Arizona showed us what it thinks of RB Jeremiyah Love’s talent by drafting him third overall this spring, to a team with plenty of needs. But coaches aren’t doing anything to anoint him an immediate backfield leader at the start of camp. Free-agent addition Tyler Allgeier reportedly opened with the starters at the team’s first open practice, and OC Nathaniel Hackett mentioned James Conner first when asked broadly about the outlook for his 2026 backfield.
What They’re Saying: Committee Might Be Coming
Here’s the Hackett exchange …
Reporter: “Do you see this running back room as having a starter right now?”
Hackett: “I mean, right now it’s a great room. I’m really excited about it. Excited for James to get out there and show what he’s got. I mean, all the guys. Right now we’re just trying to work on that operation. We’re trying to make sure we’re crisp, we’re clean, and we’ve got a great play style.”
Reporter: “Where’s Jeremiyah at when it comes to his progression?”
Hackett: “I mean, he’s definitely a rookie, as we’ve talked about. And he’ll keep growing every single day. I’m very excited for him. All those guys, not just him.”
ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss, before projecting the team to keep four RBs on the regular-season roster: “There may not end up being a more competitive position battle in all of camp than there will be in the running backs room.”
2026 Fantasy Football Impact: Talent Edge Doesn't Guarantee Touches
Let’s start with the one clear thing in this situation: Love’s easily the biggest talent in the Arizona backfield. His draft position confirms that, and here’s the rest of the room:
- Tyler Allgeier, who averaged 8.2 carries per game over the past two years and 0.9 receptions per game across his four Atlanta seasons
- A 31-year-old James Conner
- Trey Benson, who has totaled just 111 touches since arriving as a 2024 third-round pick
Benson, however, is the only member of this quartet that the new coaching staff is “stuck with.”
The Cardinals adjusted Conner’s contract to keep him around after hiring HC Mike LaFleur and just at the start of free agency. They signed Allgeier to a two-year, $12.25 million contract at the same time. And although the team obviously didn’t know it would be adding Love at that point, Cards leadership certainly knew they’d probably have that opportunity with the third overall selection in a draft with just one top-10 QB prospect.
It's not a big deal that Allgeier got the first open-practice carry or that coaches aren't publicly pumping up Love too much yet. We commonly see such treatment of rookies. But we also can't just assume the veterans will fall into ensemble roles once the regular season arrives.
But Shouldn’t We Just Bet on Talent?
That’s generally a good idea when you’re deciding how to treat fantasy prospects. But talent’s not the question here; it’s touch distribution and offensive environment. And recent history supplies some warning signals.
The Falcons drafted Bijan Robinson eighth overall in 2023 to a backfield that already sported Allgeier. Robinson finished his rookie campaign just 28th among RBs in carries per game and 16th at the position in PPR points per game, in an offense that ranked just 17th in yards and 26th in scoring.
The Lions selected Jahmyr Gibbs 12th overall in the same draft, pairing him with David Montgomery. Gibbs racked up the eighth-most PPR points per game among RBs, but he got a little lucky. Gibbs tied Robinson for 13th in expected PPR points per game, buoyed by the 10th-best target share at the position. His output benefited from 10 rushing scores despite Gibbs’ No. 29 ranking in carries per game. Detroit’s top-5 offense -- in yards and points -- certainly helped.
Last year found the Raiders nabbing Ashton Jeanty sixth overall and giving him plenty of touches. He ranked second league-wide in carry share and seventh among RBs in target share. Jeanty ranked eighth in expected PPR points per game but just 15th in actual points per game, thanks primarily to a poor offensive environment.
Love faces significant challenges in both those areas.
Cardinals coaches have less reason to force touches to their new RB than fantasy managers do to hope for them. And this Arizona offense looks far from exciting. My pal Jared calculated the Cards as presenting the fifth-worst Fantasy Environment Score for the coming season.
The negative aspects should help Love’s receiving opportunities, but the TD outlook is grim.
Projected ADP Movement: Market Could Make Buy Case
The remaining variable here, though, is how the market reacts. These concerns for Love aren’t secrets. He sits 13th among RBs in our combined best ball ADP, which still puts Love at the 2-3 turn but finds him priced lower than Jeanty and Robinson were for their rookie seasons and even with Gibbs’ 2023 ADP.
It’s not an exorbitant price to pay to see what happens with Love, but it’s also not a positive value. If negative early buzz pushes the rookie further down the board, however, he might become a more attractive target. And there will certainly be individual drafts in which he falls to intriguing points.
We’ll be tracking reports and actual usage for Arizona RBs throughout the summer. For now, just make sure you don’t get too excited about Love … but also don’t ignore him completely.
And don’t treat anyone else in the Cardinals backfield as more than a handcuff-level consideration.
Check out our Arizona Cardinals preview for more on Love and his teammates.
