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As a rookie in 2012, Trent Richardson underwent arthroscopic knee surgery prior to the season and then played through a great deal of pain after breaking multiple ribs in Week 6. He overcame those obstacles to finish ninth among running backs in total fantasy points. His low yards-per-carry was written off by many as a side effect of the injuries and as both, a scoring (12 total touchdowns) and PPR machine (51 receptions), his future was ever so bright. With Norv Turner heading to the Cleveland Browns, Richardson was to be Turner's new LaDainian Tomlinson, resulting in a top-ten overall ADP.
Richardson's Career Statistics
YEAR | G | RSH | YD | Y/R | TD | REC | YD | Y/R | TD | FPR* |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2012 | 15 | 267 | 950 | 3.56 | 11 | 51 | 367 | 7.20 | 1 | 9 |
2013 | 16 | 188 | 563 | 2.99 | 3 | 35 | 316 | 9.03 | 1 | 34 |
*FINAL POSITIONAL RANK; THE PLAYERS RANKING IN TOTAL FANTASY POINTS AT THEIR POSITION
Pagano said they'd like to have a "bell cow" when it comes to the running back position but he's not against having RB by committee
— Mike Wells (@MikeWellsNFL) July 24, 2014
If Trent Richardson would drop some weight, he would be quicker thru hole & around corner (like Ricky Williams was) & career would take off
— Lance Zierlein (@LanceZierlein) July 28, 2014
"A thousand is not the goal. For me, it's personal. I'm going to keep it to myself. But a thousand is not it for me. It's higher."
POSITIVES
- Increased comfort level within Colts' offense
- Effective at forcing missed tackles
- Proven value as a receiver
- Lack of running back depth may lead to touches by default
NEGATIVES
- His inefficiency as a runner reached historic levels in 2013
- A short leash is expected with Bradshaw proven to be an effective runner
- Has displayed little breakaway ability to this point in NFL
FINAL THOUGHTS
2014 PROJECTIONS
MY PROJECTIONS
G | RSH | YD | Y/R | TD | REC | YD | Y/R | TD | FPT |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
16 | 202 | 792 | 3.92 | 7.1 | 40 | 318 | 7.94 | 1.2 | 159.3 |
DAVID DODDS' PROJECTIONS
G | RSH | YD | Y/R | TD | REC | YD | Y/R | TD | FPT |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 | 210 | 788 | 3.75 | 6 | 31 | 229 | 7.39 | 1 | 139.7 |
OTHER VIEWPOINTS
There's no one who scares off more people than Richardson. He's a fantasy football heartbreaker. Admittedly, I'm still on the fence. The Colts' offensive line doesn't look much better on paper -- especially with the injury to guard Donald Thomas. However, a good back with a feel for the system can transcend the line's limitations to some extent. Richardson is good, but it may require borderline greatness for the Colts' runner to perform as anything better than a fantasy RB2 behind that line. Thomas' injury has me considering a drop in projected production for Richardson.
Christopher Harris of ESPN understands the potential, but is scared nonetheless...
Speaking of derailing ... T-Rich finished 11th among fantasy RBs as a rookie and was traded to an offense where Andrew Luck throws darts, and he flamed out. Those of us who believed in Richardson (my hand is raised) could only make excuses. "The blocking was bad!" "He didn't know the playbook!" "The sun was in his eyes!" But the Colts have doubled down on Richardson, failing to add meaningful backfield competition... I look back on T-Rich's rookie tape and see a player with acceleration that belies his 225 pounds. I also see an Indy offense that should generate a bunch of TDs. Plus, this is a kid who caught 51 passes in '12. There's a realistic chance he produces a top-10 season. But taking the chance of drafting him to start for your fantasy team -- especially if you had him last year -- is terrifying.
At Rotoworld, Evan Silva is weary of Richardson's ascending ADP...
Richardson's ADP has already climbed into the early fifth round, which probably means it'll flirt with round four by the time training camp gets rolling. We're going to hear lots of positive reports on him out of Indianapolis. I still think the sixth round feels most right, and wouldn't be willing to gamble much higher. (And this is coming from a T-Rich Dynasty owner.) Barring dramatic and sudden offseason improvement, I think Richardson will have a hard time beating out Bradshaw for regular early-down carries... If the Colts play spread offense to highlight a deep pass-catching corps, it's conceivable no Indy back will prove a reliable weekly fantasy option.