2019 Fantasy Football Running Back Dynasty Rankings: Chris Carson and Austin Ekeler rising in the preseason

Heath Cummings says Chris Carson and Austin Ekeler have improved their status since his last rankings.

By Heath Cummings

Aug 22, 2019 at 11:46 am ET • 3 min read

Training camp and the preseason shouldn't have too much impact on your redraft rankings. They should have even less effect on your Dynasty rankings. That doesn't mean they should have no impact.

Two running backs who have risen in these rankings the past month are Chris Carson and Austin Ekeler. They couldn't be much different as football players, but they're definitely moving the same direction.

Carson is someone who, based on production alone, probably should have been higher in the first place. He's a 25-year-old back coming off a 1,300-yard, nine-touchdown season. He also plays for one of the most run-heavy teams in the league. It's time to stop worrying about Rashaad Penny; Carson has beat him out again. He's a borderline No. 1 back in non-PPR redraft and a solid No. 2 in PPR Dynasty.

Ekeler has been one of the most efficient backs in the NFL the past two seasons, but that's easier to do when you're the backup. The longer Melvin Gordon holds out the more it seems like we may get a chance to see what Ekeler can do as the larger part of a committee. If he shines, we'll be talking about him as a borderline top-20 Dynasty running back.

Here is the final preseason update to my Dynasty Running Back Rankings:

Rank	Player	Team	Age
1	Saquon Barkley	NYG	22
2	Ezekiel Elliott	DAL	24
3	Alvin Kamara	NO	24
4	Christian McCaffrey	CAR	23
5	Nick Chubb	CLE	23
6	Joe Mixon	CIN	23
7	James Conner	PIT	24
8	Melvin Gordon	LAC	26
9	Dalvin Cook	MIN	24
10	Kerryon Johnson	DET	22
11	Leonard Fournette	JAC	24
12	Le'Veon Bell	NYJ	27
13	David Johnson	ARI	27
14	Todd Gurley	LAR	25
15	David Montgomery	CHI	22
16	Josh Jacobs	OAK	21
17	Aaron Jones	GB	24
18	Marlon Mack	IND	23
19	Phillip Lindsay	DEN	25
20	Sony Michel	NE	24
21	Tarik Cohen	CHI	24
22	Chris Carson	SEA	25
23	Derrius Guice	WAS	22
24	Derrick Henry	TEN	25
25	Devonta Freeman	ATL	27
26	Miles Sanders	PHI	22
27	Darrell Henderson	LAR	22
28	Damien Williams	KC	27
29	Tevin Coleman	SF	26
30	Rashaad Penny	SEA	23
31	Kenyan Drake	MIA	25
32	Royce Freeman	DEN	23
33	Mark Ingram	BAL	29
34	Lamar Miller	HOU	28
35	Kareem Hunt	CLE	24
36	Austin Ekeler	LAC	24
37	James White	NE	27
38	Alexander Mattison	MIN	21
39	Ronald Jones II	TB	22
40	Devin Singletary	BUF	22
41	Darwin Thompson	KC	23
42	Matt Breida	SF	24
43	Justice Hill	BAL	21
44	Damien Harris	NE	22
45	Ito Smith	ATL	23
46	Latavius Murray	NO	29
47	Jordan Howard	PHI	24
48	Kalen Ballage	MIA	23
49	Nyheim Hines	IND	22
50	Peyton Barber	TB	25
51	Justin Jackson	LAC	24
52	Tony Pollard	DAL	22
53	Jamaal Williams	GB	24
54	Jaylen Samuels	PIT	23
55	Benny Snell Jr.	PIT	21
56	Duke Johnson	CLE	25
57	Dion Lewis	TEN	28
58	Dexter Williams	GB	22
59	Carlos Hyde	KC	28
60	Jalen Richard	OAK	25