4 Running Backs Who Could Be This Year's Toby Gerhart

Joseph Randle, Dallas Cowboys

Following the monster season turned in by DeMarco Murray in 2014, many are assuming that no matter who eventually gets the shot to replace him, they will fall into a productive season running behind one of the best offensive lines the league.

And while it’s true that the Cowboys boast a tremendous run-blocking unit, I’m not entirely sold on Joseph Randle’s physical skills, or that he is even the Week 1 starter.

Randle did show well last season according to our metrics, ranking third in Rushing NEP per carry among the 12 running backs with 40 to 60 carries, showing that he was efficient given his workload.

But with Darren McFadden, Lance Dunbar and Ryan Williams currently on the roster, not to mention the possibility Dallas decides to bring in more competition during training camp, Randle -- at his current cost of 4.08 -- feels a bit steep to me at this point.

If Randle does win the starting job and avoids injury, RB22 might actually turn out to be a value come season’s end. But given the information we have now, and the fact that Randle simply isn’t the talent that Murray is, it feels like we’re drafting him at his ceiling -- a practice to generally avoid in fantasy football.