Derick E. Hingle – USA Today Sports
For his young career, New Orleans Saints RB Chris Ivory has seemingly been on the bubble. A change of scenery is just what he needs for his career and for his fantasy football value.
In his first season in 2010, he got a chance after Reggie Bush was hurt early and had a career-high 716 yards on 137 carries with five touchdowns. He mostly shared the workload with Pierre Thomas but did lead the team in carries. Next season the Saints brought in Darren Sproles and drafted Mark Ingram…leaving Ivory as the odd man out. He made just a few appearances and only managed 79 carries, but he again ran well and averaged 4.7 yards per carry (YPC) and scored twice.
Last year, it was a similar story as he had even few carries (40) and was even more effective with 217 yards (5.4 YPC) and two touchdowns. In his short career, Ivory has made the most out of a bad situation. The restricted free agent re-signed with the Saints this week, but multiple reports are that a trade with the New York Jets is likely.
In New York, Ivory would likely be the man in a workhorse role alongside Mike Goodson. The two are perfect compliments to each other as Ivory is an explosive between-the-tackles runner while Goodson is a playmaker with great hands. In three seasons, Ivory has just three catches so Goodson would be the main man in the passing attack. Bilal Powell would then likely serve as a third back, killing his value.
No trade has been made yet, but if Ivory does go to the Jets he should immediately shoot up draft boards.
Rich Arleo is a fantasy sports expert with Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @Rarleo, ‘Like’ him on Facebook and add him to your networks on Google.
