Austin Ekeler is offering fantasy football players additional incentive for rostering him this season.
The Los Angeles Chargers running back says he will give away free autographed jerseys throughout the season to fantasy football players who start him in their weekly lineup and post their victories on social media.
Ekeler said in a tweet Wednesday night that winners “will be chosen each week” throughout the season and sent the signed jersey.
‼️ATTENTION FANTASY OWNERS‼️ HUGE weekly giveaway this szn🤙🏽
Rules:
-Draft me to your fantasy team
-Start me in your lineup
-Win your weekly matchup
-Post a screenshot to IG or Twitter showing your victory & TAG MEWinners will be chosen each week&sent a Signed⚡️3️⃣0️⃣⚡️Jersey🤘🏽 pic.twitter.com/lBo437BJkq
— Austin Ekeler (@AustinEkeler) August 26, 2021
Fantasy football players already are bullish on Ekeler, whose average draft position (ADP) was 14.6 in standard leagues as of Thursday afternoon — the 13th-highest ADP in ESPN’s fantasy football game, and just behind Green Bay’s Aaron Jones (12.9) and ahead of Pittsburgh rookie Najee Harris (19.0).
Ekeler recently was ranked by ESPN as the seventh-best running back in points-per-reception (PPR) fantasy formats, and ESPN projects the fifth-year pro to finish with the ninth-most points among running backs in PPR formats this season.
Ekeler, 26, is expecting a bounce-back 2021 season after missing six games last year because of a hamstring injury. He enjoyed a breakout season in 2019, when he finished with 1,550 yards from scrimmage and scored 11 touchdowns. Ekeler’s 92 receptions in 2019 were second-most among running backs, behind only Carolina’s Christian McCaffrey (116), and 10th-most overall in the NFL.