NFL Predictions Week 1: Which RBs Are Guaranteed to Boast 100-Yard Games?

Giving guarantees is never a good thing but in fantasy football some NFL running backs are certain bets provided that they don't get injured.

The opening week of the regular season is no different as there are a few running backs in the perfect position to take over the opposing defense and lead you to your first victory on the way to that fantasy 2011 crown.

Jamaal Charles will be one of those backs that was taken within the top five or six picks of 99% of fantasy drafts during the offseason. There should be no worries about him repaying you from the start with a 100-yard performance.

The concerns over Matt Cassel's health and the lack of quality backups—RIcky Stanzi and Tyler Palko have very little experience combined—will see the Chiefs turn to their trio of running backs more than usual, which is saying something, against the Buffalo Bills.

With Marcell Dareus and Kyle Williams in the middle, the Chiefs won't actually have that much success trying to pound Thomas Jones and LeRon McClain through the middle but Charles should have too much talent and elusiveness for that defense as a whole which is pretty average against the run.

Charles won't get 25 carries but he probably only needs 13-15 to break the 100 mark in this game. One player that will get 25 carries is Adrian Peterson.

The Vikings ran Peterson a lot in the preseason and are obviously going to rely on him for the whole season. The Chargers have a very good defense and will be difficult to run on but Peterson is the best back in the league and should see more than 30 carries in this game as Donovan McNabb is bedded in behind a suspect offensive line.

Through persistence rather than quality, the Vikings will get Peterson over the 100-yard mark. Another player benefiting from persistent running—as he has throughout his career—is Maurice Jones-Drew.

Jones-Drew has had concerns regarding his injury coming into the season but I doubt he won't be ready to go on opening day. His knee issue may be a problem as the hits pile up over the year but for Week 1 at least he should be dominant against the Tennessee Titans.

With the release of David Garrard, Jones-Drew now has to carry even more of the offense when he was already carrying around 90 percent of it in the first place. Jones-Drew should see close to 20-25 carries.

Steven Jackson may be being overlooked by a lot of fantasy gurus as the Eagles visit St. Louis this week to play the Rams. However the Rams have shown throughout the preseason that they are ready to ride Jackson for at least one more season.

Even though Josh McDaniels has arrived with a proven track record of excellent quarterback play, expect the Rams to run Jackson over 30 times this weekend to expose the Eagles linebackers and safeties while also keeping the Eagles offense cold on the sideline.

With his violent running style and Harvey Dahl adding to an already impressive run blocking group upfront, expect Jackson to not only have a 100-yard game this week but to have quite a few more throughout the year also.

One hundred yards is the benchmark that most backs are aiming for before any given game. These backs are the most likely to reach that goal this weekend.