Christian McCaffrey Falls as CJ Anderson Fits in Nicely With Panthers

We got a little too worked up after the Panthers passed on a running back in the draft.

After we prematurely blew our load when the Panthers passed on a running back in the draft, Carolina signed the always solid CJ Anderson to handle early-down duties. This means Christian McCaffrey took a tumble down our Big Board from RB13, to RB18.

When the Panthers decided to part ways with the lifeless corpse that is Jonathan Stewart, we could not have been happier. McCaffrey was set to be the bell-cow in Norv Turner’s offense that turned LaDanian Tomlinson into a first ballot Fantasy Hall of Famer. Then, those dreams were dashed when Carolina added the consistent CJ Anderson — a talent upgrade over Stewart.

McCaffrey was looking at the potential of 275-plus touches in his sophomore year, which would have dripped him in serious RB1 upside. Now, Anderson will be the guy who will likely tote the rock on the early downs, while McCaffrey will see his typical passing game volume. Make no mistake about it, the second year back will still get 100-plus touches on the ground and over 100 targets through the air, but his RB1 upside has all but evaporated.

As for Anderson, this is a pretty solid fit. He’s coming off a 1,000-yard season in Denver where he averaged over four-yards per carry on a bad football team. Although Cam Newton will score on the goal line, Anderson should get six-plus touchdowns. He’s not the sexiest of running backs, but he does need to be rostered as a RB3/ Flex option.  As of now, Anderson is our RB34, right in the area of Tarik Cohen and Tevin Coleman.

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