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2021 Fantasy Football Rankings: Running Backs for Week 16

David Montgomery should be in for a big week.

By Mark Abell
NFL: Minnesota Vikings at Chicago Bears Jon Durr-USA TODAY Sports

A few notes for fantasy football Week 16

  • Philadelphia Eagles vs. New York Giants should feature a fair amount of running.
  • Keep an eye on injuries to Austin Ekeler, D’Andre Swift, Joe Mixon, Eli Mitchell, D’Onta Foreman, and Kareem Hunt.
  • My gut feeling tells me Indianapolis, Chicago, Detroit, and Tennessee go run-heavy this week.
  • We should see some tandem work with Nick Chubb/Kareem Hunt, Melvin Gordon III/Javonte Williams, Darrell Henderson Jr./Sony Michel, and Aaron Jones/AJ Dillon

Running Back Rankings Week 16

Rank Player Team Opponent Notes
Rank Player Team Opponent Notes
1 Jonathan Taylor Ind @ Ari There isn't really a 1a or 1b there is just 1.
2 Dalvin Cook Min vs LAR Back to back weeks of 80+ rushing yards
3 Alvin Kamara NO vs Mia Not a great week against the Bucs last week, hopefully not a trend
4 Najee Harris Pit @ KC Quite favorable matchup for Pittsburgh this week
5 Darrell Henderson Jr. LAR @ Min Earlier this year he had 80 rushing yards and a TD against Seattle
6 David Montgomery Chi @ Sea I think David is in for a big week vs. Seattle
7 Austin Ekeler LAC @ Hou Questionable - This could be a slight down week for Ekeler
8 Aaron Jones GB vs Cle Receiving TDs in each of his last two games
9 Cordarrelle Patterson Atl vs Det First week across the last four where he didn't have at least 10 points
10 D'Andre Swift Det @ Atl Questionable - Prior to his injury he had 130 rush yards in his last two games
11 James Conner Ari vs Ind He's getting rush TDs, receptions and the occasional receiving TD
12 Josh Jacobs LV vs Den He continues to be TD dependent
13 Ezekiel Elliott Dal vs Was He has become TD dependent
14 Miles Sanders Phi vs NYG Not only is Miles rushing more, he's getting more receptions too
15 Saquon Barkley NYG @ Phi Still without 70 rushing yards or a TD; minimal receiving stats
16 Joe Mixon Cin vs Bal Questionable - The ankle injury will limit him somewhat
17 Eli Mitchell SF @ Ten Questionable - IF he's back he should be top 15 but no guarantee there
18 Antonio Gibson Was @ Dal Carries, yardage and receptions decreasing each of the last three weeks
19 Michael Carter NYJ vs Jax He's become a risky low floor but high ceiling type of play
20 Devonta Freeman Bal @ Cin His numbers have hurt since Lamar went out & splits with Latavius Murray
21 Nick Chubb Cle @ GB I don't think Cleveland will run a lot against Green Bay but Chubb is still RB 2
22 Ronald Jones II TB @ Car With Fournette and Godwin out, Jones should see uptick in usage
23 D'Onta Foreman Ten vs SF Questionable - He's getting the lion share of carries and has produced as of late
24 AJ Dillon GB vs Cle Late in the season in inclement weather AJ will be used more
25 Melvin Gordon III Den @ LV I think Melvin is in for a decent game
26 Rashaad Penny Sea vs Chi Pete Carroll is insinuating he will use Penny more
27 Chase Edmonds Ari vs Ind He's TD dependent but Conner gets all of the TD's
28 Javonte Williams Den @ LV Last three of four weeks he's had 70 yards or a TD
29 Clyde Edwards-Helaire KC vs Pit TD dependent
30 Rhamondre Stevenson NE vs Buf Decrease in rush attempts and yards
31 Myles Gaskin Mia @ NO TD dependent
32 Kareem Hunt Cle @ GB Questionable - He's been in out a bit this season battling injuries
33 James Robinson Jax @ NYJ I'm cautious about his success in a battle for last place last week
34 Tony Pollard Dal vs Was Handcuff
35 Mark Ingram II NO vs Mia Averaging 12 carries over last four weeks but not getting a lot of yards
36 David Johnson Hou vs LAC Still not showing anything that will wow
37 Ty Montgomery NO vs Mia Getting a handful of carries
38 Ameer Abdullah Car vs TB I'm not trusting him as anything other than a long shot in deep leagues
39 Devin Singletary Buf @ NE Finally got significant yards and a TD but I'm still quite cautious
40 Nyheim Hines Ind @ Ari 10 total carries across last four weeks; reception count is down significantly too
41 Latavius Murray Bal @ Cin Got 7 carries last week
42 Sony Michel LAR @ Min He did as much as he could in Hendersons absence
43 Chuba Hubbard Car vs TB There is an offchance we see a decent ceiling here
44 Jamaal Williams Det @ Atl Swift's return hurts him but he could still see a few carries
45 J.D. McKissic Was @ Dal Questionable - getting a handful of carries
46 Darrel Williams KC vs Pit Probably nothing to wow you here

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