clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

2019 Fantasy Football Rankings: Running backs for Week 15

Raheem Mostert is suddenly an RB1.

By NHB
NFL: San Francisco 49ers at New Orleans Saints Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

Derrick Henry has finally supplanted Christian McCaffrey as the overall RB1. Expect a bounce back week from Leonard Fournette in a delectable matchup against the Oakland Raiders. Phillip Lindsay should shred the hapless KC Run D. 1B backs, Austin Ekeler and Kareem Hunt, both make for strong RB2 plays. David Johnson’s slight return to relevance bodes poorly for Kenyan Drake’s status. Drake still retains lead back duties and expectations though.

Week 15 Running Back Rankings

Rank Running Back Team Opponent High Floor/High Ceiling RB1s
Rank Running Back Team Opponent High Floor/High Ceiling RB1s
1 Derrick Henry TEN HOU He's completely unstoppable and this is an excellent matchup. Monitor the practice report to make sure he's able to practice with his nagging hamstring injury.
2 Christian McCaffrey CAR SEA We can expect him to be storngly utilized this week as the Panthers help him rack up production for production's sake.
3 Ezekiel Elliott DAL LAR Dallas is in the thick of the playoff hunt. Elliott will receive unflinching RB1 usage.
4 Dalvin Cook MIN at LAC Cook and the Vikings are pushing for a playoff birth. An AFC win would work wonders for their campaign.
5 Saquon Barkley NYG MIA Barkley's had a disappointing season but Miami's defense cures all.
6 Leonard Fournette JAX at OAK Fournette's been a disappointment as of late, however, a date with Oakland's porous defense should remedy the situation.
7 Aaron Jones GB CHI Green Bay's playing to lock up the division and Chicago could use a win in their Wild Card chase. It'll be pedal to the medal for both teams here.
8 Nick Chubb CLE at ARI Chubb should handle a healthy workload against a workable Cards' defense.
9 Chris Carson SEA at CAR With Rashaad Penny Out for the year (ACL), Carson's in line for a monstrous workload against a very bad Panthers' run defense.
10 Melvin Gordon III LAC MIN MGIII should have no issue working over the up-and-down Vikings front.
11 Raheem Mostert SF ATL As incredible as this is, Mostert is SF's new lead back and he's been killing it. Atlanta's defense can't stop opposing backs.
12 Alvin Kamara NO IND This is a very tough matchup. Indy's good against opposing backfields. Kamara's workload should be bountiful though.
High Floor/High Ceiling RB2s
13 Le'Veon Bell NYJ at BAL Baltimore's front-seven is overrated.
14 Mark Ingram II BAL NYJ The Jets' front-seven is heavily injured. Expect vintage Ingram in this one.
15 Phillip Lindsay DEN at KC KC's defense is notoriously friendly to opposing backfields.
16 Josh Jacobs OAK JAX Jacobs is expected to return this week, after getting good news from his MRI results. Great matchup.
17 Todd Gurley II LAR at DAL Gurley will see a hefty workload but it's a tough spot.
18 Devin Singletary BUF at PIT Very tough matchup, however, Pittsburgh's been scored on by pass catching running backs. Singletary's healthy target totals should allow him to produce here.
19 Miles Sanders PHI at WAS Excellent matchup on tap here. Monday night's dehydration episode was costly to him but that event is unlikely to happen again.
20 Marlon Mack IND at NO Mack should see 18+ touches against New Orleans' banged up defensive front. It's still a well coached squad so he's not guaranteed a box score eruption.
21 Austin Ekeler LAC MIN Ekeler's a rock-solid RB2 regardless of the matchup. This one's middle of the road though, for what it's worth.
22 Kareem Hunt CLE at ARI Hunt's secure passing game role, with some carries on top, keeps him an every-week back-end RB2. The matchup kicks him up a notch.
23 Joe Mixon CIN NE Tough matchup but he's becoming matchup-proof-ish with his high-volume workloads.
24 Patrick Laird MIA at NYG Laird's exceptional passing game role makes him game-script-proof. He's got a rock-solid floor and a solid ceiling in .5PPR and PPR leagues.
High Floor/Capped Ceiling RB3s
25 James White NE at CIN #25 is more or less White's weekly spot. Great matchup for him to get the job done on limited touches.
26 Devonta Freeman ATL at SF Brutal matchup but he's buoyed by his workload.
27 David Montgomery CHI at GB This is a strong matchup for Montgomery. His lack of production makes him difficult to trust as the RB2 he should be by now.
28 Adrian Peterson WAS PHI Expect 20 touches against a very tough Philly defensive-front.
29 Kenyan Drake ARI CLE Drake's the shaky leader of this backfield now. It's a good matchup for him to deliver flex-able numbers in.
30 Benny Snell Jr. PIT BUF The Steelers' backfield is lacking at the moment. Assuming Conner is out though, Snell should get a healthy dose of touches.
31 Duke Johnson Jr. HOU at TEN Tennessee's run defense is meager at best. Duke will see less work than Carlos Hyde but he's far more talented. This is a bet on his talent.
32 Jamaal Williams GB CHI A soft run defense should allow Williams to produce moderate numbers on 10 or so touches.
33 Bo Scarbrough DET TB Scarbrough sees a steady helping of 20-ish touches every week. This is a very tough matchup though.
34 David Johnson ARI CLE DJ got involved again last week and he produced. He's likely to retain some of the backfield workload in a good matchup this week.
35 Carlos Hyde HOU at TEN He should see 15 touches against the weak sauce Titans' defense.
36 Ronald Jones II TB at DET Jones will get first crack at this soft Detroit run defense. He could be benched at any moment though.

In This Stream

Everything you need for NFL Week 15

View all 15 stories

Next Up In Fantasy Football