Andy Janovich, FB, Cleveland Browns
You probably did not expect to see a fullback on this list, but here we are friends.
When discussing Austin Hooper we outlined how Kevin Stefanski relied heavily on 12 and 21 offensive personnel last year with the Minnesota Vikings. Last year the Vikings used 21 offensive personnel on 26 percent of their snaps, a whopping 217 offensive plays. Only the San Francisco 49ers (with fullback Kyle Juszczyk) used that personnel package more.
But Vikings’ fullback C.J. Ham was not just another big body on the field. Stefanski got him involved as both a runner and a receiver. Ham saw 26 targets in the passing game last year, second behind Dalvin Cook among Vikings’ running backs. He pulled in 17 of those passes for 149 yards and a touchdown, averaging 8.8 yards per reception.
Last year with the Broncos, Janovich was used more as a blocker. He saw just five targets in the passing game over seven games, and for his career he has seen just 28 total targets, two shy (over four years) of what Ham saw in 2019 alone.
Fullbacks are back, baby, especially in Cleveland.