Below is each running back that played at least eight games. The fantasy scoring used was 1 point per 10 yards rushed or received and with six-point touchdowns and one point per reception.
HOW OFTEN RB SCORED AT LEAST 15 FANTASY POINTS
The decline in “good games” was fairly steep as it is in every season. There were 13 backs that turned in at 15+ fantasy points in at least half of their games played. And the previous year? It was 14. So names change, but about the same thing happens from year to year, even in a COVID-19 season.
Nick Chubb seemed to be a slight disappointment but only from missing games. When he played, he was one of the most consistent. Jonathan Taylor really distanced himself from the other rookies, while D’Andre Swift did well enough to promote optimism for 2021 with the coaching change.
The best surprises in this metric were Myles Gaskin (60%), Austin Ekeler (60%), and James Robinson (50%). The more problematic was that there were only two of the Top-20 in consistency that played all 16 games. That number was six in 2019 and that included four of the top five backs playing in every game that season (Christian McCaffrey, Ezekiel Elliott, Aaron Jones, and Austin Ekeler). And none of those four lasted every game in 2020.
BEST IN CATEGORY
Dalvin Cook, Alvin Kamara, and Derrick Henry were the ones to own in 2020. They dominated in every category and yet only Cook was that good last year.
BEST over last three years
I excluded certain years for the above backs when they were injured for most if not all of that year. Notable that Dalvin Cook, Derrick Henry, and Nick Chubb have improved each year. If Barkley could just stay healthy, he’d dominate but most of the these running backs would have one off year.