Fantasy Football 2021: Deciphering the Jets Backfield

When it comes to fantasy football, a workhorse RB is one of the most valuable assets. However, not every team has a workhorse back that they rely on. It’s important for fantasy football managers to determine which running backs on each team are worth rostering, and when to draft them.

For some teams this is easier said than done. For example, a team like the Browns have two primary running backs; Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. They both offer different things to the Browns, but both have fantasy relevance on a weekly basis.

For a team like the Jets, deciphering their RB room is going to be tricky. There are currently five running backs listed on the team’s unofficial depth chart. This should thin out as the season progresses, but for now all five are there. To make things even more complicated, head coach Robert Saleh has suggested that he plans to use a committee approach with the team’s running backs this year.

The Options

• Michael Carter (2021 4th Round)
• Tevin Coleman (2015 3rd Round)
• Ty Johnson (2019 6th Round)
• La’Mical Perine (2020 4th Round)
• Josh Adams (2018 UDFA)

With a variety of experience, draft capital, and skill sets, each of these running backs has their own place on the team. Typically, when there are confusing backfields I like to look at the contracts to see who the team has invested the most in. But when it comes to the Jets, all of the running backs make similar money.

Past Performance

The RB with the most past-production on the Jets is Tevin Coleman. He has had multiple fantasy relevant seasons. One as recently as 2019 with the 49ers, where Saleh was the defensive coordinator. The veteran is entering his 7th season and has accumulated over 4100 total yards and 36 touchdowns in his career.

Even though Josh Adams is currently at the bottom of the depth chart, he has the 2nd most career scrimmage yards among RBs on the team. 569 of his 767 career yards and three of his five career touchdowns came in his rookie year while on the Eagles.

The next most productive running back on the team is Ty Johnson with just 735 yards and two touchdowns. La’Mical Perine finishes last with 295 yards and two touchdowns.

As part of the two-headed monster in the UNC backfield, Michael Carter was an incredibly productive rusher. He had back-to-back seasons with over 1,000 rushing yards. In addition to his rushing ability, Carter had only one season at UNC with less than 20 receptions.

Preseason Week 1

With a RB committee, it’s important to look at usage. However, preseason usage alone is not all that helpful. For example, if you were to look at the box score for the Jets preseason game against the Giants, you will see pretty balanced usage. But in reality, only Carter and Johnson had touches with the first team. Neither stood out with their touches, but both were involved in the passing game. Perine and Adams exclusively worked with the 2nd and 3rd teams. Tevin Coleman did not have any touches in Week 1 because he was not available for personal reasons.

Preseason Week 2

In the second preseason game against the Packers, Coleman and Johnson split touches with the first team. Like Week 1, neither RB playing with the 1’s did well. But unlike Week 1, Johnson did not have any receptions.

Unfortunately for Michael Carter, he did not see any first team reps against the Packers. He was the most productive RB on the field, but it came against the 2nd and 3rd team defenses. Seeing Carter getting preseason reps is great, but not getting any 1st team reps is concerning. One thing that is clear, is Josh Adams’ at the bottom of the depth chart.

Conclusion

Michael Carter is currently getting drafted in the middle of the 7th round as the RB33 according to FantasyPros ADP. I do not think that Carter is worth this type of investment based on his usage this preseason, and lack of experience as a pro. At this part of the draft there are not many great RBs available. But there are better options at the WR or TE position that I would prefer to draft.

Coleman missed the first preseason game, but was immediately given first team reps in the second preseason game. He is currently being drafted at the beginning of the 16th round as the RB59. With Coleman’s previous relationship with Saleh, I would not be shocked to see him lead the backfield. You can currently get him with one of your last picks in fantasy football draft. If he is available, he is worth drafting.

If you do not draft Coleman, Ty Johnson is worth picking with your last pick in the draft. He is the only RB to get first team touches in both of the Jets preseason games. In his limited touches in his two previous seasons, he was fairly efficient. If he can continue to be efficient with his touches he can carve out a decent role. I have actively targeted Johnson with late picks in redraft, dynasty, and bestball leagues due to his potential role in the offense.

La’Mical Perine and Josh Adams are not worth drafting in any fantasy football leagues. Perine and Adams will only be involved if there are injuries to the top three backs on the depth chart. For the time being, it is not worth even considering them as primary parts of the committee.