Crowell/duke jr

[Meretc01]

So I just saw something on roto saying crowell will reach 1000+ yards this season.. most of.us know that this is all hype.. I honestly just believe crowell is a complementary back to duke..

Although I'm not sold on duke being a 3 down back either with his YPC last year and his fumbling issues in college..

So the question is... does crowell reach his hype and out-produce his own stats under a new system?

Does duke do what people think he will as a gio role or more like a forte role?

Or the literal answer.. bro it's cleveland, move on.

[gogobradyarm]

I'm optimistic that a high end RB2 or Low End RB1 comes out of the the cleveland backfield so i'm trying to double down on both of these guys. I like both of them, but believe Crowell ends up being the guy to own.

[jaykay22]

As far as rushing for 1000, it's not the craziest thing I've ever read, although it will not be easy as their O-line lost quite a bit of talent in FA with Schwartz and Mack leaving. Could Cro get 1000 total yards this year? That's a bit more likely, even with Duke around.

I think Duke will be a solid low end PPR RB2, a poor man's Gio Bernard, is my guess. Looking at your team, I'd wait for the second one of them strings 2 double digit games back to back and I'd cash out, as i don't love either long term.

My guesses:

-Crowell: 800-900 rushing, 100 receiving, 6 TD's
-Johnson: 400-500 rushing, 300-400 receiving, 4-5 TD's

[Jason3123]

Crowell is vastly underrated right now. He is in line to get a lot of volume. I love Duke, but I would be absolutely floored if he can carry the rock 200+ times this year. I think that scenario is far more unlikely than Crowell getting 1,000 yards. I expect Duke to play very very well, but I also envision some injury issues due to volume. If that doesn't happen, then Duke becomes a top 5-7 dynasty RB, and I'm not going to bet on that after just his 2nd season.

[Meretc01]

As far as rushing for 1000, it's not the craziest thing I've ever read, although it will not be easy as their O-line lost quite a bit of talent in FA with Schwartz and Mack leaving. Could Cro get 1000 total yards this year? That's a bit more likely, even with Duke around.

I think Duke will be a solid low end PPR RB2, a poor man's Gio Bernard, is my guess. Looking at your team, I'd wait for the second one of them strings 2 double digit games back to back and I'd cash out, as i don't love either long term.

My guesses:

-Crowell: 800-900 rushing, 100 receiving, 6 TD's
-Johnson: 400-500 rushing, 300-400 receiving, 4-5 TD's

Unless one of them explodes I always thought cleveland would draft a RB next year

[TheDeflator]

I think its the hype getting to Crowell. As mentioned above, their OLine is going to be pretty bad. They will be playing from behind all season. I see Duke getting more yards due to his catches. I think low RB2 for Duke is about right, finished PPR RB24 last year. Crowell will be in RB3 range with a few good games here and there.

[Meretc01]

Duke becomes a top 5-7 dynasty RB.

That's a bold statement.. yeah his PPR value is what is gonna allow him to be a RB2/3 but what makes you think he can tote the carries when his YPC were under 4? And they have a better oLine? If RG3 stays healthy and they can use CC effectively I can see that helping but a top 7 back? Hmmm..

[Phaded]

If Latavius Murray can rush for 1000 - Crow can.

[ninotoreS]

It's a passing league now in the NFL, so between Crow and Duke, the dynasty choice for me is obvious.

Y'all know Duke's 61 receptions as a rookie RB ranked 8th in NFL history? Also, PFF graded him 6th among RBs last year in elusivity rating out of 50+ qualifiers.

I'm projecting Duke for 125 carries and 70 receptions this year, and that's probably a conservative projection. I saw someone above say Duke is a poor man's Gio in PPR? No, I don't think so. Assuming Hill's role in Cincy doesn't lessen this season, Duke's probably going to be more productive than Gio in PPR, because Duke already caught more passes than Gio did last year (or any year), and Duke is still getting better as a pro. If Hue Jackson can work his usual magic with the ground-game in Cleveland, presumably improving the YPC of Duke and Crow, with 70+ receptions Duke will probably be a low-end RB1 in PPR, with elite PPR RB1 upside if something happens to Crow.

[Jason3123]

Duke becomes a top 5-7 dynasty RB.

That's a bold statement.. yeah his PPR value is what is gonna allow him to be a RB2/3 but what makes you think he can tote the carries when his YPC were under 4? And they have a better oLine? If RG3 stays healthy and they can use CC effectively I can see that helping but a top 7 back? Hmmm..

Please read my post in it's entirety. I said if he manages to carry the ball 200+ times..which I also said I don't expect.

[Meretc01]

I did read it all.. but maybe I don't know all of the sides to the "duke" story..

I usually just see people say they hate duke or are in love with him.. so I guess we will see..

So as a group is duke/Crowell a good 2nd to lamar miller in a PPR format?

[Meretc01]

It's a passing league now in the NFL, so between Crow and Duke, the dynasty choice for me is obvious.

Y'all know Duke's 61 receptions as a rookie RB ranked 8th in NFL history? Also, PFF graded him 6th among RBs last year in elusivity rating out of 50+ qualifiers.

I'm projecting Duke for 125 carries and 70 receptions this year, and that's probably a conservative projection. I saw someone above say Duke is a poor man's Gio in PPR? No, I don't think so. Assuming Hill's role in Cincy doesn't lessen this season, Duke's probably going to be more productive than Gio in PPR, because Duke already caught more passes than Gio did last year (or any year), and Duke is still getting better as a pro. If Hue Jackson can work his usual magic with the ground-game in Cleveland, presumably improving the YPC of Duke and Crow, with 70+ receptions Duke will probably be a low-end RB1 in PPR, with elite PPR RB1 upside if something happens to Crow.

To add to this comment.. if crow does get hurt does hue honesty Duke or terrel Watson as early down back?

There has always been some hype to watson but nothing has ever come of it

[Valhalla]

Some hype on Winston as well

[skip]

There has always been some hype to watson but nothing has ever come of it

I'm not sure where you were seeing hype. He went undrafted in 2015 and Cincinnati signed him. Now he's in Cleveland. The only "hype" surrounding him was just that he went over to the Browns with Hue Jackson.

I like Duke the most out of anyone in that backfield but I also expect him to only see a limited number of carries. There is a growing trend in the NFL that is seeing more and more "flex" players that are designated as running backs but playing a more significant role in the passing game. He'll likely see 70-80 receptions but roughly only that many carries to go along with them, 1000+ total yards is well within reason and a handful of TDs.

As for Crowell, I wouldn't be investing too heavily. As much as Cleveland wants to run the football, their offensive line was decimated in free agency. I'd expect the aforementioned Watson to also steal some of that workload. It would be nice to see them combine for 300+ carries but as for fantasy value it's a backfield that is likely going to require too much week-to-week guesswork on production.

[evorzan]

My thing with Duke Johnson is the same as my thing with Tyler Lockett (yay, a two-fer take!). Their smaller size combined with their concussion history scares me because it could just take one or two hits to end their careers, a la Jahvid Best.

I acknowledge the immense upside, but they aren't the type of risks that I typically like to take.