MLC Recap + Fantasy RBs

Hi Friends!

Today we're going to be recapping an epic Major League Cricket season and share our Fantasy Football Running Back PPR (points per reception) rankings.

For those unfamiliar, the sport of cricket is the second most watched sport in the world, after soccer. The biggest cricket league in the world is the IPL (Indian Premier League) and a few years ago, the league decided to create a linked league in the US, called Major League Cricket. Top players from around the world come to play in stadiums across our country and fans come from around the world to watch!

This season was hosted in Grand Prairie, TX, Oakland, CA, and Pomona, CA, near Dallas, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, respectively. My Dad and I got to watch a couple games in Oakland about a month ago, as you can see in the photo above! There are six teams in MLC: Seattle Orcas, San Francisco Unicorns, Los Angeles Knight Riders, Texas Super Kings, Washington Freedom, and Mumbai Indians New York!

It was thrilling to attend two MLC matches! It was also amazing to live history in the famous Oakland Coliseum, former home of the storied Athletics franchise in Major League Baseball, and Raiders franchise in the National Football League. We got tons of free merch and the vendors were an amazing mix of American stadium food and Desi (Indian) food. Where else could you get burgers, fries, papdi chaat, and masala chai?! Oh you won't believe this but there was a Royal Basmati rice booth where they gave free samples of rice, key chains, and signs for 4s and 6s (big plays in cricket)! We got flags, bucket hats, whistles, and more!

We rooted on our home team, Seattle Orcas, as well as the Texas Super Kings because they're linked with the Chennai (our home in India) Super Kings of IPL. We made a friend who traveled all the way from Nottingham, England to watch and had fun making predictions with him. The league was super tight, and in the double round robin, three teams finished 6-4, namely the Unicorns, Knight Riders, and Freedom, MI NY finished 5-5, and our two teams finished at the bottom, at 4-6 for the Orcas, and 3-7 for the Super Kings. In the playoffs ultimately it came down to the Knight Riders and Freedom with the Knight Riders claiming the title! Congrats LAKR!

Switching gears, let's talk fantasy football again! Today we're going to focus on Running Backs, specifically my top 5 running backs and a sleeper pick in the PPR fantasy format.

1. Bijan Robinson

Bijan is the focal point of the Falcons offense. Whether his QB is Tua or Penix, he's going to be a high-volume rusher and likely either their top or second target on the receiving end, along with Drake London. In 2025, he averaged over 10 yards per catch, over 100 catches, and over 800 receiving yards to go along with nearly 1,500 rushing yards. Realistically Bijan is a top five draft pick in every fantasy football league and in my opinion should go top two, along with Ja'Marr Chase.

2. Jahmyr Gibbs

As a Lions fan myself, it's exciting to see Jah so high up on this list. Look, it was hard to see Montgomery go to the Texans breaking up the Sonic Knuckles 1-2 punch but this will give Jahmyr a higher volume of carries to complement his amazing pass catching out of the backfield. I anticipate Gibbs to have the highest floor of any RB this season given his high target share on the receiving end and high volume of carries on the ground. He's a sure first round pick in all fantasy leagues and in my estimation should be top five.

3. Christian McCaffrey

We've seen it year after year. IF CMC is healthy, he's a stud. This has ALWAYS been true. Will he be healthy? Who knows. He's a high risk, high reward pick given how much he gets injured, but healthy, he might be the best player in the NFL, period. Given his mad upside and undeniable talent both as a rusher and receiver, I see CMC going first round in virtually all fantasy PPR leagues.

4. De'Von Achane

Listen. If you have a late first round pick in your fantasy PPR league, this guy is without a doubt your man. He's on a Dolphins team that lacks weapons. That might be the understatement of the year. Achane is their best running back by far. Not going to lie, I think he's their best receiver too! His volume will be super high both on the ground and in the air, and the team will be coming from behind constantly giving him lots of big play chances.

5. James Cook III

As QB1 Josh Allen and the Bills navigate yet another playoff disappointment, we can't deny that that team remains strong and James Cook is a major reason why. Let's be real too, Allen has been trying to find a true WR1 for years and they still haven't come along, though maybe DJ Moore fills that void this year. Whatever the case may be, Cook will cook on the rushing side, leading the NFL in rushing yards last season with over 1,600. He's not quite as high a volume receiver as the other guys on this list but he's a top target in the red zone and deserves to round out my top 5. If he somehow falls to the second round of your fantasy draft, grab him asap.

Sleeper. Omarion Hampton

The Chargers are a sneaky good team with an offensive line that looks to be much healthier than last year. Omarion is entering his second year in the league and has shown that he can thrive even without strong blockers up front. He's the type of guy who could get 15 carries and 3 receptions per game this coming season, with crazy big play potential. If you can get him in the 3rd round, that's a crazy steal, and I would happily take him in the mid second round as well given his upside. Also, the Chargers will be leading a lot of football games this year with prime Herbert at the helm, so expect even more carries for Omarion.

Whether you're a cricket fan, fantasy football fan, or happened on this blog post by accident, hopefully you dig a bit deeper into cricket and fantasy football now! They're both super fun!

That's all for today! See y'all next time! Sarang out.