Austin Ekeler is the lead running back for the Los Angeles Chargers. He played both high school and college football in the state of Colorado, finishing his time with Western State with truly elite production numbers. In four years, he rushed for 5,857 yards and amassed another 1,215 through the air. Ekeler scored 63 total touchdowns during his college career, finishing with a 96th-percentile College Dominator Rating of 45.7-percent.
In the buildup to the 2017 NFL Draft, Austin Ekeler then put up some eye-catching workout metrics. He ran an 83rd-percentile 4.48 40 time, while also posting an exceptional Burst Score (96th-percentile) and Agility Score (87th-percentile). Despite his college dominance and exceptional athletic traits, Ekeler was not selected during the NFL Draft. Instead, he signed with the Chargers as an undrafted free agent.
Ekeler was among the most efficient backs in the league during his first four seasons in the NFL. He led all running back with 6.9 Yards Per Touch in 2019. In the same season, he finished No. 2 at his position with 92 receptions for 993 receiving yards. Ekeler signed a four-year $24.5M contract extension with the Chargers before the 2020 season, but continued to be a bit-part player.
That all changed in 2021 when Ekeler played 67.1-percent of offensive snaps, seeing 16.9 Weighted Opportunities per game. He also had a career-high 206 carries and was No.1 among RBs with 94 targets and 647 receiving yards. He was No. 4 with a 15.1-percent target share that season, and No. 2 with 393 routes run. He committed just three drops. Ekeler further commanded a huge workload inside the red zone. He saw 63 touches inside the 20-yard line, including 10 goal-line carries. Ekeler was an elite performer in the Yards Created metric, finishing No. 3 with 940, and averaged 4.4 broken tackles per game. Ekeler finished the 2021 season as the RB2 in fantasy points per game.
Ekeler continued to be one of the most productive backs in the game in 2022, finishing as the top overall running back in fantasy points per game. This was largely due to his continued high usage in the passing game. Ekeler was again No. 1 in targets among running backs and No. 2 in receiving yards. Justin Herbert had few other options available in the passing game, however, as Keenan Allen and Mike Williams were hurt for significant portions of the season. Ekeler was not as effective on his rushes, recording 4.2 True Yards Per Carry (No. 34). He enters the 2023 season still a first round pick in fantasy drafts, as the Chargers are yet to add significant competition for backfield touches.
