Top 65 RBs (1 Viewer)

[VaTerp]

For sake of discussion my current top 60 or so RBs with Tiers are below. My rankings are for my main league- 12 team/PPR.

Mostly interested in different thoughts and perspectives relative to the Tiers and I've included a general statement on how I view each tier. I'm sure I'll be changing rankings within Tiers.

Which Rbs do you think belong grouped a tier above, below, etc.? Any RBs not listed that you feel strongly about being in the last Tier 6 or above. I usually try to rank 100 RBs knowing that many are simply names to know for the ww.

Tier 1- Self-Explanatory Studs

Arian Foster

LeSean McCoy

Ray Rice

Tier 2- RB1s with a few more questions

Chris Johnson

Darren McFadden

Matt Forte

Ryan Mathews

DeMarco Murray

Steven Jackson

Maurice Jones Drew

Tier 3- Legit RB2s

Marshawn Lynch

Ahmad Bradshaw

Fred Jackson

Jamaal Charles

Peyton Hillis

Trent Richardson

Darren Sproles

Willis McGahee

Tier 4- RB2s/3s

Adrian Peterson

Doug Martin

Michael Turner

Reggie Bush

Donald Brown

Jonathan Stewart

Frank Gore

Cedric Benson

Shonn Greene

DeAngelo Williams

Stevan Ridley

Beanie Wells

BenJarvus Green-Ellis

Kevin Smith

Tier 5- RB3s/4s

Isaac Redman

Mark Ingram

Toby Gerhart

LaGarrett Blount

David Wilson

Evan Royster

Roy Helu

Shane Vereen

Ryan Williams

Ben Tate

Pierre Thomas

Rashad Jennings

CJ Spiller

Jacquizz Rogers

Pierre Thomas

Felix Jones

Tier 6- Worthy of Roster spots

Knowshown Moreno

Brandon Jacobs

Daniel Thomas

Rashad Mendenhall

Kendall Hunter

Leon Washington

Jahvid Best

James Starks

Monterio Hardesty

Jonathan Dwyer

Ronnie Hillman

Michael Bush

Ronnie Brown

Alex Green

Danny Woodhead

Mike Goodson

Bernard Scott

LaMicheal James

 

[VaTerp]

Comments of my own first.

I know Mathews is tiered too high for many but I like him there.

Carolina RBs are too high. I believe strongly in their talent and think they will be utilized more this year but need to drop them both down some.

 

[ponchsox]

Nice list, McGahee and Benson too high for my taste and AP and BJGE too low. Jacquizz should be near the top of tear 5, much more upside than those guys and a chance to surpass Turner.

 

[wiscstlatlmia]

Comments of my own first.I know Mathews is tiered too high for many but I like him there.Carolina RBs are too high. I believe strongly in their talent and think they will be utilized more this year but need to drop them both down some.

Hey, good stuff man, I would say Spiller is low for my liking, but the rest checks out pretty solid!

 

[VaTerp]

Nice list, McGahee and Benson too high for my taste and AP and BJGE too low. Jacquizz should be near the top of tear 5, much more upside than those guys and a chance to surpass Turner.

Thx. Rogers is one I will definitely be moving up.

Comments of my own first.I know Mathews is tiered too high for many but I like him there.Carolina RBs are too high. I believe strongly in their talent and think they will be utilized more this year but need to drop them both down some.

Hey, good stuff man, I would say Spiller is low for my liking, but the rest checks out pretty solid!

Spiller is another one I'll be moving up to the top of that tier. Thx

 

[matttyl]

Carolina RBs are too high. I believe strongly in their talent and think they will be utilized more this year but need to drop them both down some.

I actually feel J Stew is too low...but I've been holding onto that thought for 4 years. With the money they just gave him, though, I can't see him using him less and he had nearly 1,200 yards and only had 1 less catch than McCoy did, only 5 less than Foster.

 

[matttyl]

Oh, and Redman now likely too high with injury and Mendy coming off the PUP today.

 

[Warhogs]

My first reaction was wow, ADP is way too low. I understand the worry coming off the knee injury but the guy is a machine and intends to be ready week 1. I have no doubts he will be out there and I think he will be running like the old ADP because that is what he does. I do have some concern that he may be pushing it too hard but I think he is a top 10 RB.

 

[Shutout]

I would probably trade spots with Michael turner and Kevin Smith. I just don't see how Turner is gonna make it this year.

I have to wonder about Hillis and Charles in the same tier. I just do not see how both can maintain a relative equal spot.

You're onw of the only people I have seen place Ben tate as low as you did and I agree (like that means anything). I just think people generally think "what if=what is going to likely happen". Without an injury to Foster, Tate seems, to me, to have value right where you put him and that's how I would prefer to rank players. If I get in the business of ranking based on expected injuries, then why not bump R. Jennings, T. Gerhardt, M. Goodson, DWIL, Scott, and every other guy that would benefit greatly if the other guy was out? To me, just seems like an inflated ranking based on hope. Really like your practicality on that one.

 

[We Tigers]

Not much to quibble with here. I would probably bump Ingram and Fred Jackson up one tier each were these my personal rankings, but those are just a couple of my slight-sleeper guys this year.

 

[Warrior]

Don't listen to any of these guys about ADP. He'll be eased in slowly after that devastating injury and he's ranked perfectly.

The first thing I looked for after seeing this was PPR was how you compared Darren Sproles to ADP. In PPR, Sproles is the clear choice, but few people would rank him higher than ADP just from lazy name-recognition.

Very solid list, you clearly know your stuff. Thanks!

Only a couple names really stand out as being off...Peyton Hillis and McGahee. I would rank Hillis much lower...two tiers lower. McGahee should be below ADP for sure, especially in PPR. But good stuff overall!

 

[VaTerp]

Good Stuff guys.

Redman and Mendy both need to be looked as news comes in about their situations.

On ADP, I'm just can's see how a guy who runs that violently, cuts that hard, and has his size comes back from that devastating of a knee injury this soon. I know he's ahead of pace in his recovery but I just can't help but think about when Jerry Rice came back so soon after blowing out his knee. I would feel much better about him had the injury occurred earlier in the season. I see a lot of Gerhardt early on who I'm taking a closer look at.

I really like both Hillis and Charles this year and think both can serve as RB2s in this new FF landscape of limited feature RBs.

Insightful comments on Sproles. I just checked and it looks like I have him at 17 while his ADP is at 16. I should add that my main league also awards .25 per rush attempt, which devalues a guy like Sproles a little and inflates someone like Turner.

 

[bostonfred]

Tier 1- Self-Explanatory Studs

Arian Foster

LeSean McCoy

Ray Rice

Tier 2- RB1s with a few more questions

Chris Johnson

Darren McFadden

Matt Forte

Ryan Mathews

Marshawn Lynch

Steven Jackson

Tier 3 much riskier potential Rb1s

Maurice Jones Drew

Trent Richardson

DeMarco Murray

Reggie Bush

Frank Gore

Ahmad Bradshaw

Beanie Wells

Adrian Peterson

8 of the top 10 rbs at the end of the year will be on this list, and most of the top 20. There will be some injuries and some guys who outperform expectations in a rbbc, but you can easily get 3 of these guys. I know that fred jackson, jamaal charles and hillis, sproles, and some other popular picks aren't on this list, but all of those guys are longshots to be top 10, and running back isn't deep enough to take a "safe" guy when somebody in your league will have two top ten backs at the end of the year. Be the guy who has them, not the guy hoping to get lucky enough to beat the guy who has them.

 

[Abraham]

You'd select Darren sproles before Adrian Peterson? Interesting.

 

[Abraham]

Tier 1- Self-Explanatory Studs

Arian Foster

LeSean McCoy

Ray Rice

Tier 2- RB1s with a few more questions

Chris Johnson

Darren McFadden

Matt Forte

Ryan Mathews

Marshawn Lynch

Steven Jackson

Tier 3 much riskier potential Rb1s

Maurice Jones Drew

Trent Richardson

DeMarco Murray

Reggie Bush

Frank Gore

Ahmad Bradshaw

Beanie Wells

Adrian Peterson

8 of the top 10 rbs at the end of the year will be on this list, and most of the top 20. There will be some injuries and some guys who outperform expectations in a rbbc, but you can easily get 3 of these guys. I know that fred jackson, jamaal charles and hillis, sproles, and some other popular picks aren't on this list, but all of those guys are longshots to be top 10, and running back isn't deep enough to take a "safe" guy when somebody in your league will have two top ten backs at the end of the year. Be the guy who has them, not the guy hoping to get lucky enough to beat the guy who has them.

I would think Jackson has as much of a shot (or better) at being top 10 then beanie and Bradshaw.

 

[VaTerp]

Tier 1- Self-Explanatory Studs

Arian Foster

LeSean McCoy

Ray Rice

Tier 2- RB1s with a few more questions

Chris Johnson

Darren McFadden

Matt Forte

Ryan Mathews

Marshawn Lynch

Steven Jackson

Tier 3 much riskier potential Rb1s

Maurice Jones Drew

Trent Richardson

DeMarco Murray

Reggie Bush

Frank Gore

Ahmad Bradshaw

Beanie Wells

Adrian Peterson

8 of the top 10 rbs at the end of the year will be on this list, and most of the top 20. There will be some injuries and some guys who outperform expectations in a rbbc, but you can easily get 3 of these guys. I know that fred jackson, jamaal charles and hillis, sproles, and some other popular picks aren't on this list, but all of those guys are longshots to be top 10, and running back isn't deep enough to take a "safe" guy when somebody in your league will have two top ten backs at the end of the year. Be the guy who has them, not the guy hoping to get lucky enough to beat the guy who has them.

Appreciate the perspective and mostly agree. Though I'm not as high on guys like Gore and Wells and would disagree slightly about how you view "safe" guys.I'd always like to get as many top 10 RBs as possible but I do think there is great value in guys like Sproles, F-Jax, and many others who may not have true RB1 potential but who you can rely on to consistently contribute points to your lineup and help you win games. Especially when your lineup also consist of a true RB1 and studs at other positions.

 

[VaTerp]

You'd select Darren sproles before Adrian Peterson? Interesting.

In PPR, absolutely. When I looked at my rankings I couldnt believe I had Sproles and a guy like McGahee ahead of Peterson.But I'm just not sold on that knee.

 

[Ramblin Wreck]

I think Steven Jackson is way too high. He's topped six touchdowns just once in last five years and he could possibly start to losing some playing time to Pead. Even without Pead, Jackson is not a guy that wins leagues and should not be in the same tier with Johnson, McFadden, Forte, Murray or Mathews who have upside.

Love your call on Peterson. Until I see him on the field there is no way I'm drafting him where he's being drafted these days.

 

[bostonfred]

I would think Jackson has as much of a shot (or better) at being top 10 then beanie and Bradshaw.

In an unknown timeshare with spiller, at 31, after an injury season? Maybe. But I wouldn't bet on it. I wouldn't bet much on beanie or bradshaw, either, but both are established rb1s on their teams, and both have put up rb1 numbers when healthy. They have a lot more question marks than the guys above them on the list (injuries and first year rbbc guys who could pick up a role) but their situations give them a much better chance at the true top end numbers than jackson or the other rbbc guys. I know jackson was a borderline top rb in 2010, but in 2010, he was the unquestioned rb1 for the team. That is not his situation in 2012.

 

[VaTerp]

I think Steven Jackson is way too high. He's topped six touchdowns just once in last five years and he could possibly start to losing some playing time to Pead. Even without Pead, Jackson is not a guy that wins leagues and should not be in the same tier with Johnson, McFadden, Forte, Murray or Mathews who have upside.Love your call on Peterson. Until I see him on the field there is no way I'm drafting him where he's being drafted these days.

S-Jax is one of those guys who started off further down my list and I continued to move up. The guy definitely does not have the upside of others in that tier. But in many ways he's a safer pick. He's consistently a 300 plus touch guy (remember I get.25 per rush attempt here as well). I just see Fisher using S-Jax to carry the load for another year to take some of the pressure off a young team. At 29 I still think he has a year or 2 left in him.And again on Peterson. He's a RB who has not been medically cleared to CUT yet. Obviously an important part of any RBs game but especially his. It's a gamble that could pay off but I'm just not on that train this year.

 

[bostonfred]

I'd always like to get as many top 10 RBs as possible but I do think there is great value in guys like Sproles, F-Jax, and many others who may not have true RB1 potential but who you can rely on to consistently contribute points to your lineup and help you win games. Especially when your lineup also consist of a true RB1 and studs at other positions.

Nothing wrong with drafting a plan b. I like hillis in that role this year, and he's cheaper than the guys you named, but we all pick our poison when you start dipping into the rbbc guys.

 

[VaTerp]

I'd always like to get as many top 10 RBs as possible but I do think there is great value in guys like Sproles, F-Jax, and many others who may not have true RB1 potential but who you can rely on to consistently contribute points to your lineup and help you win games. Especially when your lineup also consist of a true RB1 and studs at other positions.

Nothing wrong with drafting a plan b. I like hillis in that role this year, and he's cheaper than the guys you named, but we all pick our poison when you start dipping into the rbbc guys.

True. It just seems that now, more than ever, with the lack of true feature RBs picking the right RBBC guy(s) is key to winning. That and getting lucky with injuries so that someone who looks like a RBBC guy gets a more featured role.

 

[bostonfred]

I'd always like to get as many top 10 RBs as possible but I do think there is great value in guys like Sproles, F-Jax, and many others who may not have true RB1 potential but who you can rely on to consistently contribute points to your lineup and help you win games. Especially when your lineup also consist of a true RB1 and studs at other positions.

Nothing wrong with drafting a plan b. I like hillis in that role this year, and he's cheaper than the guys you named, but we all pick our poison when you start dipping into the rbbc guys.

True. It just seems that now, more than ever, with the lack of true feature RBs picking the right RBBC guy(s) is key to winning. That and getting lucky with injuries so that someone who looks like a RBBC guy gets a more featured role.

What you're really saying is that the key is to grab guys who outperform their draft position, which is true. But outperforming your draft position isn't enough. You need lots of points. You get lots of points by drafting guys who score lots of points, not by drafting guys who get more points than you expected. You can't plan around getting sproles 2011 or charles 2010. You can try, but it rarely works. And somebody in your league will get them. You can either go fishing for lottery tickets in the rbbc pool, or take guys who will get the bulk of the work on their teams. Its easy to look at last years results and say, well, sproles should repeat his totally unexpected, exceedingly rare season, but if he doesn't, then he sucks. And you wont take your rb2 out of your lineup after one or two slow weeks to start. When you draft guys like that, you're basically screwing yourself in advance. Once in a while it works out, but that's true of any of the mid round guys.

 

[Captain Hook]

Good Effort Terp - thanks for sharing

One question though - How can you leave Jamaal Charles out of Tier 2?

If he wasn't coming off the injury he would be a lot closer to Tier 1 than Tier 3

 

[Abraham]

I would think Jackson has as much of a shot (or better) at being top 10 then beanie and Bradshaw.

In an unknown timeshare with spiller, at 31, after an injury season? Maybe. But I wouldn't bet on it. I wouldn't bet much on beanie or bradshaw, either, but both are established rb1s on their teams, and both have put up rb1 numbers when healthy. They have a lot more question marks than the guys above them on the list (injuries and first year rbbc guys who could pick up a role) but their situations give them a much better chance at the true top end numbers than jackson or the other rbbc guys. I know jackson was a borderline top rb in 2010, but in 2010, he was the unquestioned rb1 for the team. That is not his situation in 2012.

Those are fair points. I'd respond that im not sure I think spiller is any more suited to steal production that Wilson or Williams. My opinion is that f Jackson has the skill set to be used on three downs if the bills choose whereas wells is limited in that regard. I'd not likely bet on any of the 3 finishing top 10, but if I had to choose which I thought would finish highest it would be Jackson. Even at 31 he doesn't have a ton of mileage on the tires.

 

[VaTerp]

Good feedback everybody. Thx

McGahee and Charles, among others are 2 I'm interested in discussing more.

I have really moved McGahee up in recent days. I just think he is the clear workhorse in the backfield, which is hard to find these days. He impressed me with the way he ran last year and reportedly looks to be in the best shape of his career. Denver is not gonna lead the league in rushing attempts again with Peyton there but I think they will continue to run the ball and Peyton will actually help the offense move the ball and create more scoring opportunities. I also have the impression that he's very good in pass pro and will be involved in the passing game more than people think.

Charles is a guy that I owned during his best year in 2010 and like a lot. But I also like Hillis this year. As I've said I think both are RB2s but the Hillis' presence and anticipated effectiveness keeps Charles from regaining RB1 status this year IMO.

Very much fluid and open to discussion on both players though.

 

[Captain Hook]

Good feedback everybody. ThxMcGahee and Charles, among others are 2 I'm interested in discussing more.I have really moved McGahee up in recent days. I just think he is the clear workhorse in the backfield, which is hard to find these days. He impressed me with the way he ran last year and reportedly looks to be in the best shape of his career. Denver is not gonna lead the league in rushing attempts again with Peyton there but I think they will continue to run the ball and Peyton will actually help the offense move the ball and create more scoring opportunities. I also have the impression that he's very good in pass pro and will be involved in the passing game more than people think. Charles is a guy that I owned during his best year in 2010 and like a lot. But I also like Hillis this year. As I've said I think both are RB2s but the Hillis' presence and anticipated effectiveness keeps Charles from regaining RB1 status this year IMO.Very much fluid and open to discussion on both players though.

Absolutely agree with you about McGahee - right now he is good value as RB2/3I do think Hillis will put up good numbers this year but don't think they necessarily take away from Charles - they each rate to get 200+ carries in that offense. BUT Charles has a much higher ceiling which is why I would put him in the higher group - the question on his being a RB1 is not Hillis it is his ability to stay healthy all year.

 

[bostonfred]

I would think Jackson has as much of a shot (or better) at being top 10 then beanie and Bradshaw.

In an unknown timeshare with spiller, at 31, after an injury season? Maybe. But I wouldn't bet on it. I wouldn't bet much on beanie or bradshaw, either, but both are established rb1s on their teams, and both have put up rb1 numbers when healthy. They have a lot more question marks than the guys above them on the list (injuries and first year rbbc guys who could pick up a role) but their situations give them a much better chance at the true top end numbers than jackson or the other rbbc guys. I know jackson was a borderline top rb in 2010, but in 2010, he was the unquestioned rb1 for the team. That is not his situation in 2012.

Those are fair points. I'd respond that im not sure I think spiller is any more suited to steal production that Wilson or Williams. My opinion is that f Jackson has the skill set to be used on three downs if the bills choose whereas wells is limited in that regard. I'd not likely bet on any of the 3 finishing top 10, but if I had to choose which I thought would finish highest it would be Jackson. Even at 31 he doesn't have a ton of mileage on the tires.

Beanie got 245 carries last year in an injury season. "Cards rb1" got 280 carries. Those are workhorse numbers regardless of down and distance. In his first four games (he hurt his knee in game five) beanie put up 79 carries for 381 yards and 6 touchdowns (plus four catches for twelve yards, not that that matters much). I dont project him for 1600/24, but those are rb1 numbers. Whichever qb they use in arizona is going to suck, and they will run to protect the quarterback. There are a lot of reasons to be very high on beanie, but he's flying under the radar because of a valid concern about injury, and a second round running back coming off a season ending knee injury who was only cleared to practice a week or so ago himself might steal carries. Looking at past numbers alone, jackson might seem like the better pick. He definitely started last year hot. But unlike wells, jackson is older, and the bills have a first round running back who has actually shown something. Jackson will probably be the head of a rbbc, but I see him closer to 200-240 carries, not 280. Give me the rb1 over the rb1a.

 

[tjnc09]

The one thing I noticed with Foster owners is their desperate need to grab Tate also. Tate is going 9th-10th round IIRC. At some point you have to devalue Foster if you are hellbent on handcuffing him with Tate. Bypassing a Collie type in the 9th to draft Tate who may never start once your entire season doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

 

[VaTerp]

In regards to Sproles it looks like I was wrong. His ADP is 16 in standard scoring but jumps up to 12 in PPR according to FF Calculator.

I have him at 17 but again my league has unique scoring.

Very interesting thought that he is being drafted as a low end RB1 in PPR. BostonFred makes a compelling case for drafting many guys over him but I wonder if he has PPR in mind there.....

 

[Shutout]

The one thing I noticed with Foster owners is their desperate need to grab Tate also. Tate is going 9th-10th round IIRC. At some point you have to devalue Foster if you are hellbent on handcuffing him with Tate. Bypassing a Collie type in the 9th to draft Tate who may never start once your entire season doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

Great point.

 

[mere blitzianity]

The one thing I noticed with Foster owners is their desperate need to grab Tate also. Tate is going 9th-10th round IIRC. At some point you have to devalue Foster if you are hellbent on handcuffing him with Tate. Bypassing a Collie type in the 9th to draft Tate who may never start once your entire season doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

Thus why I don't get all the love for Foster as the #1 RB off the board. IMO, Rice is the safest pick and doesn't share carries with anyone.

 

[VaTerp]

The one thing I noticed with Foster owners is their desperate need to grab Tate also. Tate is going 9th-10th round IIRC. At some point you have to devalue Foster if you are hellbent on handcuffing him with Tate. Bypassing a Collie type in the 9th to draft Tate who may never start once your entire season doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

Thus why I don't get all the love for Foster as the #1 RB off the board. IMO, Rice is the safest pick and doesn't share carries with anyone.

Even sharing carries and dealing with a nagging hamstring injury last year, Foster still outscored Rice by over a ppg in my league.This year going into the season fully healthy, most expect the distribution of carries to be similar to last year.But I think you make a good point in that if people do expect Tate to be worth where he is usually ranked then perhaps they think he will cut into Foster's carries more and thus Foster should be knocked off the top spot. Or perhaps the thinking is just that the Texans running game is that good and both backs can put up similar or better numbers to last year and Tate is the most valuable handcuff in the game.Here's an interesting article suggesting Foster should be the 4th pick (behind even MJD but it was written before camp). Didnt realize Tate had all four of his 100 yard games when he DIDNT start. http://sports.espn.go.com/fantasy/football/ffl/story?page=nfldk2k12_decisionstexansRBInteresting stuff. In my auction my current plan is not to pay the price for one of the big 3 and in my snake I have the 3rd pick and had resolved to just take whoever was left. I could see a scenario though where I now have to make a decision if one of the owners in front of me does something odd.

 

[gregjcross]

Donald Brown should be tier 3.

 

[ALL STATE]

The one thing I noticed with Foster owners is their desperate need to grab Tate also. Tate is going 9th-10th round IIRC. At some point you have to devalue Foster if you are hellbent on handcuffing him with Tate. Bypassing a Collie type in the 9th to draft Tate who may never start once your entire season doesn't make a lot of sense to me.