David Wilson has been a divisive figure in the fantasy football community since taking over for an injured Ahmad Bradshaw last season. His supporters will point to the 358 rushing yards in just 71 carries (5.0 YPC), five total touchdowns and only one fumble. But detractors will point out Wilson’s severe lack of goal-line carries, which seems to be Andre Brown’s job, who put up 385 rushing yards, eight total touchdowns and 12 receptions for 86 yards a year ago. How can Wilson be a RB1 or high-end RB2 if he’s splitting carries with Brown for the 2013 season? Well, the answer to that question just became a whole lot clearer, with Brown set to miss the first four-to-six weeks of the season with a broken leg. Let’s take a look at how that will impact Wilson’s fantasy value for the 2013 season and beyond.
2012 Statistics | Att | Yds | TD's | Rec | Yds | TD's | RB Ranking | PPG |
| 71 | 358 | 4 | 4 | 34 | 1 | 46th | 4.2 |
2013 Outlook
New York Giants’ head coach, Tom Coughlin, has publicly said that the team will utilize Wilson as a true every-down back, at least to start the season. This means that Wilson will have a much bigger role in the passing game, and will also get the ball in goal-line situations, which will definitely impact his touchdown numbers positively. Wilson will get the bulk of the carries through at least Week 5, at the earliest, but it could take a few weeks to work Brown back into the system fully. This means that Wilson will easily cross the 300 carry plateau and will also catch 30-plus passes.
While Wilson will be a RB1 option for the first half (or longer) of the fantasy football season, owners should watch out for Brown’s return, as it will likely spell a decline in Wilson’s output when it’s time to make that playoff push. You should have a solid RB2-3 or FLEX option (handcuffing with Brown here is a good strategy) to help pick up the slack and ensure a championship run.
Dynasty Outlook
Wilson is headed into only his second season, is just 22 years old and is poised to be the Giants’ primary ‘back for the foreseeable future - which means he’ll be a solid fringe RB1 option for the next 4-5 years, at the least. If you can land Wilson in the second round as your RB2, you’re definitely going to be sitting pretty.
2013 Statistical Projections: 1,200 rushing yards, 325 receiving yards and 11 total touchdowns.