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Fantasy Football Week 13 Running Back Rankings

It's been a while since Chris Johnson has been in the top 10 for the weekly rankings. A Week 12 and a friendly matchup make him a guy that's impossible to bench for Week 13.
It's been a while since Chris Johnson has been in the top 10 for the weekly rankings. A Week 12 and a friendly matchup make him a guy that's impossible to bench for Week 13.

Week 12 was probably the anti-Boardwalk Empire week by having the least amount of carnage of all the weeks of the season (a lot of carnage on that show; by the way I'd suggest watching it). There was a big blow on Thanksgiving as everyone's favorite waiver-wire darling, Kevin Smith, sprained his ankle. Despite the lack of understudies on the upswing, there are still a nice chunk of guys that could have a questionable tag and some tough matchups will not make it easy on fantasy owners on deciding who starts.

If you're on the hunt for some new options at running back, definitely check out my Waiver Wire Scoops with all sorts of info an YPC, carries, snaps and targets out of the backfield. You can also ask me anything you want on Twitter @MikeSGallagher.

Injury News and Notes

Adrian Peterson- If you were one of those people that thought Adrian Peterson was going to play after he said he expects to go, I must warn you, there's a gullible on the wall behind you! Corny jokes aside, All Day might be out for another week with his high ankle sprain. There's really no reason for the Vikings to trot him out there and this also allows them to get a better measuring stick on Toby Gerhart. Gerhart got 17 carries against the second-ranked run D in Atlanta. This week they get a much better matchup against the Denver Tebows. Gerhart is a low-end RB2 this week.

Kevin Smith- Smith has not practiced yet in the week and chances are that he will be questionable at best. Smith owners should retain him as a bench guy (assuming you're not in a do-or-die scenario) since he could be valuable in a couple weeks. Maurice Morris should be a big part of the Lions' plans on Sunday against the Saints. He is a decent pass blocker and his nine catches on Thanksgiving are a bold statement. Morris should be owned and started as a flex for most fantasy leagues.

LeSean McCoy- Shady is dealing with sprained toe and has been limited in practice all week. If you've ever sprained your toe, it's really not a big deal. The only reason why it's even worth mentioning is that he's on a short week and Ronnie Brown could see a few carries to help very, very deep leagues. Although NFL team docs have been misdiagnosing running backs left and right this year (see Jackson, Fred and Bradshaw, Ahmad). McCoy owners should really not be worried at all though.

Roy Helu- Mike Shanahan said that Roy Helu is his "for sure" starter. First and foremost, what took so long? Secondly, can we really trust Mike Shanahan? I think we kind of have to because he is outplaying the other backs on the roster in Evan Royster and Ryan Torain. Royster did pass Torain on the depth chart, so plan accordingly in deep leagues. Helu has a tough matchup vs. the Jets this week and is more of a RB2/flex for most leagues.

Darren McFadden- Multiple reports have Run DMC out for Sunday's game against the Dolphins. Michael Bush is a must-start guy for the fifth week in a row.

Beanie Wells- Wells does have a little swelling in his knee following the 28-carry gem against the Rams. He gets a rough game this week against Dallas (ranked 10th per the run), which puts him just outside of no-brainer starts.

LaDainian Tomlinson- Tomlinson was back at practice on Wednesday and should play against the Redskins. Shonn Greene should still see the overwhelming majority of the snaps at tailback, but don't expect him to get many third-down snaps. The NYJ O was one of the first teams in quite some time to struggle moving the ball against the Bills. They did show some flashes and Greene owners should still have some form of confidence.

Felix Jones- The word on the street is that Jones will eventually gain a role in the Dallas offense. In other news, the Jaguars will eventually have a good offense. DeMarco owners should have no worries and he's an elite option.

DET

Rank Running Back Opp.
1 Ray Rice CLE
2 Frank Gore STL
3 Chris Johnson BUF
4 Arian Foster ATL
5 DeMarco Murray ARI
6 Maurice Jones-Drew SD
7 Michael Bush MIA
8 LeSean McCoy SEA
9 Matt Forte KC
10 Michael Turner HOU
11 Ryan Mathews JAC
12 Marshawn Lynch PHI
13 LaGarrette Blount CAR
14 Reggie Bush OAK
15 Roy Helu NYJ
16 Rashard Mendenhall CIN
17 Darren Sproles DET
18 Shonn Greene WAS
19 Beanie Wells DAL
20 Willis McGahee MIN
21 Maurice Morris NO
22 Steven Jackson SF
23 C.J. Spiller TEN
24 BenJarvus Green-Ellis IND
25 DeAngelo Williams TB
26 Donald Brown NE
27 Brandon Jacobs GB
28 Toby Gerhart DEN
29 Pierre Thomas DET
30 Cedric Benson PIT
31 Mark Ingram DET
32 Jonathan Stewart TB
33 James Starks NYG
34 Javon Ringer BUF
35 Mike Tolbert JAC
36 Peyton Hillis BAL
37 Ben Tate ATL
38 Dexter McCluster CHI
39 Marion Barber KC
40 D.J. Ware GB
41 Ricky Williams CLE
42 Daniel Thomas OAK
43 Kendall Hunter STL
44 Felix Jones ARI
45 Jackie Battle CHI
46 Joseph Addai NE
47 Shane Vereen IND
48 LaDainian Tomlinson WAS
49 Isaac Redman CIN
50 Keiland Williams NO
51 Johnny White TEN
52 Lance Ball MIN
53 Bernard Scott PIT
54 Marcell Reece
MIA
55 John Kuhn NYG
56 Thomas Jones CHI
57 Danny Woodhead IND
58 Ryan Grant NYG
59 Joe McKnight WAS
60 Taiwan Jones MIA
61 Evan Royster NYJ
62 Deji Karim SD
63 Jacquizz Rodgers HOU
64 Stevan Ridley IND
65 Ronnie Brown SEA
66 Da'Rel Scott GB
67 Leon Washington SEA
68 Kregg Lumpkin CAR
69 Ryan Torain NYJ
70 Chris Ogbonnaya BAL

Thanks for reading! Post your comments below or send them to me on Twitter @MikeSGallagher.