NFL
Why Joseph Randle's Average Draft Position Isn't All That Bad
As the likely starting running back behind a loaded Dallas offensive line, Randle could be ready to produce in 2015.

Running behind the Dallas offensive line is a dream situation for a running back. Just ask Pro Football Focus.

This offseason, the Cowboys managed to actually add talent to their already stacked offensive line by signing undrafted free agent La’el Collins from LSU. Normally, a UDFA signing is hardly worth noting in a preseason fantasy article, but Collins is not a normal case. He would have likely been a first-round draft pick, but was linked to the murder of his ex-girlfriend right before the draft, which scared off every team. He has been found of no wrongdoing, and now finds himself trying to earn a starting spot on the line, most likely at a guard position. Regardless of how much he plays, he adds a nice insurance piece should someone along their offensive line get injured.

With Murray out of the picture, and the only truly experienced back on the roster being the oft-injured FantasyFootballCalculator.com, his ADP was sitting in the mid-11th round (for a 12 team league) in early May. Now? He’s all the way up to being an early fourth rounder. His ADP has been roughly that high for about a month now, but I expect another spike to the mid-third range once preseason games roll around.

Clearly, the cat is out of the bag with Randle. Still, though, his fourth-round price tag is not overly concerning to me. He's being drafted in the same range as players like Latavius Murray, Carlos Hyde, and Todd Gurley -- players who all have question marks themselves. I would have loved to nab him in the later rounds, but it was only a matter of time until people started to catch on. Regardless, Randle has the makings of a big time fantasy contributor in 2015.

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