In addition to trying to come up with clever fantasy team names named after Roschon Johnson, I’m trying to find a path to success for the young rusher as I think about his fantasy football outlook.
Johnson enters this season in a Chicago Bears backfield with D’Andre Swift and Khalil Herbert competing with him for carries.
Let’s examine his fantasy value for next season and determine whether he’s a good pick or not.
Roschon Johnson’s Fantasy Profile for the 2024 NFL Season
We all know the ZeroRB fantasy football strategy, which calls for waiting on the running back position. But even through that lens, things are looking bleak for Johnson.
As a rookie in 2023, Johnson played in 15 games, recording 81 carries for 352 yards and two touchdowns. Interestingly, he had some solid passing game production, with 34 catches for 209 yards.
According to TruMedia, 19.8% of Johnson’s rushes went for first downs, and 31 of his 34 receptions were outside of the red zone.
While his pass-catching production was encouraging, Swift’s addition complicates things.
With the Philadelphia Eagles, Swift caught 39 passes for 214 yards and a touchdown (in addition to getting 229 carries for 1,049 yards and five scores). And before last season, Swift had exceeded 46 receptions every year.
Johnson will also have to compete with Herbert, who enters his fourth season.
In 2023, Herbert carried the ball 132 times for 611 yards and two scores. He’s had at least 103 rushes every season of his career and has averaged 4.9 yards yards per carry overall.
Is Johnson a Good Fantasy Pick?
Johnson is going as RB63 and No. 225 overall in PPR leagues. At that spot, he’s going undrafted, and that’s where I’d say he belongs.
He’s a great candidate for an FAAB bid should Herbert or Swift get hurt, but heading into 2024, I’d say he’s behind both of those guys.
This could be different if Swift weren’t around because he’d get some touches and chances at corralling receptions, but that just doesn’t appear to be in the cards.
Johnson played 15 snaps compared to 10 by Herbert in the Hall of Fame Game, and any time a player dresses in that game, it’s usually telling — in a bad way — with regard to their position on the roster.
This is a hard pass.