Some may not think of Isaac Redman when they think of the Pittsburgh Steelers backfield. For the past several years, it’s been the Rashard Mendenhall show. Well, all that is about to change in 2012. Owners should be keeping an eye on Redman this offseason as his Fantasy Football Sleeper stock is going to blow up.
On Monday (2/13), Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Tweeted that the Steelers were “not counting on Mendenhall in 2012.” If you remember, Mendy suffered a torn ACL in his right knee in Week 17 of the 2011 regular season against the Browns. Mendenhall wound up missing the playoffs and could miss either a good portion of the 2012 regular season or all of it. I feel strongly about the latter scenario. If history has shown us anything it’s that running backs usually need a full year to heal from such a tear. And since Mendy suffered the injury so late in the season, his entire 2012 season is likely going to be a no go. Interestingly enough, Mendenhall’s future could be in doubt as he was entering a contract year and free agency in 2013. He may end up having to sign a one-year “prove it” deal in the 2013 offseason to show he is fully recovered.
So with Mendenhall out of the picture, that leaves Redman as the sole starter in the backfield for the time being. His pro career has been a rocky one thus far. He went undrafted in the 2009 NFL Draft and had been on and off the practice squad until the team signed him to the active roster on January 6, 2010.
While Redman hasn’t carried the ball much in Pittsburgh’s one-back system, he has averaged a healthy 4.6 yards per carry average on 162 carries over the last two seasons. And as the starter going into the playoffs against Denver in the Wild Card round, Redman stepped up, carrying the ball 17 times for 121 yards (7.1 ypc) and catching two passes for another 21 yards in the loss.
Redman’s future value will depend greatly on what the team opts to do in free agency and in the draft. For now, running back isn’t exactly a huge area of need with the defense and offensive line being the primary candidates for new blood. The team could find someone for depth since current backup Jonathan Dwyer’s pro career has been too inconsistent. But for now, I don’t see the team making a big move for a player who can push Redman for the starting job.
So for those owners in dynasty leagues who have a chance at making trades right now, I would definitely try to wrangle a deal for Redman. His fantasy value is looking strong for 2012. And if he proves he can handle a full workload for the entire season, he could be in the team’s plans in the future.
Article Courtesy of FantasyKnuckleheads.com 
2012 Fantasy Football Sleeper: Running Back Isaac Redman 
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