Top 10 RB's

Since the beginning of fantasy football Running backs have been the safe first round pick. However, this year’s batch of top 10 running backs seems to be followed by an immense amount of questions. These question marks leave us wondering one thing? RB or QB with your first pick? QB is safer this year and it’s also deeper. However, If you miss on a top 5 RB, your depth chart will likely be a rotating mess of average RB’s.

10. Darren McFadden: It’s no secret he has all the tools to be a great NFL RB. My concern is the fact he’s never played more than 13 games in a season. He’s overvalued in round 3, but undervalued in round 4.

9. Marshawn Lynch: He averages a pedestrian 4 yards per carry but receives an un-pedestrian 65% of his teams carries. As long as he’s the bell cow ,he’s a top ten fantasy running back.

8. Adrian Peterson: He was the BEST running back in the NFL before his knee injury. I have doubts that he will return to the top. But, if healthy he’s a mid-level RB1.

7. Maurice Jones Drew: He receives 70% of his teams carries, got 63 targets in 2011, and has a career 4.7 YPC. However, the hold out situation looks very sticky and similar situations haven’t yielded on-field success. He could be a steal, but if he continues to holdouts I’m staying away.

 6. Michael Turner: He may be aging but he’s the ground hog on a potent offense. He scored 10+ points in 11 games in 2011 and has played in 16 games 4 of the last 5 years. I see one more year of consistent production.

5. Steven Jackson: Ok, he’s 29 years old, but New Coach Jeff Fisher has only 2 seasons without a 1000 yard rusher on his resume. Jackson may not lead the league but he’ll be top 10.

4. Chris Johnson: Last year’s production should give you an idea of Johnson’s statistical floor. With a full off season and a commitment to be relevant again, Johnson could hit 1900 total yards this season

3. Arian Foster: Could be the number 1 RB with an impressive 4.7 YPC and 71 targets in2011. What keeps him at number 3 in my rankings is his past injury risk along with the 32% of carries he loses to Ben Tate.

2. Lesean McCoy: I’m not suggesting another massive TD year, but he’s a safe bet for 1000+ rushing yards with 50+ catches. He a touch more reliable than Foster and has far less competition for carries.

1. Ray Rice: He’s a staple in the Ravens offense with 3 straight years of 16 games. He’s pretty darn good with a career 4.6 YPC and 4 catches per game. He should be the next RB to surpass the 2100 total yard mark.