NFL Week 10 Fantasy RB Rankings: The Most In-Depth Analysis in the Industry

Week 10 RB Player Rankings

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Rankings for QBs, WRs, and TEs

1. Adrian Peterson (@ Chi) – Purple Jesus has played six games against the Bears in his career. In those six games, AP28 has averaged 122.2 yards and 1.83 TDs per game.  In his three games at Soldier Field, he has averaged 146.3 yards and 2.3 TDs per game.  Basically, All Day should have been drafted by the Bears. Soldier Field is his home away from home and it will be again on Sunday. Book it!

2. Arian Foster (@ Jax) – The only reason Foster doesn’t get top billing this week against a Jaguars defense that couldn’t stop my mother from gaining a yard on an A-Gap run is because Peterson is the beast that he is. Otherwise, Foster is your guy. Period.  Jacksonville’s defense is a sieve.

3. Chris Johnson (@ Mia) – This is it folks. The moment we’ve all been waiting for…the Explosion! If you don’t pay attention to Moss, he’ll burn you. If you disregard CJ2K, he’ll burn you. One way or another, this kid is going to go off this week. Don’t forget that the football players we all watch and root for on Sunday are kids and that they all play on their emotions. Johnson is as fired up as I’ve ever seen him this week and Moss won’t let him down. They’ve already raced by the way…(video to come)

4. Ahmad Bradshaw (vs Dal) – Bradshaw is a working man’s work of art. Every single play is his last; every single rush looks for six points; every single down means the Super Bowl to him. Dallas has given up on their season and all the Giants will need is one long gain out of Bradshaw to deflate the Cowboys into oblivion. He’ll do it in the first quarter…and then do it some more.

5. Jamaal Charles (@ Den) – The Denver defense is much like that semi-good-looking slut you knew back in High School…easy to get into and even easier to go all the way with. The Broncos are 31st in rushing yards allowed/game (154.6) and dead last in TDs given up (14, second has allowed 11). Charles is exactly the type of back to exploit this sort of debauchery. Bet on it.

6. Frank Gore (vs StL) – Gore may not have put up the TDs quite yet this year, but he will, and the Rams are the team he’ll do it against. Over the last two years he’s averaged 106.5 yards and 1.5 TDs against them on just 20.5 carries a game. With Troy Smith running the show, you can bet Gore will get at least that amount of rushes and put up somewhere around the same type of numbers.

7. Maurice Jones-Drew (vs Hou) – Houston's defense is as porous as it gets, and it’s not just through the air anymore (though they are still last in that category). The whole defense is over-cooked macaroni oozing through a Wal-Mart bought strainer, while MJD is just the type of running back to take advantage. Super-strong, yet small and agile.  100-plus and a TD sounds about right.

8. Rashard Mendenhall (vs NE) – Rashard was used too much early in the season, but they took it easy on him before this last Monday night game. Turns out they were right to do so as he rattled off 99 yards and a TD against the Bengals. Not bad, but it could be better…and might be against the Patriots.

9. Cedric Benson (@ Ind) – Not many RBs have been stopped by the Colts, and it’s not because they have a bad defensive line…it’s simply because it’s not what they’re good at without Bob Sanders in the lineup. The Bengals will give Benson the ball a TON this game, which could very well turn into 30 carries, 120 yards and possibly a TD.

10. Michael Turner (vs Bal) – Turner has over 100 yards and two TDs in each of the last two games. To be quite honest, I don’t see that happening against the Ravens, but it’s a short week because they play on Thursday night, so anything can happen. Take the chance.

11. Peyton Hillis (vs NYJ) – Not only is this kid defying the odds being a white running back in the NFL, but he also happens to be one of the BEST running backs in the league right now. He’s so big and strong that it doesn’t seem to matter what defense is playing him at this point. Unless he gets hurt, bank on 80-100 yards and a TD against the 4th best Rush D in the NFL.

12. LeSean McCoy (@ Was) – The last time he faced the Redskins he went off for 174 total yards. He seems to enjoy playing with Vick as his QB, as the offense opens up with him under center. Feel free to play him as an RB1 against an inner-division foe like Washington.

13. Ray Rice (@ Atl) – As I figured, Rice broke out against Miami last week. Will he do the same against a stout Falcons Rush D this week? Well, the real question is how much time have the Falcons had to game-plan against him? Three days, that’s it. For anyone else who is a fan of Jane’s Addiction, you know what three days can do to a man. Bet on Rice putting up some pretty good numbers this Thursday.

14. LeGarrette Blount (vs Car) – Carolina has a good defense; don’t be mistaken on that fact. However, their offense is so bad that the opposing team gets the ball back so quickly they have no choice but to run the ball. Blount will garner 20-plus carries and gain around 100 yards this weekend while a TD or two around the goal-line wouldn’t surprise me.

15. Steven Jackson (@ SF) – SJax should be back in full force after a bye week to take care of his little finger problem, so don’t be surprised if he goes a little berserk in this game. Sure San Fran is stout against the run, but Jackson has seen it all before and is ready to do some damage.

16. LaDainian Tomlinson (@ Cle) – LT21 is still the main man…for now. He’ll break down a bit eventually, but not in this game. Cleveland will put up a good fight against the Jets. But in the end, the Jets O-Line will wear the Browns down and LT21 will shoot off for a couple of big ones late.

17. Jahvid Best (@ Buf) – Like a 17-year old boy at prom, he was quick out of the gates only to let up when the other team was just starting to get riled up. However, teenage boys have a bit more stamina than we give them credit for, especially when they’re looking at a sure thing like the Bills. Best could very well live up to his name this weekend.

18. Thomas Jones (@ Den) – The Broncos are 31st in the league when it comes to defending the run and Jones is still very much a workhorse type of back. The Chiefs will use him as such in this game and could get BOTH him and Charles 100-plus yards on the ground when all is said and done.

19. Donald Brown (vs Cin) – Any running back starting in the backfield for the Colts is a good enough play for me. Granted, Donald hasn’t looked like the world-beater he did coming out of college, but if he’s truly over his injury you can expect the same type of numbers that Addai and Hart have put up in weeks past. Play him if you got him.

20. Knowshon Moreno (vs KC) – The kid scores touchdowns. Plain and simple. He may not be a high-volume yardage back, and he may not get you all the numbers you’re looking for, but he scores TDs. With Orton at the helm, Denver gets into the red-zone.  If you’re hoping beyond hope for an RB2 this week, Moreno is your guy.

21. Ryan Torain (vs Phi) – This ranking is completely dependent on Torain being healthy this week. Obviously if he’s not sit him again and move Keiland Williams down to around the 30-slot or so on this list. If he plays, though, he did well against the Eagles in their first outing, so there is no reason to think he won’t do so again.

22. Marshawn Lynch (@ Ari) – It won’t be special by any means, but if you’re looking to play the fugliest guy in the league for some reason, whether it be a bye week for another guy or you simply like him for whatever reason, go for it. It’s a great matchup against the 28th -ranked Rush D in the league.

23. Brandon Jacobs (vs Dal) – He’s starting to get some carries—around 10-plus per game—which combined with his goal-line duties could amount to a decent game against a Cowboys team that is not only falling apart, but sucks in the first place.

24. Fred Jackson (vs Det) – Are the Lions a terrible defensive team? Yeah, sometimes, but they’re getting a lot better. If they hadn’t shown signs of improvement the past few weeks, I’d put FJax up a few notches. However, I wouldn’t expect more than 70-80 total yards with maybe a lucky TD thrown in there this weekend.

25. Mike Goodson (@ TB) – Fact is, whoever is running the ball against the Bucs should have a pretty darn good day. Goodson is actually a very good, elusive back who, though he seems to go down pretty easily, can still make the big plays when necessary (as shown by his return skills). Neither Stewart nor DeAngelo will be playing in this one, so give Goodson a shot.

26. Beanie Wells (vs Sea) – The kid is a monster, believe you me. His power alone gets him yards that most other backs wouldn’t get. However, he needs to be completely healthy to do it and his smarts in terms of the offensive schemes might not quite be up to par. He’s the man in ‘Zona, so we’ll see what he’s got this weekend against the ‘Hawks.

27. Matt Forte (vs Min) – I’m so sick of this guy that I refuse to give him his due, though he probably deserves it with that Bears offensive line being as bad as it is.  Surprisingly, the Vikings can be run on this year, so we’ll see what Forte can do at home this week. I’m not expecting much.

28. Willis McGahee (@ Atl) – McGahee has scored in each of the past four weeks, so it’s obvious the Ravens like his ability in the red-zone. If they get close enough McGahee will score. If not, well, then he won’t and certainly won’t be worth your time slotting him into your lineup.

29. Danny Woodhead (@ Pit) – I am going to repeat this statement until he’s recognized: the records this kid set at both his High School in North Platte, Wisconsin and at his D-II school at Chadron State College are simply staggering. I mean Madden 2011-style staggering. As in the kid averaged 183 rushing yards/game over FOUR YEARS at Chadron State (212.0 was his highest average – Junior Year) and had 109 total TDs during that time (38 was his most – Junior Year). 

He rushed for more than 200 yards in a game 19 of his 39 appearances and scored in 37 straight contests, both NCAA records. Just to top it all off, Woodhead also ran track in High School for one year and broke his school’s 100-meter record with a time of 10.5 seconds. Undrafted in the NFL or not, this kid is special.

30. Ronnie Brown (vs Ten) – I’m extremely disturbed by what the Dolphins are doing nowadays as compared to the rushing attack they put forth a couple of years ago.  Ronnie is barely getting more than 10 carries/game, which obviously won’t do the trick.  Think 50-74 yards on the ground, with maybe another 20 though the air, and that’s about it.

31. Shonn Greene (@ Cle) – I hear the big fella is out of shape, but that doesn’t mean the Jets won’t use him! Rex Ryan knows that if Tomlinson is going to work for him in the later-stages of the season, Shonn will have to put in some good time. We’ll see how this shakes out on Sunday against a weak Cleveland defense.

32. Felix Jones (@ NYG) – With his talent he could easily be in the Top-20 RBs this year, but Wade Philips held him back considerably during his tenure. Hopefully the recently anointed Jason Garrett will do his best to make sure the ball is in his hands as soon as possible.

Week 10 rankings for QBs, WRs, and TEs

Teams with RBs on a bye this week are Green Bay, New Orleans, Oakland, San Diego