2021 Player Outlook: Chris Carson, RB, Seahawks
RB Chris Carson (SEA)
2020 PPR Ranking: RB19
Offseason Changes
- New offensive coordinator-Shane Waldron replaces Brian Schottenheimer
- Carlos Hyde gone in free agency (Jaguars)
Projected Stats: 1,000-1,200 total yards, 8-10 total touchdowns
2021 PPR Projected Ranking: RB15
After missing a total of three games over the 2018 and 2019 seasons, Carson missed four games in 2020. He did average a career-best 4.8 yards per carry, while getting close to 1,000 total yards (968) with nine total touchdowns (five rushing, four receiving). On a per-game basis, he was RB11 in full PPR among running backs who played at least 10 games (15.7 fantasy points per game). Efficiency was not an issue.
But after averaging 18.5 carries per game in 2019, and 17.6 carries per game in 2018, Carson averaged 11.8 carries per game last year. The foot injury that cost him four games came in Week 7, then Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll suggested he wasn’t 100 percent recovered when he returned to action in December.
Carroll wants to run the ball a lot (not let Russell Wilson “cook”). Carlos Hyde is gone, leaving Rashaad Penny, Alex Collins, DeeJay Dallas and Travis Homer on the rest of the depth chart. Penny, if he can be healthy (which is a huge “if), is the biggest threat to Carson. The possibility of a committee, albeit with Carson as the proverbial lead guy, is out there.
Carson has been an underappreciated asset as a pass catcher, with 74 receptions and six receiving touchdowns over the last two seasons. This week, he spoke about the possibility of more opportunities out of the backfield under new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron.
“I think there’s more opportunities for us to get the ball out wide,” Carson said. “I think there’s going to be a lot more opportunities out there. Even in the pass game in the backfield, there’s just a lot more code words, a lot more different schemes and different formations that allows a running back to get the ball out the backfield. It’s going to be interesting.”
Last year’s drop in average carry volume can be explained by his not being totally healthy from Week 7 on. Any projection for Carson naturally has to have a missed game or two built in though, and he may need some touchdown luck that faded late last season. Add it up, and he’s outside the top tier of fantasy running backs for 2021.
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