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Factoid

Christian McCaffrey

Does McCaffrey have another big season in him?

At what point do we pull the proverbial plug on Christian McCaffrey? He’s been plagued by injuries the last two years, but if he’s right physically, he might be the most productive running back in the league.

McCaffrey, recall, averaged 2,179 run-rec yards and 16 touchdowns in the 2018-19 seasons, underscoring that his potential for greatness. Especially in PPR formats (he caught 107 and 116 passes in those seasons). But these last years, not so much. He’s played in only 3 and 7 games the last two years.

But McCaffrey is only 26, and other running backs have been able to return from injury issues in the past.

In the last 30 years, 14 other running backs have finished with top-10 overall numbers (using PPR scoring) after missing at least half of the previous season with an injury.

I’m not opposed to gambling on McCaffrey with an early pick.

BOUNCE-BACK RUNNING BACKS (last 30 years)
YearPlayerAgeGRunRecYardsTD
1992Ricky Watters, S.F.23141013405141811
1994Harvey Williams, Oak.271698339113747
1997Robert Smith, Min.2514126619714637
1999Dorsey Levens, G.B.29141034573160710
2007Clinton Portis, Was.26161262389165111
2012Jamaal Charles, K.C.2616150923617456
2013Knowshon Moreno, Den.26161038548158613
2014Arian Foster, Hou.28131246327157313
2015Adrian Peterson, Min.30161485222170711
2015Danny Woodhead, S.D.301633675510919
2015DeAngelo Williams, Pitt.3216907367127411
2016LeVeon Bell, Pitt.2412126861618849
2018David Johnson, Ariz.2716940446138610
2019Leonard Fournette, Jac.2415115252216743
2021Joe Mixon, Cin.25161205314151916

—Ian Allan

Fantasy Index