Fantasy Upside
Mike Tolbert remains a powerful battering ram with surprisingly soft hands who led Carolina RBs in targets last year with 27. He also caught three touchdown passes. He also had 17 red zone carries last year and is still used frequently in short yardage situations.
Fantasy Downside
Tolbert loses a lot of his goal line value merely by playing on the same team as Cam Newton, who was second on the team with 29 red zone carries last year. Tolbert will be 31 in November and hasn’t looked as powerful the last two years as he did from 2010 to 2013.
2016 Bottom Line
Tolbert will remain the starting fullback and will continue to get some short yardage runs and looks in the passing game, but his upside is so limited and he’s unlikely to put up consistent enough fantasy numbers to warrant serious draft consideration. In touchdown-only leagues, he has a little bit of value as an end-of-the-bench guy and bye-week fill-in. Ultimately however, fantasy owners should look to someone with more upside.