It’s obviously great news for those who already drafted the rookies at a value, but it also means these two will slide up fantasy cheat sheets for any last-minute drafts. Will either be worth the reach? Let’s take a look at both situations.
MORE: 2015 fantasy football rankings | Week 1 RB rankings | More fantasy football sleepers
T.J. Yeldon’s fantasy football outlook
As expected, the Jaguars listed rookie T.J. Yeldon as the starter on the team’s Week 1 depth chart. Yeldon had been getting most of the work in the Jaguars backfield this preseason, so this comes as no surprise, but it’s notable because there were reports that Denard Robinson could open the season as the starter.
Yeldon is the superior running back and has a chance to be a three-down threat, though we’re still interested to see how the Jags handle goal-line work with Toby Gerhart and Bernard Pierce in tow. We have Yeldon ranked as the No. 27 RB for 2015 and the No. 30 RB for Week 1 in a tough matchup against the Panthers. We’ve also expected him to be Jacksonville’s starter all along.
While we like Yeldon’s fantasy upside, especially in PPR leagues, just remember that this is a rookie in a subpar offense with a shaky O-line. Don’t go overboard.
MORE: Week 1 fantasy football rankings: QB | RB | WR | TE | DEF | K
Tevin Coleman’s fantasy football outlook
More surprisingly, the Falcons listed rookie Tevin Coleman as the starting running back on their official depth chart. Coleman was limited in the preseason by a hamstring injury, but ultimately got a little more work than sophomore Devonta Freeman, who has also been dealing with a hamstring injury.
Listing Coleman as a starter feels like a necessary move for the Falcons with Freeman’s status still unclear. For what it’s worth, Freeman says his hammy is 90 percent healed. Regardless of what the depth chart says, this is shaping up to be a week-to-week, committee situation with both backs operating behind a terrible offensive line.
That said, one could separate himself and emerge as the feature back. We’re just not banking on that to happen. We rank Coleman (No. 39 RB) behind Freeman (26) for 2015 and we’re not making adjustments based on this news. However, your fantasy leaguemates will likely bump Coleman way up and overdraft him, but be careful not to reach too far.
Editor’s note: The Sporting News Football Championship is coming! Hosted by FanDuel, this exclusive event will feature 10 weeks of qualifiers, culminating in a FREE Week 11 Final with $20,000 in prizes. Sign up now!
