And Now, a Message from the Fullback Union
You think I forgot about the big guys who do the dirty work? Certainly not. As the self proclaimed president of the Fullback Union (membership cards coming soon), I am always looking for teams who keep holding on to the position that seems to be a dying breed. As luck would have it, the first few weeks of the NFL season has led to a few of these guys to be featured. Bare in mind I haven’t seen all the games in all the markets, so I may be missing a few here. But so far, here are four guys who are showing that the position is still alive and kicking.
Carson Steele
Steele is a undrafted rookie from UCLA who is currently playing with Kansas City. His role may change due to the injuries to the KC running backs, but even so he’s been getting opportunities. Steele has lined up both in the hand the dirt standard fullback position and next to Mahomes in the backfield. He’s mostly been a ball carrier so far so we haven’t seen him as a blocker or pass catcher yet. I bet it’s only a matter of time until we see what he can really do. Steele overall has proven to be a dual threat early and often, especially when he shined in his college debut when he had over 1,000 total yards, had 100 ground yards in 12 games, and led the MAC in rushing with 1,556 yards. The last fullback KC had was Anthony Sherman and I think it’s safe to say Steele has more upside if he continues to stay the course.
Kyle Juszczyk
In San Francisco, you know when the fullback makes a play cause the crowd chants his name. He’s one of two on this list with Massachusetts ties, playing his college ball at Harvard. He doesn’t always light up the stat sheet but he is a key part of what the Niners like to do. He blocks for the run game and acts as a smaller tight end/H-back in a lot of passing situations. Believe it or not, most of his damage is done as a receiver where in total he has just over 2,500 receiving yards and 16 touchdown catches, including one in the super bowl.
Patrick Ricard
Another Massachusetts local whose done alright from himself. Ricard played at the University of Maine before joining the Ravens as a fullback and part time defensive tackle. Before the offensive coaching change, sometimes Ricard got more touches than some of the receivers. That dialed back a bit, but he still a big part of what the Ravens do on offense. Derrick Henry doesn’t have the monster 199 yard performance against Buffalo without his effective blocking. He even got his own feature during the game. The man they call “Pancake Pat” may not be as athletic and quick as the others on this list, but he can slam a defender into next week.
Hunter Luepke
If I’m being honest, I never heard of this guy before this season. Part of that is because he played his college ball in the other branch of division one football. Most come from the FBS, he played in the FCS for the powerhouse North Dakota State. Luepke is playing for Dallas, who even in the modern era of football has used a fullback on and off. Similar to Juszczyk, he is being used as the smaller frame tight end/H-back and already is being looked to in big moments. In the recent game against Baltimore, Luepke was asked to convert a huge fourth down pass play and he did. He gets motioned across the formation which helps reveal the defense and exploits mismatches. He has the potential to be a matchup nightmare.
The moral of the story is the fullback is still in some college and NFL offenses, which brings hope to the future of the position. It doesn’t make sense why people think it’s smart to alienate an entire position from the sport that has always been there to some degree. I’m hoping for the best here, and I’m hoping within time there will be a couple more teams that look to pick one up again after seeing what they can do in today’s version of football. We all need more fullback dive plays for touchdowns in our lives even if you don’t want to admit it. That will always be my favorite play.
I’m the President of Fullback Union and I approve this message.