2012 Fantasy Football Week 9: Running Backs (RB) Rankings / Projections

Adrian Peterson will be in for a tough matchup in Seattle this week, but the extra rest from playing on Thursday night against the Buccaneers will help. Maybe Peterson won’t be at full strength until next season as he continues to work his way back from a major knee injury, but you wouldn’t know it based on his play in recent weeks.

Peterson has run well all season, but in the past two weeks he’s returned to the elite level of production we all expect from this physical freak. While the Vikings have had their ups and downs in recent weeks, the fact that Minnesota is playing good football (for the most part) only helps his odds to continue his elite production.

What Did We Learn from Week 8?

- It was important to see a strong performance from Stevan Ridley before the bye week after a few average performances and the praise Bill Belichick gave Shane Vereen last week. Ridley was clearly the better running back in England, with 15 carries for 127 yards and a score.

Vereen, on the other hand, had only marginal success, as he totaled 21 yards on seven carries, but he did have a touchdown score after Ridley failed on his attempt a few plays before. Coming off the bye in Week 10, Ridley’s RB2 value is safe.

- Last week, I questioned if the Buccaneers held Martin’s workload back against the Saints in an effort to feature him against the Vikings on a short week. The Buccaneers built up a lead on the Vikings and Martin was a big reason why, as his performance should silence any doubters that questioned if he was up to the task of being a feature back in the NFL.

- Martin will be the Buccaneers' main option in the running game going forward and as we saw with this 64-yard touchdown catch, the rookie can make an impact in the passing game as well. Consider him a low-end RB1 going forward.

Sean’s Week 9 Watch List

- Trent Richardson bounced back last week after a disappointing effort against the Colts found him benched in the second half of that game. While some of you no doubt had him on the bench, Richardson at least proved he’s worth trusting again in what should be another quality performance against a banged-up Ravens defense.

- If DeMarco Murray is out again this week, we should look to Phillip Tanner as the top running back to start over Felix Jones. Tanner isn’t a special talent by any stretch, but he will give the Cowboys tough running and fight for every yard. I like him as a flex consideration if Murray is down again.

- Coach Jim Schwartz balked at the idea Mikel Leshoure was injured against the Seahawks, but I think he didn’t want to lead on to his upcoming opponent where exactly Leshoure was ailing. We need to keep an eye on his practice status through the week, as Joique Bell would make for a solid flex option if Leshoure is down for a week.

1	Arian Foster	Bills
2	Ray Rice	@ Browns
3	Adrian Peterson	@ Seahawks
4	Marshawn Lynch	Vikings
5	Willis McGahee	@ Bengals
6	Jamaal Charles	@ Chargers
7	Doug Martin	@ Raiders
8	LeSean McCoy	@ Saints
9	Matt Forte	@ Titans
10	Ryan Mathews	Chiefs
11	Trent Richardson	Ravens
12	Alfred Morris	Panthers
13	Darren McFadden	Buccaneers
14	C.J. Spiller	@ Texans
15	Fred Jackson	@ Texans
16	Chris Johnson	Bears
17	Jonathan Dwyer	@ Giants
18	Reggie Bush	@ Colts
19	Jonathan Stewart	@ Redskins
20	Rashad Jennings	Lions
21	Michael Turner	Cowboys
22	Darren Sproles	Eagles
23	Mikel Leshoure (I)	@ Jaguars
24	Ahmad Bradshaw (I)	Steelers
25	BenJarvus Green-Ellis	Broncos
26	Alex Green	Cardinals
27	Phillip Tanner	@ Falcons
28	Joique Bell	@ Jaguars
29	Andre Brown	Steelers
30	Pierre Thomas	Eagles
31	Larod Stephens-Howling	@ Packers
32	Donald Brown	Dolphins
33	Ronnie Hillman	@ Bengals
34	Felix Jones (I)	@ Falcons
35	Michael Bush	@ Titans
36	Ben Tate (I)	Bills

Week 9 Standard Rankings – QB | WR | TE | Flex | D |