Alexander Mattison

Six seasons, two teams — and his 2023 lead-back season is the only one with 180+ carries.

Mattison spent five years as Dalvin Cook's backup, then inherited the RB1 job in 2023 when Cook left Minnesota. The result was the only season of his career with 180+ carries (180) and 700+ rush yards (700) — but also zero rushing TDs, an oddity for a featured back.

In 2024 with the Raiders he shifted to a true committee role: 132 carries for 420 yards but a career-high 36 receptions for 294 yards, becoming more useful as a pass-catcher than as a pure ground option.

Why it matters. Five years behind Dalvin Cook, one year as the answer in Minnesota, then a committee piece in Vegas — the arc tells you exactly when he was given the keys.

He was the only RB in 2023 with 180+ carries and zero rushing TDs — the next-fewest had 2.

Lead backs almost always punch in at least a few goal-line scores. Mattison did not punch in a single one in 2023 despite 180 carries for 700 yards — the only RB at that workload to finish without a rushing TD.

The weirder context: he had 5 rushing TDs in 2022 on just 74 carries as Dalvin Cook's backup, then went to zero when he took the job himself. With the Raiders in 2024 he reset the line at 4 rushing TDs on 132 carries.

Why it matters. Goal-line work usually follows volume. Mattison getting the volume but never the touchdowns is the cleanest signal that Minnesota didn't trust him inside the 5.

His three 100-yard games all came as the Vikings' fill-in starter — none in 2023 as the full-time RB1.

Mattison has three career 100-yard rushing games — all in 2020-2021 when Cook missed time and Mattison drew the start. His 2023 ceiling as the full-time RB1 was just 95 yards (Week 4 vs CAR).

The pattern: he was more explosive as the change-of-pace getting Cook's carries than he was as the entrenched starter splitting reps with Ty Chandler.

Why it matters. The starter job came with the snaps but not the explosiveness — his best ceiling games happened when he was the surprise, not the plan.

Career 3.90 YPC — second-lowest among the 50 RBs with 700+ carries since 2019.

Across 722 career carries for 2,813 yards Mattison sits at 3.90 yards per carry — barely above the bottom of the heavy-workload RB pool since 2019. His best YPC season was his rookie year (4.58 in 2019) and he's been under 4.0 in four of his six seasons, including a 3.18 mark in 2024 with the Raiders.

Why it matters. Volume without efficiency is the Mattison story: he gets the carries when called on, but the per-touch return has stayed near the floor of his peer group since he entered the league.

2,813 career rush yards + 1,024 receiving — 3,837 scrimmage across 92 games as the league's quintessential change-up back.

Across 92 career games (2019-2024) Mattison has 722 carries for 2,813 yards rushing and 138 receptions for 1,024 yards receiving — 3,837 scrimmage yards total with 15 rushing TDs and 7 receiving TDs.

That's the resume of a high-end NFL change-up back: never a Pro Bowler, never a 1,000-yard rusher, but 6 straight seasons with a defined role and a contract that kept paying out — first as Cook's insurance, then as a lead back, now as a committee piece.

Why it matters. Six seasons, two teams, never a featured-back season — and yet the totals add up to a real career because the role kept finding him.