Brandon Bolden

Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: Running back handcuffs

Published Aug. 27, 2015 1:08 p.m. ET

John Halpin

Are you a running back handcuffer? I'm generally not, but there are circumstances - particularly if your league is on the deeper side - when it's a solid idea.

Unfortunately, finding handcuffs isn't as easy as it used to be, since backfield committees have become more prevalent over the years. With that said, below are my five favorite RB handcuffs to own in 2015. Not considered were:

* Committee members or those in up-in-the-air backfields (e.g., Jets, Cowboys). We'll cover them in our weekly Running Back Committee (RBBC) feature during the season, and we already looked at some of those situations earlier this month.

* Backups who contend with other backups for the right to be called a handcuff (e.g., Lorenzo Taliaferro/Javorius Allen in Baltimore, Alfred Blue/Chris Polk in Houston). Who wants to pick the wrong handcuff and end up with a third-string running back on a fantasy roster?

* Third-down backs who already have roles (e.g., Gio Bernard, Reggie Bush). These guys will do their part regardless of injury to their teams' lead backs.

* James Starks, who is always a handcuff but never pays off. I'm never going down the James Starks rabbit hole again.

Ronnie Hillman, Broncos

You could argue that Hillman has yet to clearly win the Broncos' backup job from trendy 2014 breakout pick Montee Ball, but he's being called the "1B" back to C.J. Anderson's 1A by the Denver Post. In a SiriusXM Fantasy interview on Wednesday, Broncos' website beat writer Andrew Mason agreed, noting that Hillman has really taken Gary Kubiak's "one cut and go" philosophy to heart.

Remember that before Anderson burst onto the scene last season, Hillman ran 83 times for 363 yards and three touchdowns in five full games as a starter. He's capable of carrying the load if CJA goes down.

Jonas Gray, Patriots

The Pats have had a 200-carry back just twice in the last nine seasons, so if you think LeGarrette Blount is going to lead the way for 16, er, 15 games, you're probably kidding yourself. Whether Belichick tinkers, uses the hot hand, plays mind games with his players or simply gets bored, he's displayed a habit for unpredictably changing up his team's running game.

Combine that with the fact that Blount hasn't carried more than 201 times in his five NFL seasons, and you can easily envision a scenario in which Gray takes over, at least for awhile. At least before he cedes playing time to James White, and then Brandon Bolden, and then some guy we've never heard of ...

Matt Jones, Redskins

Jones was the Redskins' third-round pick in this year's draft. The team seems to like how he blocks and catches, which are important factors for rookies seeking playing time. Jones will function as a third-down back, but at 6'2" and 231 pounds, he's powerful enough to get work on early downs should something happen to Alfred Morris.

Cameron Artis-Payne, Panthers

Jonathan Stewart was a workhorse down the stretch last season, running 128 times for 679 yards and a touchdown in the team's final seven games, including playoff matchups against the Cardinals and Seahawks. There's plenty to be excited about this season with Stewart, but he's as injury-prone as any top-20 fantasy back. If you draft him, you'll need a backup plan.

Enter Artis-Payne, whom the Panthers selected in the fifth round of this year's draft. Artis-Payne led the SEC in rushing last season with 1,608 yards, and added 13 touchdowns. He's not viewed as a future star, but at 25 is a relatively finished product who can assume a large workload right away if Stewart gets hurt. If anyone needs a handcuff, it's Stewart.

Knile Davis, Chiefs

The handcuff of all handcuffs. Not because we don't like the guy in front of him, but because we've already seen what Davis can do when Jamaal Charles goes down or gets a breather.

In 2014, Davis ran 70 times for 318 yards and three touchdowns while Charles missed most of Week 2, all of Week 3 and much of Week 4 (when the Chiefs blew out the Patriots).

In 2013, the Chiefs rested Charles in their season finale. Davis carried 27 times for 81 yards and two scores in that overtime loss to the Chargers.

Charles isn't exactly a bruiser, and the Chiefs limited him to 206 carries last season. If he misses any time, Davis is a lock to be a very busy man.