Fantasy Superstar off the chart.
- Matt Forte is still in the RB1 tier in terms of points, and had a much more efficient and effective game in Week 5. With a softer schedule, his bubble should start floating back to the top again.
- Darren McMontee Fadden Ball.
- Hey look Antone Smith is right where we left him. Seems like someone I might want to play, but never quite do. Wish Atlanta used him more.
- With a bigger workload, Andre Williams moved pretty close to the par line. I think he’ll keep trending up as his workload increases.
- At least Pierre Thomas’ role and efficiency are steady.
- Several of the top backs came back to the pack a bit: Murray, Ahmad Bradshaw, Giovani Bernard, Le’Veon Bell. Nothing to worry about, I think, just a reminder that insanely great efficiency is hard to sustain.
- Doug Martin is trending stagnant.
- Frank Gore and Fred Jackson. Chillin’. Solid. Ride ’em til the wheels fall off.
- I’ll let you use the graphs and table to find some observations of your own. Don’t forget to use the Fantasy Efficiency App either; it’s a great prospective research tool.
RB Snaps and PPR Points
| Player | Snaps | Snaps/Gm | Snap Pct | Fantasy Points | Points/100 Snaps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M.Forte | 313 | 62.6 | 91.8 | 65.8 | 21.1 |
| D.Murray | 280 | 56 | 80.4 | 101.4 | 36.1 |
| L.Bell | 268 | 53.6 | 77.1 | 74.8 | 28 |
| G.Bernard | 184 | 46 | 73.2 | 58.5 | 31.5 |
| L.McCoy | 260 | 52 | 72 | 38.2 | 14.6 |
| D.McFadden | 166 | 41.5 | 70.3 | 28.6 | 17.5 |
| M.Ball | 187 | 46.8 | 67.8 | 27.4 | 14.4 |
| A.Ellington | 178 | 44.5 | 67.7 | 50 | 28.1 |
| M.Lynch | 170 | 42.5 | 66.7 | 79.2 | 46.5 |
| E.Lacy | 187 | 37.4 | 64 | 50.2 | 26.7 |
| F.Gore | 218 | 43.6 | 63.7 | 55 | 25.2 |
| A.Foster | 192 | 48 | 59.3 | 66.3 | 34.4 |
| J.Forsett | 204 | 40.8 | 58.8 | 59.5 | 29.4 |
| R.Jennings | 213 | 42.6 | 58.5 | 60.5 | 28.2 |
| L.Miller | 170 | 42.5 | 58 | 47 | 27.6 |
| F.Jackson | 197 | 39.4 | 57.2 | 51 | 25.9 |
| A.Morris | 193 | 38.6 | 57.1 | 55 | 28.5 |
| M.Asiata | 209 | 41.8 | 55.8 | 56.2 | 26.8 |
| B.Rainey | 201 | 40.2 | 55.5 | 41.9 | 20.9 |
| K.Davis | 178 | 35.6 | 48.5 | 52.8 | 29.8 |
| A.Bradshaw | 186 | 37.2 | 47.8 | 62.1 | 33.3 |
| T.Richardson | 185 | 37 | 47.6 | 41.2 | 22.2 |
| S.Vereen | 171 | 34.2 | 47.2 | 38.3 | 22.2 |
| Z.Stacy | 133 | 33.2 | 47.2 | 34.1 | 25.6 |
| T.Gerhart | 143 | 28.6 | 46.9 | 24.6 | 17.5 |
| R.Bush | 157 | 31.4 | 46 | 36.3 | 22.9 |
| S.Ridley | 163 | 32.6 | 45 | 45.1 | 27.6 |
| T.West | 125 | 31.2 | 44.8 | 38.2 | 30.4 |
| B.Cunningham | 170 | 42.5 | 44.7 | 23.5 | 14.1 |
| D.Brown | 186 | 37.2 | 43.9 | 20.2 | 10.8 |
| C.Ivory | 141 | 28.2 | 42 | 50.8 | 36.2 |
| C.Spiller | 158 | 31.6 | 41.6 | 38 | 24.1 |
| J.Bell | 140 | 35 | 40.8 | 26.5 | 18.6 |
| J.Charles | 134 | 33.5 | 40.4 | 41.8 | 31.3 |
| P.Thomas | 165 | 33 | 39.9 | 48.7 | 29.7 |
| R.Helu | 151 | 30.2 | 38.8 | 35.7 | 23.8 |
| S.Jackson | 136 | 27.2 | 38.7 | 41.5 | 30.9 |
| C.Johnson | 123 | 24.6 | 36.6 | 32.9 | 26.8 |
| D.Martin | 109 | 36.3 | 36.2 | 20.6 | 19.3 |
| A.Williams | 132 | 26.4 | 34.7 | 31.5 | 24.2 |
| D.Sproles | 147 | 29.4 | 31.9 | 47 | 32 |
| K.Robinson | 129 | 25.8 | 31.8 | 43 | 33.3 |
| C.Hyde | 111 | 22.2 | 30.7 | 25.5 | 23.4 |
| I.Crowell | 91 | 22.8 | 30.5 | 34.3 | 37.4 |
| J.McKinnon | 120 | 24 | 30.4 | 21.9 | 18.3 |
| J.Stewart | 94 | 31.3 | 28.6 | 20.6 | 22.3 |
| D.Young | 155 | 31 | 23.4 | 22.4 | 14.2 |
| B.Oliver | 75 | 25 | 18.8 | 36.9 | 49.3 |
| L.Taliaferro | 115 | 23 | 18.7 | 28.7 | 25.2 |
| An.Smith | 141 | 28.2 | 13.6 | 49.7 | 35.5 |
