Ezekiel Elliott signed with the New England Patriots this summer as the team was clearly looking to provide some relief for 2022 fantasy football breakout star Rhamondre Stevenson. How much juice Zeke has left in the tank is a fair question, as is just how involved he will be in this low-octane offense.
Behind in research? Get a trade offer in your dynasty or redraft league? Not sure who to start or sit this week? Leverage PFN’s FREE fantasy tools — our Fantasy Football Draft Kit, Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer and Calculator, and Start/Sit Optimizer! Put the finishing touch on your A+ draft with 1 of our 425+ fantasy football team names.
Ezekiel Elliott’s Fantasy Outlook for the 2023 NFL Season
Long gone are the days of Foxborough being home to an explosive offense. Mac Jones is the definition of ordinary, and JuJu Smith-Schuster is an underwhelming WR1 option. Behind him in the receiver room are DeVante Parker and Kendrick Bourne on the veteran side and Tyquan Thornton and Kayshon Boutte on the prospect side.
Zeke will play behind Stevenson, a 25-year-old coming off a standout season that saw him clear 1,000 rushing yards while grabbing 69 passes. The versatility Stevenson showed last season was nothing short of elite, but the team was flirting with veteran backs all summer and settled on Elliott as their secondary option.
The AFC East is a package of Starbursts: Three elite options and one clearly inferior option that you want no part of. Yes, the 2023 Patriots are the yellow Starbursts. Done and done.
Is Elliott a Good Fantasy Pick?
Elliott’s contribution to the 2023 fantasy season will subtract from Stevenson’s upside. Over 40% of his fantasy points during the past two seasons have come in the red zone, and that figures to be his role: touchdown vulture.
Could that hold value when bye weeks become a factor and injuries happen? Maybe, but with a limited touch expectancy, the production floor is simply too low to give Elliott any weekly value.
How does RB Ezekiel Elliott's signing with the New England Patriots impact the fantasy values of Rhamondre Stevenson and JuJu Smith-Schuster in 2023? https://t.co/DadBkdMwhG
— PFN Fantasy (@PFNFantasy) August 14, 2023
Backup running backs like Jaylen Warren and Tank Bigsby are being drafted in the same range as Zeke, two options that have a greater shot at weekly value and offer more potential should an injury occur ahead of them on the depth chart.
- PFN Consensus Rankings: 152nd overall
- Current ADP: 136th overall