Breakout Running Backs to Draft in 2020 Fantasy Football

Despite the surge in value at the wide receiver position in recent years, running back remains arguably the most crucial position in fantasy football.

There's more risk of bust and injuries at RB than any other position, but there's also more room for surprise breakouts. Plenty of backs have the kind of upside to leap into the top tier of producers at the position if things go their way in 2020.

With that in mind, here are the top running back breakout candidates to target in your 2020 fantasy football drafts.

1. Devin Singletary, Buffalo Bills

Devin Singletary could be in for a breakout season in 2020. / Billie Weiss/Getty Images

There's a ton to like about Devin Singletary's fantasy outlook in 2020. If we remove the games in which he was limited by injury (Week 2 when he got hurt and Week 7 when he was working his way back), he averaged 13.4 PPR fantasy points per game — a mark that would have ranked 23rd at the position in 2019. He also really saw his volume increase down the stretch, averaging 20.4 opportunities (17.2 carries plus 3.2 targets) per game over his final six. Only 10 backs averaged more than 20.4 opportunities per game in 2019. Healed up and with a full year of NFL experience under his belt, Singletary could evolve into a true workhorse RB this year.

2. David Montgomery, Chicago Bears

David Montgomery could be a breakout fantasy RB in his sophomore season. / Stacy Revere/Getty Images

David Montgomery underwhelmed as a rookie, but there's reason to believe he's going to take a big step forward in 2019. First, the Chicago Bears really seemed to increase their trust in Montgomery as the season went on. Through his first six games, Montgomery averaged just 11.8 rush attempts per game, only managing 3.3 yards per carry. After that he put up 3.9 yards per carry on 17.1 rushes per game. He added 2.0 targets per game in that latter sample, and the Bears haven't brought in any competition to pose a threat to those 19.1 opportunities per game. If a shift to Nick Foles improves this offense at all, we can also expect an accompanying increase in efficiency for Montgomery, which would make that workload a valuable one for fantasy purposes.

3. Damien Harris, New England Patriots

New England Patriots sophomore RB Damien Harris could be a fantasy football breakout in 2020. / Steven Ryan/Getty Images

Damien Harris is more of a longshot than either of the first two names on this list, but he's also a lot cheaper in drafts. Sony Michel is on the PUP list, and he's at risk of missing the start of the season. That opens up a ton of work alongside James White in the New England Patriots backfield after Michel racked up 247 carries in 2019. A third-round pick last year, Damien Harris essentially redshirted his rookie year. He ran for 3,070 yards while adding 407 through the air at Alabama, however, and he could finally get his chance to prove himself at the NFL level while Michel is on the shelf. If he impresses, Harris could very well hang onto that RB1 role (especially considering how inefficient Michel has been in the pros), which would give him some huge fantasy upside.

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Jason Schandl is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Jason Schandl also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username Jaymun. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.