I posted the “SKINNY WIDE RECEIVERS” chart a few days ago. Here’s the sister chart, showing the same measurables for running backs. It’s a way of considering the balance of quickness and power.
I won’t clutter the list with a bunch of running backs you’ve never heard of or will never see in viable roles. Instead, I’m listing only players who handled the ball at least 50 times last year. And I also tossed in Adrian Peterson, since I think folks would want him on there.
I took the weight for each player and divided by his height, yielding his relative “pounds per inch”. For the guys under 3.0 pounds per inch, you’re tended to see the leaner, faster backs. For the guys over 3.1 pounds per inch, you’re tending to see the larger backs who can bang between the tackles.
I didn’t know how to handle Eddie Lacy. They had him listed at 234 pounds last year. I don’t know if he’s weighed 234 since he was in high school. He was about 265 when the Seahawks signed him a month or so ago. He was enormous at the end of the 2015 season. I went with the estimate of 255, making him the heaviest back listed.
Some other weights are probably off, but I just went with them.
If a player finished the 2016 season as one of the 20 most productive running backs (standard fantasy scoring) I put his name in bold.
| THICKEST RUNNING BACKS (2016) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Ht | Wt | Lbs/inch |
| Eddie Lacy, G.B. | 5.11 | ~255 | 3.59 |
| LeGarrette Blount, N.E. | 6.00 | 250 | 3.47 |
| Jonathan Stewart, Car. | 5.10 | 240 | 3.43 |
| Derrick Henry, Tenn. | 6.02 | 247 | 3.34 |
| C.J. Anderson, Den. | 5.08 | 224 | 3.29 |
| Spencer Ware, K.C. | 5.10 | 229 | 3.27 |
| Carlos Hyde, S.F. | 6.00 | 235 | 3.26 |
| Doug Martin, T.B. | 5.09 | 223 | 3.23 |
| Jeremy Hill, Cin. | 6.01 | 235 | 3.22 |
| Peyton Barber, T.B. | 5.10 | 225 | 3.21 |
| Robert Turbin, Ind. | 5.10 | 225 | 3.21 |
| Terrance West, Balt. | 5.10 | 225 | 3.21 |
| Damien Williams, Mia. | 5.11 | 228 | 3.21 |
| Alfred Morris, Dall. | 5.10 | 224 | 3.20 |
| Jay Ajayi, Mia. | 6.00 | 229 | 3.18 |
| Kenneth Farrow, S.D. | 5.09 | 219 | 3.17 |
| Isaiah Crowell, Clev. | 5.11 | 225 | 3.17 |
| Rashad Jennings, NYG | 6.01 | 231 | 3.16 |
| Christine Michael, G.B. | 5.10 | 221 | 3.16 |
| Frank Gore, Ind. | 5.09 | 217 | 3.14 |
| Lamar Miller, Hou. | 5.10 | 220 | 3.14 |
| Matt Jones, Wash. | 6.02 | 232 | 3.14 |
| Zach Zenner, Det. | 5.11 | 222 | 3.13 |
| Ezekiel Elliott, Dall. | 6.00 | 225 | 3.13 |
| Mark Ingram, N.O. | 5.09 | 215 | 3.12 |
| Thomas Rawls, Sea. | 5.09 | 215 | 3.12 |
| Chris Ivory, Jac. | 6.00 | 224 | 3.11 |
| Todd Gurley, L.A. | 6.01 | 227 | 3.11 |
| Jacquizz Rodgers, T.B. | 5.06 | 205 | 3.11 |
| Devontae Booker, Den. | 5.11 | 219 | 3.08 |
| Mike Gillislee, Buff. | 5.11 | 219 | 3.08 |
| Jordan Howard, Chi. | 6.00 | 222 | 3.08 |
| LeVeon Bell, Pitt. | 6.01 | 225 | 3.08 |
| David Johnson, Ariz. | 6.01 | 224 | 3.07 |
| Latavius Murray, Oak. | 6.03 | 230 | 3.07 |
| Robert Kelley, Wash. | 6.00 | 220 | 3.06 |
| Ryan Mathews, Phil. | 6.00 | 220 | 3.06 |
| Tim Hightower, N.O. | 6.00 | 220 | 3.06 |
| Dwayne Washington, Det. | 6.01 | 223 | 3.05 |
| T.J. Yeldon, Jac. | 6.01 | 223 | 3.05 |
| Jalen Richard, Oak. | 5.08 | 207 | 3.04 |
| Duke Johnson, Clev. | 5.09 | 210 | 3.04 |
| Matt Asiata, Minn. | 6.00 | 219 | 3.04 |
| Alfred Blue, Hou. | 6.02 | 225 | 3.04 |
| Devonta Freeman, Atl. | 5.08 | 206 | 3.03 |
| Kenneth Dixon, Balt. | 5.10 | 212 | 3.03 |
| DeMarco Murray, Tenn. | 6.00 | 217 | 3.01 |
| * Adrian Peterson, Minn. | 6.01 | 220 | 3.01 |
| Rex Burkhead, Cin. | 5.10 | 210 | 3.00 |
| DeAngelo Williams, Pitt. | 5.09 | 207 | 3.00 |
| DeAndre Washington, Oak. | 5.08 | 204 | 3.00 |
| Ty Montgomery, G.B. | 6.00 | 216 | 3.00 |
| Paul Perkins, NYG | 5.10 | 208 | 2.97 |
| Wendell Smallwood, Phil. | 5.10 | 208 | 2.97 |
| Giovani Bernard, Cin. | 5.09 | 205 | 2.97 |
| Jerick McKinnon, Minn. | 5.09 | 205 | 2.97 |
| Matt Forte, NYJ | 6.02 | 218 | 2.95 |
| James Starks, G.B. | 6.02 | 218 | 2.95 |
| Melvin Gordon, S.D. | 6.01 | 215 | 2.95 |
| Charles Sims, T.B. | 6.00 | 211 | 2.93 |
| Jeremy Langford, Chi. | 6.00 | 211 | 2.93 |
| LeSean McCoy, Buff. | 5.11 | 208 | 2.93 |
| Charcandrick West, K.C. | 5.10 | 205 | 2.93 |
| Fozzy Whittaker, Car. | 5.10 | 205 | 2.93 |
| James White, N.E. | 5.10 | 205 | 2.93 |
| Bilal Powell, NYJ | 5.10 | 204 | 2.91 |
| Theo Riddick, Det. | 5.09 | 201 | 2.91 |
| Shaun Draughn, S.F. | 5.11 | 205 | 2.89 |
| Darren Sproles, Phil. | 5.06 | 190 | 2.88 |
| Tevin Coleman, Atl. | 6.01 | 210 | 2.88 |
| Chris Thompson, Wash. | 5.08 | 195 | 2.87 |
| Dion Lewis, N.E. | 5.08 | 195 | 2.87 |
| Justin Forsett, Den. | 5.08 | 195 | 2.87 |
A few observations, as I skim down the list …
Tevin Coleman is a lean guy. At 6-foot-1 but just 210 pounds, he’s really built more like a wide receiver. Only three backs are thinner. Most of the backs down there are third-down type backs. Coleman is probably better as part of one-two punch than he would be as a bellcow-type back, with that lean body getting pounded on too much.
Bilal Powell had some decent fill-in performances for the Jets last year, but he was helped along by facing some really bad run defenses – 49ers, Browns, Bills. I see Powell as more of a third-down back, rather than a player they would want to use in a full-time type role more than occasionally. A thin guy.
C.J. Anderson is a bowling ball. He weighs 224 pounds but is just 5-foot-8, making him the 4th chunkiest back on this list.
Jay Ajayi is about 10 pounds heavier than I would have guessed without the numbers in front of me.
Jacquizz Rodgers has built himself up, adding 10 pounds onto a small frame since he was at the combine six years ago. He’s on the thicker end of this scale, when you might have expected him to be one of the 10 leanest – a back relying on quickness. Runs with some power for a small back. I remember being surprised in the fourth quarter of the San Diego game last year. They put him in for Doug Martin in the fourth quarter, and he was giving them more pop between the tackles.
Lamar Miller might have pulled a Felix Jones, bulking up too much. I think I would like him more at 210 pounds, where he would have insane speed while giving up some power. Miller had some 80-yard runs in Miami, but I think he’s a different back now.
Ty Montgomery has a similar body type to DeMarco Murray. Montgomery may be a converted wide receiver, but I think he can hold up fine as a tailback.