:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71294835/usa_today_18912643.0.jpg)
The New York Jets have had a rough preseason, but fans should be used to that by now. QB Zach Wilson won’t play the start the season due to injury. The Jets still have high hopes for an offense featuring plenty of young players. One position we could see New York lean heavily on early in the season is running back. Here we’ll break down the battle for starting RB between Breece Hall and Michael Carter and who has the edge.
Fantasy football implications
The Jets brought in Hall with a second-round pick in 2022 out of Iowa State. He had pretty gaudy stats in college the past two seasons, rushing for over 1,472 yards and 20 touchdowns as a sophomore and junior. So the expectation is that Hall will be the starting running back and get the bulk of the carries. He was also used in the passing game a bit and was effective with 9.0 yards per catch in three seasons.
Hall got five carries in the preseason finale and didn’t do much. Overall, Hall hasn’t seen much work during the preseason. That doesn’t mean much. He’s been viewed as the expected starter and will get first crack at leading the backfield. Carter also hasn’t gotten much playing time in the three preseason games. Again, Carter is important to the offense and should be the change-of-pace back while getting work in the passing game.
Verdict
The way Hall is being drafted is interesting. We’ve seen more rookie RBs emerge and perform well in year’s past. Hall is coming in at RB22 in terms of ADP on average. Carter is just inside the top-40 at RB39. This has been the case for a lot of RB situations heading into the fantasy season. The thing is, Hall doesn’t appear to be getting overdrafted. A fringe top-20 back seems like decent expectations for a high draft pick in Year 1. There isn’t much competition outside of Carter. Tevin Coleman and Ty Johnson are likely the other two backs on the roster.
So both RBs seem like good choices. You can get Hall around the 4th or 5th round. If he drops further down, that seems more ideal in deeper leagues. There would be some concern with Hall as your RB1 since he is a rookie. You never know. He has the talent and is in a decent situation. Carter you can get as more of a flier in the 8th or 9th round. If you’re drafting Hall, handcuffing with Carter is a good move.