For all the rave OTA reviews of being in “great shape,” Rashaad Penny hasn’t shown a damn thing this preseason. He’s accrued a pathetic 13 yards across his 12 carries, and is now “falling further” behind Chris Carson. Contrastingly, in his first action, Carson ripped off a smooth 25 yards on 5 carries (5.0 YPC), confirming camp reports he’s “continued to look like the best running back on the roster.”
Earlier this offseason, HC Pete Carroll suggested this was a “1A, 1B” backfield. However, beats are now labeling Carson the “clear No.1,” who’s also expected to see a major receiving spike. Carson now stands to see “at least two-thirds” of the backfield work, which aligns with the early preseason usage: Carson played 12/17 starter snaps (71%), with Penny logging just 5 (29%).
As we’ve suggested over and over, Carson remains an incredible fantasy steal. Even amidst the positive buzz, my 28th overall ranking remains +15 spots higher than his ECR and ADP. Somehow, people aren’t recognizing how valuable a 60-70% share of the last year’s most ground-centric attack + a nice bump in receiving will be.
Meanwhile, Penny shouldn’t just be crossed off your draft list, despite the struggles. Carson does carry real injury risk, and Penny would be a low-end RB1 as an unquestioned lead back if the starter misses time. Plus, even just 35% of the work here is worth a look after the Seahawks ranked second in carries (33.8) and rushing yards (160.8) per game.
