There had been plenty of rumblings of late as to whether the New England Patriots would add another back, and all doubts were put to rest with the signing of former Dallas Cowboys star rusher Ezekiel Elliott.
While Zeke isn’t quite the world-beater he was a few seasons ago, the veteran still has a nose for the end zone. But will he eat into Rhamondre Stevenson‘s workload to a degree that significantly dampens the third-year back’s fantasy football worth?
In a word, maybe.
Helpful, huh?
Stevenson’s versatility will keep him on the field all three downs as the coaching staff sees fit, but Elliott will give him a breather when needed. The fear here is that Stevenson will be pulled inside of the 5-yard line for Zeke, which could be damaging enough to make him a low-end RB2 rather than the fringe No. 1 back he was prior to the Elliott signing. It’s not like Stevenson was a big-time touchdown threat in the first place after scoring just five times on the ground in 2022.
As for Zeke himself, he’s a handcuff and roster depth but isn’t much better than a lottery ticket for a flex touchdown most weeks. He hasn’t rushed for more than 92 yards in any contest since Week 5 of the 2021 season, being overly reliant on finding the end zone since. Elliott logged a single game last year with more than 10 PPR points and no touchdowns scored. He did it five times the prior year, for context.
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The best-case scenario for Stevenson is that Elliott is merely an insurance policy and will be seldom utilized from week to week. It seems unlikely that is how this will play out, but expecting some kind of 50/50 split is far more unrealistic. Even more than 65/35 might be a stretch. Stevenson is the 1a, at a minimum, with Zeke being the change-up and spell. Don’t mistake Elliott’s lofty name value with a direct correlation to his new role; he wasn’t brought in to outright steal Stevenson’s job.
Drafting Stevenson as a No. 1 now just become a little tougher pill to swallow, and he’s best digested as an RB2. Handcuffing Elliott is wise, though the former Dallas workhorse is an RB4 on his own as a potential weekly TD flier. Reserves Ty Montgomery, Kevin Harris and Pierre Strong now can be ignored in all formats.