Fantasy Football Rankings: Running Backs (Part 2)

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9th Tier: Old Guys with Jobs (and not much else)

Due to their name value and past success these guys will probably go a little earlier than they should and thus won’t end up on any of my rosters this year. Most leagues have a couple of owners who aren’t as prepared as the rest of us and I can see them now saying  “Holy s**t, MJD is still available in round 9!”.  I’m not saying they don’t have value, but my philosophy is to target players that will be better next season, not worse.Running backs generally start declining after the age of 29 (FO) and the decline is steep. Once a RB loses his speed it gets ugly quick as we saw with some of these players last year. Once the speed and burst are gone, they don’t come back as you get older, so don’t buy any of the “best shape of my life” or “injured last year” excuses. These guy have starting gigs (for now) so they will put up some useful fantasy numbers based on usage, but running back is a young man’s game and come fantasy playoff time I don’t expect these guys to be fantasy relevant.

37.) Trent Richardson. Colts – Last call for T-Rich to not qualify as the rare double-bust. The Browns spent the 4th overall pick on T-Rich in 2012 and then the Colts traded the 23rd overall pick for him a year and a half later. He hasn’t done enough at the pro level for me to have any confidence in T-Rich. Even in his 12 TD rookie season, T-Rich only averaged 3.5 ypc and was even worse in a half season in Indy last year (3.4 ypc). On the positive side, the Colts improved their O-line and receiving options so there should be more running lanes for T-Rich if he has enough burst to get through them. He was considered the best RB prospect since Adrian Peterson coming out of Alabama and ran a 4.45 40-time at 227 pounds at the combine only 3 seasons ago, so there should be some talent there right? RBs do drop off the cliff seemingly over night and T-Rich may already be on his way down. Don’t spend too much on T-Rich, but if your league mates have already given up on Richardson, roll the dice. He is going to get carries and there may still be talent there.

38.) MJD, Raiders – The Raiders have 4 new offensive lineman and no passing game to worry about, so I don’t see much in way of running lanes for MJD or whoever ends up as the Raiders primary RB. More importantly I didn’t see much gas left in MJD’s tank last year, he looked sloooow. MJD should be the Raiders goal line back which will result in a few TDs this year and he is an excellent receiver out of the backfield, so there will be some fantasy points but MLD shouldn’t be more than your flex this season.

39.) Ray Rice, Ravens – I hear that he looks faster this year, which is great because he couldn’t be any slower than he looked last year. Rice looked like he was carrying someone on his back last season and had his lowest YPC of his career (3.1). The Ravens have a new OC this year in Gary Kubiak and he brings his zone blocking scheme with him. Bernard Pierce seems to be a better fit for the one-cut and go strategy but he is coming off a disappointing season as well (2.9). Neither guy excites me much and I wouldn’t be surprised if rookie Lorenzo Taliaferro is getting carries by the end of the season Rice received PFF’s lowest RB grade with negative marks for running, blocking, penalties, and yards after contact. He also had a worse broken tackle rate than every RB except Willis McGahee (FO)! Rice is going to miss the first 2 games of the year and there is no guarantee he gets his starting gig back. I’ll pass.

40.) Stephen Jackson, Falcons – He looked like a fullback carrying the ball last year and I don’t think he’s going to get his speed back all of a sudden at 31 years old. I think Jackson’s days as a relevant fantasy player are over and expect Devonte Freeman to be the Falcons primary RB no later than mid-season.

41.) Shonn Greene, Titans – If you are looking for a between the tackles runner who is slow and has bad knees, then Greene is your guy. I loved Greene at Iowa, but he is a power back who is getting slower and less healthy by the year. He is supposedly healthy now and the new Titans coaching staff is talking Greene up as their #1 RB, but having watched Greene play over the last two seasons I just don’t see him holding up as a bell-cow RB. Bishop Sankey will have 75% of the carries by mid-season. Bank on it.

42.) DeAngelo Williams, Panthers – The Panthers have the worst group of starting WRs in the league, one of the worst O-lines, Cam Newton steals plenty of goal line carries and Williams is still part of a committee with Jon Stewart and Mike Tolbert. No thanks.

Tier 10: PPR Only

If you are in a stone-age league that doesn’t reward receptions, then disregard this section. They guys all get more targets in the passing game than carries, so draft accordingly.

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43.) Darren Sproles, Eagles – Going from Drew Brees to Nick Foles is a significant drop-off no matter how much you like Foles. That being said, Sproles is a great fit for Chip Kelly’s offense based on creative runs and short passes. McCoy is still the heart of that offense, but Sproles is too good of a fit not to be involved. The fact that the Eagles traded for Sproles is a pretty reliable sign that he is going to get some touches this year. How many is up for debate, I don’t think he will get as many as he had with the Saints, but he should be able to do more damage per touch. I think he’s a 7-8 fantasy point per game player with the upside for a few more per game.

44.) Roy Helu, Redskins – This might be the highest you will see Helu on any lists but I think he is a perfect fit for the Gio Bernard role in new HC Jay Gruden’s offense. Helu’s skill set is very similar; He’s an excellent receiver out of the backfield and slippery in space. So is rookie Lache Seastrunk so keep an eye on battle, but Helu is bigger, proven, and much more versatile. Helu will only cost you a late pick or a $1 and will give you a few catches per game and much more if something happens to Alfred Morris.

45.) Dexter McCluster, Titans – New Titan HC Ken Whisenhunt was the OC in San Diego last year and used Danny Woodhead extensively. McCluster is Whisenhunt’s new Woodhead and with only slo-mo Shonn Greene and rookie Bishop Sankey in the backfield, I think a proven vet like McCluster will get plenty of work out of the backfield and occasionally line up in the slot. His TD numbers will be low, but his catch and yardage numbers could be worth keeping an eye on in PPR leagues.