Bernard Pierce

Pierce’s durability woes persisted into 2015 as Pierce, then on the Jaguars, could only manage to stay healthy for the season’s first seven games before landing on IR. Now, his new head coach, Todd Bowles, has already went as far to say that if Pierce can’t stay on the field, he may not have much of a future with the team. Health concerns aside, Pierce joins a stable of proven runners in Matt Forte, Bilal Powell and Khiry Robinson, and that pecking order doesn’t appear to be fluid in the slightest. To boot, he also faces Dominique Williams in a battle for what is likely one roster spot. Ultimately, with Pierce not even a lock to make the Week 1 roster, and an even more improbable bet to stay healthy for 16 games, he is currently undraftable and is best left on the waiver wire in 2016.

Pierce signed with the Jaguars after being released by Baltimore in March following a DUI arrest. After a disappointing 2014 season in which he carried the ball a career-low 93 times, Pierce joins a crowded Jaguars backfield without a clear-cut No. 1 option. Pierce will compete with the likes of Toby Gerhart, Denard Robinson and rookie T.J. Yeldon for the designation, and it’s likely a running back-by-committee situation will emerge. As such, Pierce is a risky fantasy commodity until his role is defined.

Entering 2013, Pierce looked like an up-and-coming back, an aggressive runner with high-end speed who could serve as an effective complement to Ray Rice. But things didn't work out that way – even though Pierce worked his way into a bigger role thanks to Rice's struggles, he saw his own YPC plummet from 4.9 the year before to 2.9. With Ray Rice no longer with the Ravens, Pierce, Justin Forsett and Lorenzo Taliaferro now head the team's rushing attack.

In 20 games through Baltimore's Super Bowl run, Pierce averaged an impressive 5.0 YPC spelling Ray Rice. Pierce stayed healthy throughout the season despite his aggressive running style and displayed the burst and power to be an effective lead back should Rice get hurt. Of course, Rice has not missed a single game since his rookie year. It's also possible that at 6-0, 218, the bigger Pierce could steal some of the goal-line work, but Rice converted 8-of-18 carries from inside the 10 last year.

The Ravens spent the 84th pick in the draft on Pierce, who ran for 1,481 yards and 27 touchdowns during his junior year of college. He has good balance and a nose for the end zone but lacks skills as a receiver and isn’t overly quick. Baltimore hopes he can replace Ricky Williams as the team’s backup, and while that job won’t entail much if Ray Rice stays healthy, it could have plenty of potential if Rice were to go down. Pierce is an intriguing late round flier.