This article will tell you about 12 interesting running back advanced stats that you should know about as we approach Sunday’s Week 6 slate of NFL action. The advanced metrics that FantasyData provides our subscribers are not the end all be all. They are very useful at helping you better understand matchups and make the best possible lineup decision.
Quick Links
- Week 6 WR Advanced Metrics Report
- Advanced Metrics
- Advanced Efficiency Metrics
- Advanced Metrics 101
- Red Zone Data
- NFL Snap Counts
- Third Down Stats
- Week 6 Fantasy Football Rankings
- Fantasy Football Projections Week 6
Ezekiel Elliott’s Opportunity Share
.@EzekielElliott ate in Week 5. 🍽️
His best plays from a 105 yard, two touchdown performance!@dallascowboys | #DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/Dp7pKlwBcT
— NFL (@NFL) October 13, 2020
The only running back who has a higher opportunity share than Elliott (84.1%) is Joe Mixon (85.5%). Elliott has faced a light defensive front on 74 percent of his rushing attempts. He’s averaged 23 PPR fantasy points per game this season and has a favorable matchup against the Cardinals defense this week. Arizona has allowed 26.3 PPR fantasy points per game this season.
Derrick Henry’s Opportunity Share
DERRICK HENRY JUST RAGDOLLED JOSH NORMAN 😳
(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/OaVuWNiXKi
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 14, 2020
Henry ranks third with an opportunity share of 83.5 percent. He’s tied for the sixth most evaded tackles among running backs. Henry has a salivating matchup against the Texans this week. Houston’s defense has allowed an average of 21 touches and 20 PPR fantasy points per game to top running back scorers this season.
Aaron Jones’s Fantasy Points Per Opportunity
The last time the Packers faced the Buccaneers, this happened. It was the only carry of the game for @Showtyme_33. pic.twitter.com/38NToX6sAx
— Brandon Carwile (@PackerScribe) October 16, 2020
Jones has averaged 1.16 fantasy points per opportunity this season. He also ranks sixth in yards created per game among running backs. This metric measures all yards above and beyond what was blocked. Yards created are generated by the runner after the first evaded tackle. Jones will test the Buccaneers defensive front this week, but they did give up monster games to Christian McCaffrey and Alvin Kamara earlier this season.
Kareem Hunt’s Juke Rate
another week, another Kareem Hunt touchdown pic.twitter.com/kqXbpdJMy2
— NFL Warehouse (@NflWarehouse) October 11, 2020
Hunt has the seventh-highest Juke Rate among running backs. This metrics isolates a running back’s on-field elusiveness and tackle-breaking power by dividing the total number of evaded tackles by the total number of touches. Hunt is averaging an impressive 2.26 yards created per attempt. He is firmly on the RB1 radar against a Steelers defense that was torched by Eagles running back Miles Sanders last week to the tune of 24 PPR fantasy points.
Joe Mixon’s Fantasy Points Per Opportunity
Last time Joe Mixon played in Indy 🏈💯 pic.twitter.com/UKiB2jSLSc
— Queen City Sports Podcast (@QCSP2020) October 14, 2020
Mixon is only averaging 0.68 fantasy points per opportunity this season. The good news is that he continues to see a high number of opportunities per game. This trend should continue for the rest of the season. Mixon does have a difficult matchup against the Colts defense this week. Indianapolis has only allowed 72.6 total yards and 0.4 touchdowns per game to running backs this season.
Mike Davis and Stacked Defensive Fronts
Mike Davis is a bad, bad man pic.twitter.com/PtaTNPFiZx
— Panthers 24/7 (@Panthers24_7) October 11, 2020
Davis has faced a stacked defensive front on 37 percent of his rushing attempts. He ranks third in Juke Rate and 10th in Yards Created per game among running backs. Davis is a must-start every week. He faces a Bears defense this week that has allowed an average of 91.2 total yards per game to running backs this season.
Adrian Peterson’s Number of Breakaway Runs
Yep, @AdrianPeterson‘s still got it.
The best plays from the @Lions RB so far!
📺: #DETvsJAX — Sunday 1pm ET on FOX
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app pic.twitter.com/a5yJK99Glt— NFL (@NFL) October 15, 2020
Peterson has had four rushing attempts of 15 or more yards this season. He also ranks 11th among running backs with 1.74 Yards Created per rushing attempt. Peterson faces a Jaguars defense that has allowed 85 rushing yards and 21 PPR fantasy points per game to top running back scorers this season.
Devonta Freeman and Light Defensive Fronts
We 👀 you @devontafreeman!#NFLNoles
📺: #NYGvsDAL on CBS
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app: https://t.co/Nnhey0KjcBpic.twitter.com/vNCEbLXq4R— FSU Football (@FSUFootball) October 11, 2020
Freeman has faced a light defensive front on 88 percent of his 33 rushing attempts. He rushed 17 times for 60 yards and one touchdown last week against the Cowboys. Freeman also caught two of three targets for 27 yards. He played 54 percent of the offensive snaps in Week 5 and has solidified himself as the starter in the Giants backfield. Freeman’s more of a volume-based RB2 against Washington this week. He’s only averaged 0.39 Yards Created per attempt.
Rapid Fire
- David Montgomery has a stranglehold on the touches in the Bears backfield and faces the abomination known as the Falcons defense this week. He’s faced a light defensive front on 51% of his rushing attempts this season.
- David Johnson has played 83.4% of the Texans offensive snaps and has an opportunity share of 80%. He’s well-positioned to go boom against the Titans defense this week.
- Chase Edmonds has an average of 1.39 fantasy points per opportunity. He continues to siphon opportunities away from Kenyan Drake and has an excellent matchup this week against the Cowboys defense.
- Myles Gaskin ranks 12th among running backs in evaded tackles. He faces a Jets defense that has allowed an average of 31 PPR fantasy points per game to running backs.
Conclusion
FantasyData has a wealth of statistical information available to you at your fingertips. Do you ever wonder how to weave all of the information together in order to make informed decisions for your fantasy football team? That’s the purpose behind the Advanced Metrics series that I’m writing this season. One way to approach any decision in fantasy football is to analyze two things. The first one revolves around the narrative. What are NFL Insiders, beat writers, and coaches saying. The second one revolves around the statistics, metrics, and other data. Take a moment to think of a piano. You can play music with one hand, but once you use both hands the music is even better. You should have the same mindset when it comes to managing your fantasy football team. If you have additional questions you can also refer to my fantasy football rankings or better yet reach out to me on Twitter for an immediate response (@EricNMoody). Thanks for reading and please sign up for FantasyData Premium.
