Fantasy Insight: Patriots RB Shane Vereen

Quick, tell me what you like about the New England Patriots’ running back situation from a fantasy perspective. Actually, let me stop you right there. One look at that muddled running back by committee (RBBC), and any fantasy owner might feel a little over-whelmed.

Really, how are you supposed to gauge the value of BenJarvus Green-Ellis or Danny Woodhead, when one could be gone via free agency, and the other (or both) have to worry about two rookie running backs stealing carries? And then you have those rookie backs, Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley wondering just how much they’ll actually be involved.

The first thing you need to figure out is “The Law Firm”, Green-Ellis. Since the NFL Lockout is alive and well, we’ll have to allow the draft to give us the “writing on the wall” for a moment, and assume the addition of two solid running backs means the team isn’t too worried about locking up Green-Ellis. It’s not impossible he comes back, but with everything that has happened, and knowing how the Patriots work, you can consider him as good as gone.

With that thought in mind, you can work your way to Woodhead, who doesn’t have the size or strength to be a feature back, but has clearly carved out a concrete role as the “new Kevin Faulk” on third downs and certain situations. Given Woodhead’s clear-cut solid, but limited role, the next thing to do is determine which rookie back has the best odds of winning the starting job and making the biggest impact.

Considering Vereen is an athletic freak with an elite package of skills, and Ridley is a bit of a one-year wonder with less athletics’s and skills, Vereen is the logical pick.

He could actually make Woodhead less of a fantasy asset due to his receiving skills and versatility, while he can keep Ridley at bay with his solid inside running, toughness, and slightly superior blocking ability and blitz pick-up.

A lot can happen before the season starts, but if you take Green-Ellis out of the picture, Vereen looks to be the early front-runner to get the majority of carries for the Patriots in 2011. Vereen stands to bring solid fantasy value with an immediate shot at RB2 numbers. Track his role and progression, as well as his teammates, throughout the off-season.