The New York Giants’ backfield is crowded. They have two physically talented draft picks, and those options are not even their primary running backs.
Veterans Rashad Jennings and Shane Vereen are the heavy favorites to earn the most significant time in the Giants' backfield this season. Vereen is the passing-down back. Jennings is slated to be the team’s primary ball carrier, even after last year when the Giants played ring-around-a-running-back for the first 13 weeks of the season. Jennings, Vereen, Andre Williams and Orleans Darkwa all received their share of carries until Jennings finally grabbed the job. It's a position he should keep this season, at least early on.
“I certainly think the way he ended last year, he deserves an opportunity to go out there and be the starter, which is what he is,” running backs coach Craig Johnson said earlier this summer.
Jennings, 31, had 432 yards rushing when he served as the feature back over the final four weeks of the 2015 season. There could be more of that in 2016. Or the Giants' backfield can remain a muddled fantasy mess. All the options, with none head and shoulders above the rest, make it a volatile situation.
Rashad Jennings
ESPN Fantasy Projection: 1,145 total yards, 6 TDs
Over/under: I’ll go under on both. Jennings set a career high last season with 1,159 total yards. He’s 31 with a history of injuries, playing behind an average run-blocking offensive line and in a crowded backfield. There’s too much working against him, even if the Giants intend to make him their primary back. Who knows how long it will last? The minute the Giants have consecutive games where they struggle to run the football, it could be back to a never-ending rotation. This is a risk that comes with Jennings.
Shane Vereen
ESPN Fantasy Projection: 714 total yards, 7 TDs
Over/under: Give me the over on yards, under on touchdowns. Vereen isn’t going to get goal-line carries, so that crushes his touchdown potential. But the Giants run a pass-first offense, and Vereen's role should only slightly increase from last season when he compiled 755 total yards. Don’t be surprised to see that number jump into the 800 or 900s in a better, more efficient offense. His potential, however, is capped. Coach Ben McAdoo doesn’t expect Vereen's workload to increase much, if at all. Vereen caught a career-best 59 passes last season.
Who else could see time: Don’t count out Andre Williams just yet. The third-year pro looks spry after dropping weight. He still could be next in line if something happens to Jennings. Rookie Paul Perkins also has a chance to be this year’s David Johnson if the Giants run into injuries or nobody performs as a feature back in the first half of the season. Orleans Darkwa is the wild card after showing potential in limited opportunities last year.
