Shawn Siegele looks at the RB depth charts for all 32 teams and plays out a few of the scenarios that could take place over the next several months.
This is an exercise I do for myself every offseason. To be sure, most of the specifics will end up being wrong. I try to project what would happen in an efficient market where teams with the greatest RB need use the most resources to address the issue. Teams with a lot of cap space sign RBs in free agency, and teams with less cap room use their second-round picks to nab the top prospects.
Even if the NFL actually followed that model, I’d still be wrong, of course. I’d get the wrong FAs with the wrong teams, and project the top rookies to different teams than actually draft them.
But what happens is usually very different. Some teams will build with the two-elite RB model. Others will eschew the position entirely. Last season the best openings were arguably in Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Miami, and New York. Pittsburgh selected Najee Harris, but the other two frontline backs went into committees in Jacksonville and Denver. Meanwhile, the Jets waited until Round 4 to select Michael Carter, but Atlanta and Miami stayed put.
