Fantasy Football Rankings: Running backs will make or break your team
There is no better way to screw over your chances for fantasy football championship glory than picking dud running backs.
If you are drafting as experts suggest, you will draft running backs with two of your four top picks, and then come back in Rounds 6-7 for a promising younger back or a veteran who is slow to return from injury. Finally, as injury insurance, you “handcuff” your star back in round 11-12 by drafting his top backup.
That’s at least four running backs per team. In other words, you need to hit the draft right because finding a gem off the free-agent waiver wire in-season isn’t as easy with running backs as it is with WRs.
Below are the most current rankings based on a PPR league. If you are in a standard league, just drop the receiving backs like Reggie Bush and Matt Forte a couple slots and raise up Alfred Morris and Doug Martin.
(Values were determined by preseason play, last years FF results from CBS Sportsline.com and NFL.com, coordinator and scheme changes, and strength of opponents in running and passing game).
Running Back Ranking 2013 (updated 8-28-2013):
| BYE | ||
| 1 | Adrian Peterson | 5 |
| 2 | Jamal Charles | 10 |
| 3 | Doug Martin | 5 |
| 4 | LeSean McCoy | 12 |
| 5 | Ray Rice | 8 |
| 6 | Arian Foster | 8 |
| 7 | Marshawn Lynch | 12 |
| 8 | Alfred Morris | 5 |
| 9 | CJ Spiller | 12 |
| 10 | Matt Forte | 8 |
| 11 | Reggie Bush | 9 |
| 12 | Trent Richardson | 10 |
| 13 | Stevan Ridley | 10 |
| 14 | Chris Johnson | 8 |
| 15 | Frank Gore | 9 |
| 16 | Ryan Mathews | 8 |
| 17 | DeMarco Murray | 11 |
| 18 | MJD | 9 |
| 19 | Steven Jackson | 6 |
| 20 | David Wilson | 9 |
| 21 | Lamar Miller | 6 |
| 22 | Eddie Lacy | 4 |
| 23 | Shane Vereen | 10 |
| 24 | Darren Sproles | 7 |
| 25 | Ahmad Bradshaw | 8 |
| 26 | Darren McFadden | 7 |
| 27 | Montee Ball | 9 |
| 28 | Ben Tate | 8 |
| 29 | Mark Ingram | 7 |
| 31 | Daryl Richardson | 11 |
| 32 | Isaac Redman | 5 |
| 33 | Giovani Bernard | 12 |
| 34 | Rashard Mendenhall | 9 |
| 35 | Pierre Thomas | 7 |
| 36 | Joique Bell | 9 |
| 37 | Deangelo Williams | 4 |
| 38 | Bilal Powell | 10 |
| 39 | Ben Jarvis Green-Ellis | 12 |
| 40 | Danny Woodhead | 8 |
| 41 | Andre Brown | 9 |
| 42 | Chris Ivory | 10 |
| 43 | Bernard Pierce | 8 |
| 44 | Le’Veon Bell (INJ) | 5 |
| 45 | Bryce Brown | 12 |
| 46 | Christine Michael | 12 |
| 47 | Fred Jackson | 12 |
| 48 | Vick Ballard | 8 |
| 49 | Ronnie Hillman | 9 |
| 50 | Jacquizz Rogers | 6 |
| 51 | Jonathan Dwyer | 5 |
| 52 | Isaiah Pead | 11 |
| 51 | Jordan Todman | 9 |
| 52 | Knile Davis | 10 |
| 53 | Michael Bush | 8 |
| 54 | Roy Helu | 5 |
| 55 | Daniel Thomas | 6 |
| 56 | Lance Dunbar | 11 |
| 57 | Kendall Hunter | 9 |
| 58 | Jonathan Franklin | 4 |
| 59 | LaRod Stephens-Howling | 5 |
| 60 | Zac Stacy | 11 |
| 61 | Jonathan Stewart (INJ) | 4 |
| 62 | Shonn Greene (INJ) | 8 |
| 63 | Stepfan Taylor | 9 |
| 64 | Ryan Williams | 9 |
| 65 | Marcel Reece | 7 |
| 66 | Rashad Jennings | 7 |