The Best Players to Stash in Fantasy Football From the AFC North
Lorenzo Taliaferro, RB, Baltimore Ravens
The Player
With Lorenzo Taliaferro we aren't looking at an athletic freak, but perhaps that is why he is being so quickly dismissed in fantasy circles after an above-average rookie season. While Buck Allen is receiving much of the hype for those either handcuffing or failing to believe in 29-year-old journeyman Justin Forsett, Taliafero is practically free at his current ADP of 209.
As a rookie, he rushed for 292 yards and 4 touchdowns on only 68 carries (4.3 yards-per-carry), and his NEP scores compared favorably to power players like Stevan Ridley and LeGarrette Blount.
Where he outclasses both of them (much to my surprise) was in the receiving game, where he caught 8 passes on just 10 targets for 114 yards. While it's a small sample size, it did demonstrate his ability to be a productive weapon out of the backfield, and not just a one-dimensional power back. It reinforces what we saw from him in college, where he posted 23 receptions as a senior at Coastal Carolina.
Athletically, he compares similarly to highly productive NFL running backs:
| Name | Hght | Wght | 40 yd | Bnch | Vert | Broad | 3Cone | 20 ss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marion Barber | 6' 0" | 221 | 4.53 | 20 | 40" | 127" | 4.17 | |
| Larry Johnson | 6' 1" | 228 | 4.55 | 19 | ||||
| Lorenzo Taliaferro | 6' 0" | 229 | 4.58 | 18 | 33" | 118" | 6.88 | 4.22 |
| Eddie Lacy | 5' 11" | 231 | 4.58 | 33½" | 7.33 | |||
| Rashad Jennings | 6' 1" | 231 | 4.59 | 29 | 34" | 120" | 4.2 | |
| Le'Veon Bell | 6' 1" | 230 | 4.6 | 24 | 31½" | 118" | 6.75 | 4.24 |
| T.J. Yeldon | 6' 1" | 226 | 4.61 | 22 | 36" | 117" | 7.19 | 4.22 |
| Carlos Hyde | 6' 0" | 230 | 4.66 | 19 | 34½" | 114" | ||
| Jeremy Hill | 6' 1" | 233 | 4.66 | 20 | 29" | 113" | 7.64 | 4.59 |
Word out of camp is that he has lost weight and dropped his body fat percentage (#teamweightloss), which has added to his quickness and burst through the hole. And remember, this is already a guy who ran a 4.58, which is plenty fast enough to break long runs at the NFL level (just look at Jeremy Hill's 40-time and what he was able to accomplish as a rookie).
Where he doesn't excel is in the open field, where he struggles to string together multiple moves to make a defender miss. While his ability to set up blockers and solid straight line speed can make up for that, Taliaferro is not a particularly creative back, and he needs above average blocking to be effective.
But with a good amount of power, burst through the hole and speed in the open field, this is a player worth monitoring closely in the preseason.
The Opportunity
Justin Forsett had a great season last year, finishing tied for second in Rushing NEP per rush (0.10) for backs with more than 150 carries. But it's just hard to forget that he is small, marginally athletic and heading into his age 30 season with only one season of production on his resume. It's a situation that clearly calls for caution, and that caution points us towards the bigger, younger and faster Taliaferro.
Meanwhile, Buck Allen arrives as a fourth round pick (same draft capital that was spent on Taliaferro), but he excels in the receiving game more than as an all-purpose back due to his lack of power and physicality. If Forsett were to falter, Taliaferro would more than likely assume the bulk of the workload, with Allen spelling him as a receiver and change-of-pace compliment.
The NFL has recently seen the rise in bigger, powerful runners, with Marshawn Lynch, Le'Veon Bell, Jeremy Hill and Eddie Lacy leading that charge. Taliaferro may not be on their level, but he certainly has the ability in this offense to be fantasy relevant. It's definitely worth monitoring his touches this preseason, especially as a handcuff to Forsett.
