# Evan Tarracciano: Tarracciano names several running backs he's avoiding at their current draft cost: Travis Etienne Jr. (whose upside he says Alvin Kamara will cap), Bucky Irving (who he expects to split carries with Kenneth Gainwell), Jaylen Warren (who he says stays a change-of-pace back behind breakout Rico Dowdle), and the entire Denver backfield of J.K. Dobbins, RJ Harvey and Jonah Coleman. **Claimed:** Aug 13, 2026 **Pundit:** Evan Tarracciano — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/evan-tarracciano **Outlet:** FantasyPros — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/fantasypros **How it reached us:** published in writing **Original:** https://www.fantasypros.com/2026/08/6-fantasy-football-busts-to-avoid-running-backs-2026/ 7 checkable claims — 5 fantasy bust calls, 1 depth chart call and 1 sleeper call — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call. It names 10 players and teams, each linked to their own record. None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in. Of the 1 unsettled call enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room. > Yep, I said all of them. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Jaylen Warren to fall short of his draft cost (being drafted ahead of Dowdle)** - Kind: Fantasy Bust Calls · About: Jaylen Warren, Pittsburgh Steelers - Verdict: not settled yet - **Rico Dowdle to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Rico Dowdle, Pittsburgh Steelers - Verdict: not settled yet - **J.K. Dobbins to fall short of his draft cost (being drafted in near-identical positions)** - Kind: Fantasy Bust Calls · About: J.K. Dobbins, Denver Broncos - Verdict: not settled yet - **Travis Etienne to fall short of his draft cost (Currently ranked as the RB18 atop the fourth tier at the position)** - Kind: Fantasy Bust Calls · About: Travis Etienne, New Orleans Saints - Verdict: not settled yet - **RJ Harvey to fall short of his draft cost (being drafted in near-identical positions)** - Kind: Fantasy Bust Calls · About: RJ Harvey, Denver Broncos - Verdict: not settled yet - **Bucky Irving to fall short of his draft cost (currently ranked as the RB21)** - Kind: Fantasy Bust Calls · About: Bucky Irving, Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Verdict: not settled yet - **Rico Dowdle to outplay his draft cost (being drafted behind Warren)** - Kind: Sleeper Calls · About: Rico Dowdle, Pittsburgh Steelers - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - Jaylen Warren — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/jaylen-warren - Pittsburgh Steelers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/steelers - Rico Dowdle — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/rico-dowdle - J.K. Dobbins — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/j-k-dobbins - Denver Broncos — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/broncos - Travis Etienne — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/travis-etienne - New Orleans Saints — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/saints - RJ Harvey — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/rj-harvey - Bucky Irving — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/bucky-irving - Tampa Bay Buccaneers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/buccaneers ## What others said about the same people - Eric Mangini on Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Mangini picked New England to beat Green Bay by more than a field goal, flagged Tampa Bay as his upset alert over Chicago, expects Kansas City to handle the Jets, took Buffalo over Minnesota, backed Cincinnati over Atlanta in Madrid, and updated his Super Bowl to Rams–Bengals. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/af0819c3-4662-44a2-a451-a08fa3b7e59a (scored 0) - Nick Wright on Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Wright argued the Jaguars are the AFC's most complete team, calling them the considerable favorite for the No. 1 seed and the only club essentially locked into the playoffs. He also picked Tampa Bay to upset Chicago, had Kansas City sweeping its next three games, liked New England over Green Bay by about a field goal, and updated his Super Bowl matchup to Chiefs–49ers. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/878403ae-b780-41f0-b38a-200b1a3e36ff (scored 0) - Donte Johnson on Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The former NFL safety picked the Buccaneers to upset the Bears in their Week 9 matchup, arguing Todd Bowles' defense would frustrate Caleb Williams. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/1731194b-2ff9-4142-b4ca-45a4097101ae (scored 0) - Zac Cornelius on Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Zach projected the Buccaneers to beat the Bears 24-12. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/40f76aa6-2c17-45b9-bdcb-6c582ec9897f (scored 28.57) - Ross Jackson on Zamir White: Ross Jackson gives his final preseason 53-man roster projection for the New Orleans Saints, naming who makes the initial roster at every position group, who starts on injured reserve or the practice squad, and who the five starting offensive linemen and kicker will be. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b43691e9-1673-4236-ba12-7d60ad3b95f5 (scored 0) - Doug Joubert on Charlie Smyth: Joubert projects the Saints' 53-man roster ahead of the cutdown deadline, naming every player he expects to make the team by position group, plus several players he expects to receive PUP/IR designations, and predicting Torricelli Simpkins will later be moved to the practice squad. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/80c9bcdf-68ec-49a5-a1d1-e59f4bee2653 (scored 100) ## More fantasy bust calls The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Ryan Wormeli on Zay Flowers: Host Ryan Warmley endorsed Ricky Pearsall as a bet worth making and put his rookie-receiver capital in Tetairoa McMillan, while fading Zay Flowers at his cost and opting out of Marvin Harrison Jr. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/192d6e67-2e0e-49b3-bc82-4c8a77bd5950 (scored 0) - Derek Brown on Zay Flowers: Derek Brown ("Debro") laid out a slate of wide receiver breakouts — Ricky Pearsall, Jalen Coker, Egbuka, Jalen Waddle, Joshua Palmer, George Pickens, DeVonta Smith and Travis Hunter — while fading Xavier Worthy, Tyreek Hill and the cheap Cleveland/late-round types, and gave his own rankings well ahead of ADP for several of them. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/effe2fda-3dcb-489f-a1e1-f8fa5b11ada7 (scored 0) - Chris Welsh on Austin Ekeler: Welsh drafted Christian McCaffrey, Breece Hall, RJ Harvey, Tetairoa McMillan, Travis Hunter, the Rams and Saints receivers, Justin Fields (a top-10 QB), Drake Maye (QB10-14), Travis Kelce and Tyler Warren, while passing on Joe Mixon, the Commanders backfield, Tyreek Hill, Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/9f0f2132-f3b8-4813-b2b1-374b827d86a8 (scored 100) - Joe Pisapia on Rashee Rice: Joey P (Joe Pisapia) played draft-or-pass on 2025 fantasy values: he passed on Christian McCaffrey at pick 7, Breece Hall, Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy, Travis Hunter and Chris Olave, while drafting RJ Harvey, Tyreek Hill, Tetairoa McMillan, Puka Nacua, Tyler Warren and a late-round Joe Mixon. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c3c95c1c-64a4-42b6-9389-58d5fb5b27d1 (scored 0) - Pat Fitzmaurice on Breece Hall: Pat Fitzmaurice gave draft-or-pass calls: reluctant drafts on Christian McCaffrey, RJ Harvey, Tetairoa McMillan (his WR16), Rashee Rice at a ninth-round price, Austin Ekeler, Chris Rodriguez, Chris Olave, Drake Maye (his QB8) and Tyler Warren, with passes on Breece Hall, Joe Mixon, Croskey-Merritt, Tyreek Hill, Travis Hunter, the Rams receivers and Justin Fields. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/e36f1287-466c-4889-a7ea-c9d86f4b5182 (scored 0) - Derek Brown on Chuba Hubbard: Derek Brown ("Deebro") names three busts to avoid in 2025 fantasy drafts: Kyren Williams at an RB1 price, Chuba Hubbard as a top-20 RB, and Xavier Worthy as his ultimate bust, arguing Rashee Rice is the clear No. 1 receiver in Kansas City. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/9cc5c06e-e0c5-45bd-8b93-fa089f8673a8 (scored 100) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.co/corrections?pundit=evan-tarracciano