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We’ve got some clearcut ballers in the Top 20, a shaky end to the RB2s, and a precipitous drop-off in the RB3 range.
Best of luck!
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Rank | Running Back | Team | Opponent | High-Floor/High-Ceiling RB1s |
---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | Running Back | Team | Opponent | High-Floor/High-Ceiling RB1s |
1 | Ezekiel Elliot | DAL | TB | Zeke gets a great matchup as the Cowboys try to lock down the division title. |
2 | Christian McCaffrey | CAR | ATL | CMC squares off with the leagues most charitable defense to all-purpose RBs and Cam Newton's out. It'll be CMC all day long. |
3 | Melvin Gordon III | LAC | BAL | Gordon has returned to full health. He's a lock for 20+ touches as the Chargers look to take the No. 1 seed in the AFC. |
4 | Nick Chubb | CLE | CIN | The Browns are still in playoff contention. They'll get up to an early lead and Chubb will run wild through the second half as Cleveland salts the clock. |
5 | Marlon Mack | IND | NYG | Evan Silva noted Pat Thorman's excellent work regarding the Colts' run game this week: Ryan Kelly is back and the Colts average 4.9 YPC with him in the lineup, 3.4 YPC with him out. Mack looks like a league-winner this week in a dream matchup against the hapless New York Giants. |
6 | Joe Mixon | CIN | at CLE | Mixon's been ripping it up as of late and this week he gets Cleveland's subpar run D. |
7 | Saquon Barkley | NYG | at IND | Barkley should see 20+ touches this week as Eli Manning's likely No. 1 target. |
8 | Alvin Kamara | NO | PIT | Gamescript should give Kamara a high-volume of touches via the passing game. |
9 | Dalvin Cook | MIN | at DET | Great volume and a great matchup. Cook should smash just like he did last week after the change at OC. |
10 | Philip Lindsay | DEN | at OAK | A glorious matchup for the Pro Bowler. |
11 | Derrick Henry | TEN | WAS | Tennessee has finally embraced their All-World Athlete. It's The Derrick Henry Show now. Washington gets pummelled on the ground. |
12 | Jaylen Samuels | PIT | at NO | The all-purpose back will be heavily utilized in a surefire shootout against New Orleans. |
High-Floor/High-Ceiling RB2s | ||||
13 | Chris Carson | SEA | KC | Seattle will look to control gameflow with a high-dosage of Chris Carson touches. |
14 | Gus Edwards | BAL | at LAC | Edwards continues to turn in reliable, non-flashy performances. He's got a great matchup against an absent Chargers run defense. |
15 | Kalen Ballage | MIA | JAX | The explosive, big-bodied athlete is operating as Miami's bellcow. Jacksonville's internal issues are too large to ignore and they aren't playing for anything. |
16 | Elijah McGuire | NYJ | GB | The Jets' coaching staff has finally embraced McGuire as their bellcow and he's responded in back-to-back games. He'll produce on volume against a middling Packers defense. |
17 | Lamar Miller | HOU | at PHI | Miller's ankle injury is minor. He'll get 20 or so touches as the Texans look to lockup the AFC South. |
18 | Damien Williams | KC | at SEA | It's a murky situation but this is my best guess. Williams has done enough to keep the lead back job and faces a solid matchup against the Seattle Seahawks. |
19 | John Kelly | LAR | at ARI | Fading the narrative that CJA will get meaningful work. Kelly's a beast and he's got a good matchup. |
20 | Tevin Coleman | ATL | at CAR | With Ito Smith on IR and Carolina's offense likely to be slowed by the absence of Cam Newton, Coleman should see a 15-20 touch workload and a favorable gamescript. |
RB2s that should be higher but are downgraded due to outside factors. | ||||
21 | David Johnson | ARI | LAR | On paper, it's a great matchup but the Cards aren't playing for anything. It's likely DJ gets relegated to the bench for the sake of preservation. |
22 | Jamaal Williams | GB | at NYJ | He's GB's lead back with Aaron Jones on IR. That hasn't guaranteed fantasy points in the past though. It's a good matchup. |
23 | Leonard Fournette | JAX | at MIA | Great matchup but I would look elsewhere. The coaches benched him last week due to playoff-elimination and locker room strife. Start at your own risk. |
24 | Tarik Cohen | CHI | at SF | The Bears are still in-play for a 1st round bye. This is a must-win. I would rank Cohen as low-floor/high-ceiling and... |
High-Floor/Capped Ceiling RB3s | ||||
25 | Jordan Howard | CHI | at SF | ...Jordan Howard as a high-floor/capped-ceiling play. Howard has seen serious workloads over the last 3 weeks. This looks like a game that he could takeover in the second-half. |
26 | Sony Michel | NE | BUF | How the mighty have fallen. Michel can't be trusted as anything more than a FLEX, even in a good matchup. |
27 | Zach Zenner | DET | MIN | Zenner is a solid FLEX play this week. He'll get a decent workload in a difficult matchup. |
28 | Josh Adams | PHI | HOU | Josh Adams will likely see 15 or so touches but they'll be on the ground against a very strong Houston run defense. |
29 | Matt Breida | SF | CHI | Brutal matchup and he hurt his ankle again last week. If he can't go, Jeff Wilson Jr. will slide into the 30-36 range. |
30 | Adrian Peterson | WAS | at TEN | Tough mathchup but he'll see a decent workload in what should be a Ground And Pound game for both teams. |
31 | Peyton Barber | TB | at DAL | Bad matchup but he'll see the volume to produce middling yardage. He's a coin-toss to score. |
32 | Spencer Ware | KC | at SEA | Ware should see 8 or so touches in a good matchup. |
33 | LeSean McCoy | BUF | at NE | McCoy will resume No. 2 RB duties behind Josh Allen. |
34 | Kenneth Dixon | BAL | at LAC | Dixon should see 8 or so touches in a decent matchup. |
35 | Mark Ingram | NO | PIT | Ingram will see limited work in this shootout. |
36 | Doug Martin | OAK | DEN | Denver's run D is middle of the road. |
Here’s a link to the aforementioned Pat Thorman stat.