As we head into a lull in the NFL offseason, we have a few teams wrapping up their minicamp and speaking to the media. The Arizona Cardinals are one of these teams. While speaking to the media, head coach Kliff Kingsbury sharing an interesting nugget that has the Eno Benjamin fantasy football value on the rise.
Kingsbury doesn’t typically single out players, but he did exactly that with the third-year running back Benjamin. In fact, he did it unsolicited twice over the past week. Here is what Kingsbury said about the Cardinals running back on Tuesday:
“Eno Benjamin has been tremendous,” Kingsbury said. “[He is] another guy who never had an offseason and he’s out there and looks like he could be a starting running back.”
On Wednesday, Kingsbury talked about Benjamin’s work ethic and professionalism. He also called Benjamin a “very talented runner when the ball is in his hands” and said he is much leaner this season.
Eno Benjamin Fantasy Football Value Rising
If Kliff Kingsbury thinks Eno Benjamin looks like he could be a starting running back, it’s possible he will be. The seventh-round 2020 draft pick out of Arizona State has a clearer path to snaps this season, with Chase Edmonds joining the other 40 running backs in Miami. Yes, James Conner took on a bulk of the workload last season while Edmonds battled injuries, but given the injury history of Conner, the Cardinals would like this to be a split backfield in order to keep Conner healthy late in the season.
So, with the speedy, change-of-pace role up for grabs in the backfield, it looks like the 5-9 Edmonds is the one taking control of this opportunity. Obviously, opportunity leads to productivity in fantasy football. So, how productive could he be?
During his last two college seasons, Benjamin ran for over 2,700 yards and 26 touchdowns. He also caught 77 passes during those seasons. Conner is clearly the hammer that will be used to finish drives. However, it’s possible Benjamin could be used between the 20-yard lines quite often. Edmonds averaged 14 combined carries and targets per game last season. It’s clear Benjamin could have a similar workload.
Eno Benjamin ADP
Average Draft Position (ADP) is where players, on average, are being drafted in fantasy football drafts. Our ADP data is taken from Fantasy Football Calculator. The data was collected on Friday, June 17th for 12-team PPR leagues.
Currently, Eno Benjamin is outside the top 65 running backs taken. Clearly, this is a mistake. The Eno Benjamin fantasy value will continue to rise throughout the summer, as long as his place in the depth chart stays put.
If you’re in a dynasty fantasy football league, check to make sure Benjamin is owned. Assuming Benjamin is owned, I would wait about a week. Then, offer a trade and attempt to buy-low. It’s more than possible Benjamin is a low-end flex option with upside this season. This means the Eno Benjamin ADP could rise into the late-30s range for fantasy football RB options.
