2011 Fantasy Football: Top 10 Fantasy Running Backs
We are getting away from a time period where teams rely on the single-back system. Very few teams in the NFL feed one running back the ball 25 times a game.
As a result, fantasy sports are changing. No longer can you draft Jamal Lewis to carry your team. Receivers are becoming more important, and workhorse backs are a rarer commodity.
Even so, there are a handful of backs who can have a huge impact on your fantasy team. There will always be backs like Ray Rice, Peyton Hillis and Arian Foster who come out of nowhere, but it is important to lock up a surefire stud fantasy back in every draft.
Sorry to Ray Rice, LeSean McCoy, Rashard Mendenhall, LeGarrette Blount and Ahmad Bradshaw. You certainly would have been in the top 15 list. Here are the top 10 fantasy running backs of 2011.
10: Frank Gore, San Francisco
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Frank Gore scares off a lot of people because he is sidelined with injuries nearly every year. That may be the case again this season, but Gore is worth the risk if he is available in the second round and is a steal in the third.
Never mind the fact that Gore rushed for over 1,000 yards in every season from 2006-2009, despite only playing 16 games once.
What makes Gore such an asset this upcoming year is that Jim Harbaugh has taken the reins in San Francisco. An offensive-minded coach may finally be able to help Gore reach his potential. The offense will also likely bolster his receiving numbers.
Gore hovers around 50 catches and 400 receiving yards a year, usually. He's a monster in PPR leagues.
9: Peyton Hillis, Cleveland Browns
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It's still hard to believe that Peyton Hillis is on the cover of Madden. It's also hard to think of someone more deserving.
Hillis is a hard-nosed running back who took a lot of teams by surprise last season. His 1,177 yards and 11 touchdowns are impressive, but what is more appealing is the way in which he racked up those numbers.
Hillis rushed for over 100 yards in five games last season. Among his victims were New England and Baltimore. He went AWOL at times last season, but exploded for monster points in other weeks.
He is sort of a feast-or-famine type of guy, but it is appealing to have a guy on the roster who can go for 150 yards on any given Sunday.
I expect Hillis to get at least 300 carries next season. That in itself makes him worthy of being a top 10 back.
8: Darren McFadden, Oakland Raiders
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Darren McFadden is also a feast-or-famine type of runner, but he is much streakier than Hillis. He ran for over 100 yards in back-to-back games three times last season.
When he's on, he's on. McFadden gets hurt every once in a while, but is able to have monster days from time to time, despite having an average offensive line in front of him.
He is the focal point of the Raiders offense. Everyone knows it, but teams still have a hard time controlling him.
The only thing scary about McFadden from a fantasy owner's standpoint is that he fails to get in the end zone as much as he should.
Aside from a huge three-touchdown day against Denver and a two-touchdown day against Jacksonville, he only had two TDs on the year. Not ideal.
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7: Steven Jackson, St Louis Rams
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Steven Jackson is the pinnacle of consistency. Even coming off back surgery, he was good for 1,200+ yards and 46 receptions.
Jackson is one of the last remaining workhorse backs in the league. For years, he was the only weapon to speak of on a terrible Rams team. A typical stat line would feature Jackson going off for 100 yards and having no touchdowns to show for it.
Things are different now with Sam Bradford at the helm. You could make an argument that bringing in a promising quarterback would hurt Jackson's stock as a fantasy back, but having a quarterback of his caliber actually backs off a defense.
With Bradford entering his sophomore season, teams won't be so apt to put eight or nine guys in the box. That presents a big opportunity for Jackson to excel.
6: Arian Foster, Houston Texans
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If you didn't know who Arian Foster was before the 2010 NFL season, you certainly did after Week 1. Foster nearly trumped his career rushing total in his first game of the season, where he carved up the Colts with 231 rushing yards.
He never looked back and won the NFL rushing title with 1,616 yards. His 16 touchdowns on the ground made him a dream come true for owners who picked him up in a late round or off the waiver wire.
It may be unfair to place him this far down the list, but backs have a hard time repeating as the league's leading rusher. The Texans happen to have one of the best passers in the game and arguably the best receiver in the business.
Teams were willing to give Foster yards and overcompensated for the pass. Foster isn't catching anyone by surprise next season. I expect him to be a great No. 1 running back option, I just wouldn't consider him top five just yet.
5: Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville Jaguars
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Maurice Jones-Drew puts up big numbers almost every single week. He's the focal point for every defense that faces the Jaguars; they know it's coming and there is nothing they can do to stop it.
Back-to-back 1,300-yard rushing seasons speak to his consistency and suggests he is going to be a mainstay as an elite NFL back for at least a few more years.
He's held out of the end zone pretty regularly, as the Jaguars rely more heavily on hitting a big target like Marcedes Lewis when they get in the red zone.
Regardless, Jones-Drew is a lethal running back. He finished fifth in rushing last season and only played in 14 games.
4: Jamaal Charles, Kansas City
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The departure of Charlie Weis is going to hurt the Chiefs' rush attack. Their three-headed monster of Jamaal Charles, Thomas Jones and Dexter McCluster gave them the best run game in football last year.
While I expect Charles to still excel in the new system, I don't see another 1,400-yard season for him next year. He has blazing speed that helped him run for a ridiculous 6.4 YPC. That is going to be a difficult performance to repeat next season.
Charles doesn't find the end zone often enough to compensate for a reduction in yardage, should one occur. He's still an elite fantasy option, though, and you shouldn't hesitate to take him in the top five of any draft.
3: Chris Johnson, Tennessee Titans
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Chris Johnson fell over 1,000 yards short of his lofty 2,500-yard goal. One major reason was because teams didn't have to respect Tennessee's passing game whatsoever.
The Titans brought in Jake Locker, but don't expect teams to acknowledge him while CJ2K is on the field. Their No. 1 receiver can't stay out of handcuffs and the offense doesn't go unless Johnson is dominating.
He didn't break for one 200-yard game all season long, which was somewhat disappointing.
He remains the most electrifying player in football, but in the Titans' offense, we may see more 39-yard days like the one he had in Week 17 against a porous Colts defense.
2: Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons
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Michael Turner came back with a vengeance after a shortened and disappointing 2009 season. He rushed for over 1,300 yards in 2010 and got the ball in the end zone 12 times.
He rushed for 100 yards seven times on the year. The key to beating the Falcons is shutting down Roddy White and bottling up the run game. Easier said than done.
The addition of Julio Jones blows the offense wide open. Teams are going to have to back off Turner even more, just because of the deep threat they now have. They can't double cover White and Jones while keeping an eye on Turner.
The Falcons have the most complete offense in the NFL, and Turner is the heartbeat of the offense. He could be the safest pick in the entire draft.
1: Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
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For the people who picked Chris Johnson first last season, I understand your logic, but it's an unforgivable mistake. Adrian Peterson is the surest thing in fantasy football since L.T. in his prime.
He has rushed for at least 1,298 yards and 10 touchdowns every year he has been in the league. Minnesota struggled offensively last season, but AP remained consistent.
He can run defenders over, blow by them or throw a nasty move that makes their knees buckle. He's the complete back and drafting anyone else with the first pick is a mistake. Give me a guy who is guaranteed to rush for around 1,300 yards and 10 touchdowns any day.
He's a true feature back and has remained healthy throughout the majority of his career. What more could you ask for?
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