Jadarian Price’s Quiet Preseason Isn’t the Red Flag You Think It Is

Jadarian Price has given fantasy managers almost nothing to react to in preseason games.

I don’t really care.

Seattle has been cautious with its first-round rookie after Price developed lower-body soreness, and what we saw before the injury was considerably more interesting than anything he could have done against preseason backups.

The Seahawks selected Price 32nd overall.

That matters.

Seattle Made a Real Investment

Seattle entered the draft with limited picks and openly wanted opportunities to trade back.

Instead, the Seahawks stayed at No. 32 and took Price.

General manager John Schneider later said Price stood alone as the best player remaining on Seattle’s board.

That’s a pretty strong signal.

Price averaged 6.0 yards per carry during his final season at Notre Dame, rushing for 674 yards and 11 touchdowns on only 113 attempts.

He wasn’t a college workhorse.

He was an explosive player sharing touches in a loaded backfield.

Seattle clearly believes there is more there.

The Receiving Work Is More Interesting Than the Preseason Absence

The biggest thing I wanted to learn about Price this summer wasn’t whether he could run.

We already knew that.

I wanted to know whether Seattle trusted him in the passing game.

Early in camp, they were giving him those opportunities.

Mike Macdonald specifically pointed out how many passes Price had been catching and said there weren’t many things Seattle was currently ruling out for him.

That is important in full PPR.

A running back doesn’t necessarily need 18 carries every week if he can stay involved when his team throws.

That gives Price another path to fantasy production.

Zach Charbonnet Still Matters

This is where I don’t want the Price argument to go too far.

Zach Charbonnet is still recovering from the ACL injury he suffered last postseason.

George Holani and Emanuel Wilson are also in the room.

There is a very realistic chance Seattle opens the season rotating backs rather than immediately giving Price a huge workload.

That doesn’t bother me enough to avoid him.

It just keeps me from reaching.

There is a big difference between saying Price could share the backfield early and saying Seattle doesn’t envision him becoming the lead back.

The draft capital strongly suggests the opposite.

This Is the Type of RB Bet I Like

Price checks a lot of boxes I want from a middle-round running back.

First-round investment.

Explosive ability.

An unsettled backfield.

Potential receiving work.

And a clear path toward a larger role as the season develops.

I would much rather bet on that profile than move a backup running back 40 spots because he had a big preseason stat line.

My Fantasy Read

I’m still buying Jadarian Price.

I’m just not buying him as a guaranteed Week 1 workhorse.

If Seattle eases him in while Charbonnet continues working back, Price could be frustrating early.

But the season-long upside is why I’m drafting him.

Seattle didn’t spend the 32nd pick on Price by accident.

And if the receiving usage we saw early in camp carries into the regular season, his fantasy ceiling becomes considerably more interesting.

I want Price when the room lets me take him without paying for the breakout before it happens.