Josh Jacobs tops 2023 fantasy football Do Not Draft List - ESPN

Fantasy football managers and Las Vegas Raiders fans loved what RB Josh Jacobs achieved last season. Jacobs had been a solid statistical performer during his first three NFL seasons, twice ending up an RB2 and once slipping into the top 10 among season scorers at his position, but he was never a superstar. Certainly not like he was in 2022.

Last season, Jacobs played at a superstar level. Sans a long-term contract and in what could have been his final season with the organization, the Raiders gifted him with ridiculous volume and Jacobs thrived. No player had more touches, rushing yards or yards from scrimmage. Only two running backs --Austin Ekeler and Christian McCaffrey — and nine players scored more PPR points.

This is a trap, fantasy managers. Jacobs entered last season an RB2 option, playing for a new deal he did not get. Perhaps you have heard, but he's not the only angry, bitter running back in the league. Teams are financially cautious with the position. Jacobs isn't pleased. He's not at training camp and is a risk to sit out regular-season games.

However, even if Jacobs were signed long term and happy, he was unlikely to replicate his fantastic season with another 300-plus PPR points. Sure, we love the big volume while it is happening, but we have myriad cases of running backs failing to approach their numbers — volume or efficiency — the following season as proof of it, and it makes Jacobs a prime player to avoid at his current top-20 position in ESPN average live drafts.

Entering 2022, a mere eight running backs received 310 or more rushing attempts in a season (big volume, for this era) over the past decade, and here are their results the next season.

LeSean McCoy topped 310 rushing attempts in consecutive