Fantasy Football Points Allowed to Running Backs 2024-25

How To Read Fantasy Points Allowed To Running Back Page

Looking through the table, you are going to see a lot of different columns, but they all and up equaling out to fantasy points. Starting from left to right, you are going to see the defense and their overall rating, which is made up of multiple defensive stats for that team. It does not fully indicate a run defense number, but their overall rating. This way, you can still see how they align with fantasy points allowed to running backs. The fantasy points allowed is broken into a per game and fantasy points total column. This helps you see the average they allow, but also totals in comparison to the rest of the league. The red zone numbers showcase the amount of fantasy points they allow within the red zone, and where it ranks in comparison to the rest of the league.

The actual stats allowed are going to all add up into fantasy points, but it breaks out how those fantasy points are coming about. You also see how many touches running backs are getting against this defense, which truly shows the amount of volume a running back is getting against a specific defense. Teams that are allowing a lot of yards per attempt grade out as some of the poorer run defenses in the league. This usually translates into touchdowns, but not all the time. Whenever you see yards and attempts high but touchdowns low, that defense can be due for some regression. A site like DraftKings has over 100+ yard bonus in their scoring, so you can pinpoint what defenses are allowing that bonus the most.

A lot of running backs also work in the receiving game, which is a major way of picking up fantasy points now that PPR is a popular scoring format. See how many targets are going to running backs against the a specific defense. Followed by their amount of receptions, yards, and touchdowns. Some defenses are going to give up much more through the air, which hurts them in one scoring format, but not as much as another.

That is why making sure you have the correct tabs selected up top is important. Start with the site tabs to make it easier, where you get the correct scoring brought in. Some defenses are going to have a volatile ranking when you cross all three tabs. Per game is the default here, and the usually preferred way of looking at things because you can see what they allow on average per game. You can also break down stats to specific weeks. If you want to look over the second half of the season, then narrow down the slider. If you want to look over the last four or five weeks, set the slider to your choosing. Just make sure everything is to your choosing, and the table will update with your selections.

What Factors Into A Defense Allowing More Fantasy Points To Running Backs

So what goes into a defense that allows a lot of fantasy points to opposing running backs. Well, there are a lot of different factors. In PPR scoring, receptions are the easiest way to add fantasy points to what you are allowing. Often it makes up for defenses that are not allowing a lot of touchdowns or yardage. Receptions and targets are very important for defenses to contain. However, they may not be as concerned about it in real life, as fantasy points allowed isn’t something they look for. Touchdowns are going to be the next driving force, because you will often see big touchdown allowed numbers among the teams that allow the most fantasy points.

Touchdowns and yards combined are going to be the stats that add up the most. If you are looking at non-PPR scoring formats, then you are going to need to weight these things a bit heavier because the more allowed, the worse they are. Now volume is big in terms of fantasy points allowed. When opposing backs are seeing a lot of targets and rushing attempts against them, then the fantasy points are going to pile up. Often we see a lot of bad teams give up big numbers to running backs. The reason is that they might not be able to stop the run in general, but opposing teams will run the ball more with a lead. Sort through the rankings and see how many teams are at the bottom of the division or have a losing record.

This can work for teams that also play ahead or have a schedule where they are facing more run-heavy teams or a schedule where they face a lot of receiving backs. In 2019, Houston, Indianapolis, and Tennessee all finished in order for allowing the most receptions per game in a season to running backs. This isn’t a fluke; this is because scheduling and the types of running backs you are playing are going to factor into your fantasy points allowed numbers. If you have a brutal schedule for good fantasy backs, then you are going to see that team likely be at least middle of the league no matter how good of defense they are.

What Factors Into A Defense Allowing Fewer Fantasy Points To Running Backs

Scheduling continues to be a factor, as we look at teams allowing fewer amounts of fantasy points to opposing running backs. If you are in a division that is very pass-heavy or they have mediocre backs with bad offensive lines, then you have six games of facing below-average rushing teams. This is going to give you a pretty good jump on things. Staying with looking at a division, the AFC North all finished in the top ten in receptions allowed. I wouldn’t say that is because they all excel in that department, as a schedule certainly played into it. Teams that also stop the run are going to be on the stronger side, and more often are playoff teams.

This is because these teams are often playing in a lead, and won’t see quite as much volume as they would in closer games or if they were playing from behind. That is why some great teams don’t worry about their run defense. We saw the Chiefs last season have one of the worst run defenses in the league, yet it didn’t matter. They did allow a lot of receptions to opposing running backs, so this makes sense. All that plays a big factor in the volume-driven against, and that is a small part of how defenses keep backs from generating fantasy points.

A defense can simply be a good run defense and stop fantasy points from coming that way. They also could have a weaker pass defense and get attacked that way because it is a glaring weakness. When you look at the production stats, yardage allowed is a big one because it is quick to accumulate, but touchdowns allowed is the easiest way to keep those numbers down. Even a defense that allows 1,600 rushing yards in a season, if the touchdown numbers are down, then so will the fantasy points.

How Scoring Formats Factor Into Fantasy Points Allowed For Running Backs

Just like when we look at values of players within a specific scoring set, things can change. That is the same for teams that rank in fantasy points allowed. If you look at the differences between PPR and standard scoring, you can see some major jumps in fantasy points allowed. If a team allows a ton of receptions and not a lot else, then they might still allow a lot of fantasy points in PPR leagues, but are actually a tough run defense in standard leagues. It can work the opposite way as well, where a team can allow middling numbers in yards and touchdowns, but don’t get that PPR bump if they don’t allow a lot of receptions. Half-PPR is going to fall somewhere closer to where PPR rankings sit.