Week 17 is officially here! It’s championship week for the 2023 fantasy football season. Using matchup information, sportsbook data, and player and statistical analysis, I’ve constructed my top 24 running backs for this week. Along with my top 24 RB fantasy football rankings, I’ll give you my must-start running back for Week 17 of the fantasy football season. Let’s get straight into it. 

Week 17 – Fantasy Football Running Back Rankings (PPR)

Tier 1

1. Christian McCaffrey @ WAS

Tier 2

2. Kyren Williams @ NYG

3. Travis Etienne Jr. vs. CAR

4. Rachaad White vs. NO

5. Jahmyr Gibbs @ DAL

6. James Cook vs. NE

Tier 3

7. Alvin Kamara @ TB

8. Bijan Robinson @ CHI

9. Jonathan Taylor vs. LV

10. D’Andre Swift vs. ARI

Tier 4

11. Raheem Mostert @ BAL

12. Kenneth Walker vs. PIT

13. Saquon Barkley vs. LAR

14. Joe Mixon @ KC

15. Derrick Henry @ HOU

16. Tony Pollard vs. DET

17. Aaron Jones @ MIN

18. Austin Ekeler @ DEN

Tier 5

19. David Montgomery @ DAL

20. De’Von Achane @ BAL

21. James Conner @ PHI

22. Chuba Hubbard @ JAX

23. Josh Jacobs @ IND

24. Ty Chandler vs. GB

Fantasy Football – Start Of The Week

De’Von Achane @ Baltimore Ravens

The rule for my start of the week is to go beyond the obvious and pick a running back outside the top 24 FantasyPros consensus rankings. With that, going up against the Baltimore Ravens, De’Von Achane is my start of the week for Week 17.

Last time I had Achane as my start of the week, he had a monster 25.3-point game, so why not try again? Personally, I believe Achane will bounce back despite coming off a week where he scored 4.1 points. Not only did Achane have a season-low averaging 3.4 YPC, but he also only had seven receiving yards. Achane is a talented back, and these numbers are outliers compared to the rest of his games.

Furthermore, I know Achane is also questionable right now, but these rankings are assuming he plays. According to CBS Sports, “Dolphins’ De’Von Achane: Returns to practice Thursday.” Even though Achane was limited in practice, this is a great sign. Additionally, it’s worth noting that Achane provides a ton of value through the air, and right now, the Ravens are three-point favorites. In the end, if the Dolphins are playing from behind, Achane will see more receiving work than usual.

Now, I understand that the Ravens defense has been historic, but running backs can score fantasy points against them. Of course, the Ravens are still great, allowing the seventh least fantasy points to running backs (18.08 PPG), but it could be worse. On top of this, it’s a great strategy to chase players on teams with high implied team totals, and according to Roto Curve, the Dolphins are projected out for 21.75 points

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