FOXBORO, Mass. — We’re still months away from the start of the 2019 NFL season, but it’s never too early to start thinking about fantasy football.
And when it comes time for you to draft a running back this summer, James White wants you to keep his name in mind.
“Pick me, can’t go wrong,” the New England Patriots star said with a smile Thursday while speaking with reporters at Gillette Stadium.
White doesn’t have the national notoriety of a Saquon Barkley, Todd Gurley or Alvin Kamara, but his pass-catching proficiency made him one of the NFL’s top fantasy backs last season. In PPR (points per reception) scoring, White ranked seventh in fantasy points per week behind only Barkley, Christian McCaffrey, Gurley, Kamara, Ezekiel Elliott and James Conner.
During that career year, the Super Bowl LI hero experienced a noticeable uptick in popularity.
“Yeah, you definitely see it, especially with social media,” said White, who caught 87 passes for 751 yards and seven touchdowns in 2018 and also tallied four rushing scores. “I mean, most of your interactions are going to be a lot about fantasy football. It is cool, though. It gets the fans involved. They’re passionate about it, and it gets more views for the NFL, I guess.”
White said he’s never personally played fantasy football, but he knows what it takes to build a winning team.
“My wife played in college,” he said. “I kind of helped her win a championship.”