Player: Zamir White
Team: Las Vegas Raiders
Selection: 113th Overall (Round 4 // Pick 17)
On the latest episode of the Razzball Fantasy Football Podcast, Bobby LaMarco welcomes in Sky Guasco to discuss former Georgia running back Zamir White and what his potential fantasy value is as a rookie in Las Vegas. To hear our full analysis, check out the YouTube video included with this article. See where White ranks on our new consensus rookie rankings for 2022 fantasy football dynasty leagues and 2022 fantasy football ADP pages!
One of my favorite rookie running backs this year (and beyond) is Zamir White. He’ll most likely start the year as the RB3 on the Raiders behind Josh Jacobs and Kenyan Drake, but should either get hurt or lose efficiency, White has a real shot to steal work in what should be an improved offense overall. The Raiders surprisingly fired former Head Coach Rich Bisaccia and brought in longtime Patriots Offensive Coordinator (and former Broncos HC) Josh McDaniels. Last year, the Patriots were 7th in the NFL in rush play percentage with 46% of their offensive plays being running plays. The Raiders were 29th in that category with only 37% of their plays being run plays. The Patriots have also historically used more than one back and often designating roles. Remember the days of thinking you have the Patriots No.1 back (Blount, J. White, Michel, Harris, etc.)? That could be the Raiders this season and White could find himself with a steady workload.
I’ve never been a big fan of Jacobs as a player. Yes, he finishes as a Top 8-14 fantasy RB each season, but he doesn’t have huge upside and if his touchdowns go down with the addition of Davante Adams, he could be in trouble because the efficiency just isn’t there for Jacobs. Last year, Jacobs was 11th in carries (fine), 12th in rushing yards (good), 32nd in yards per carry (yikes), but 8th in touchdowns among running backs. He was RB12 overall in PPR and RB14 in PPR points per game among RBs that played at least seven games. That’s fine, but he has minimal upside and before Drake went down mid-season, they were essentially tied in total fantasy points and points per game. Throw in another quality running back in White who is faster – 4.4 40-yard dash to Jacobs’ 4.6 – better overall agility and power at his size – 95% speed score to Jacobs’ 31% – and bigger-bodied – 6’ 0” 215 compared to Jacobs at 5’ 10” 220.
Now, White did suffer two ACL tears; one in high school and one as a freshman at Georgia. However, he’s bounced back from both and looked great while sharing the backfield this past season with new Bills rookie James Cook. The Raiders did not pick up Jacobs’ 5th-year option on his contract meaning he’ll be a free agent after this season. If he doesn’t impress enough for the Raiders to keep him, this should be White’s backfield in 2023 if not before.
In redraft, White is nothing more than a last-pick handcuff at this point. In Dynasty though, he’s going as the 24th overall pick (back of 2nd Round) and RB7. I’d take him in the middle of Round 2 and look forward to next year’s opportunity with the chance of increased work this year. Watch the YouTube video above for our full analysis or listen to the podcast audio below.
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