Throughout the 2013 NFL and fantasy football season, some running backs performed far more consistently that other running backs. If you were the fortunate fantasy owner of one of these top five most consistent running backs, you were surely rewarded abundantly most weeks by their performance.
According to eDraft’s player consistency tool, utilizing the various metrics of minimum yards and touchdowns scored per game, Jamaal Charles, Matt Forte, LeSean McCoy, Eddie Lacy, and Knowshon Moreno performed most consistently over the course of the 2013 fantasy football season.
The consistency tool is completely flexible, and can be adjusted to measure the running backs minimum yards anywhere from 25 to 200 and from scoring either one or two total touchdowns per game. In the default setting, the metrics are set to a standard of 100 minimum yards and/or one touchdown, scored per game.
Let’s review some examples of how the above-mentioned running backs performed while adjusting the consistency tool to its various yardage and touchdown ranges.
When in its default setting of a running back totaling a minimum of 100 yards and/or scoring one total touchdown, in a game, Charles ranks with the highest consistency percentage, as he accomplished either 100 minimum yards and/or one touchdown in 80% of his 15 games played.
Jamaal Charles | Consistency | 100+Rush Yds | 100+Total Yds | 125+Total Yds | 1+TD | 2+TD | Either |
| 80% | 4 | 13 | 8 | 12 | 4 | 12 |
If you want to rank the consistency of the running backs a little tougher and increase the total minimum yards to 150 and/or scoring one touchdown, Lacy ranks second best at 67% consistency next under Charles.
Eddy Lacy | Consistency | 150+Rush Yds | 150+Yds | 175+Total Yds | 1+TD | 2+TD | Either |
| 66% | 1 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 10 |
While it’s hard to knock Charles off his top-ranking perch, McCoy did just that ranking first in consistency when adjusting the metric to a setting of 125 minimum yards and increasing the touchdowns to two, achieving 44% consistency in his 16 season games played.
LeSean McCoy | Consistency | 125+Rush Yds | 125+Total Yds | 150+Total Yds | 1+TD | 2+TD | Either |
| 44% | 6 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 3 | 7 |
In setting the metric to a total of 75 yards, which is much easier, but keeping the minimum touchdowns set at two, Forte ranks second, under Charles of course, achieving these standards in 69% of his 16 games played.
Matt Forte | Consistency | 75+Rush Yds | 75+Total Yds | 100+Total Yds | 1+TD | 2+TD | Either |
| 69% | 11 | 14 | 12 | 8 | 2 | 11 |
Adjusting the consistency metric to the most difficult amount of yards at 200 minimum per game and lowering the total touchdowns to one, Moreno ranked third highest at a 63% consistency for these settings.
Knowshon Moreno | Consistency | 200+Rush Yds | 200+Total Yds | 225+Total Yds | 1+TD | 2+TD | Either |
| 44% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 2 | 10 |
So as you can see, the consistency metrics tool can be utilized to rank the running backs on a variety of minimum criteria to achieve different ranking results. With how utterly amazing Charles performed all season, it’s difficult to find him anywhere outside the top five no matter how the metrics are set. The other four running backs fell into the top five most often following Charles.
Not only can this consistency tool rank running backs, it can be used for any NFL offensive position, which makes it incredibly handy when analyzing or planning for your fantasy football draft or any other research you are doing. To try it out for yourself, go to eDraft.com and hover over the NFL tab near the top left of the site. Be sure to check out all of eDraft’s fantasy football statistics and ranking mechanisms while you are there.