Cream of the Crop
2 (2). Chris Johnson TEN, 24-25/3
3 (3). Maurice Jones-Drew JAC, 25/5
4 (5). Ray Rice BAL, 23/3
Rest of the Elite
5 (4). Steven Jackson STL, 27/7
6 (6). DeAngelo Williams CAR, 27/5
7 (9). Frank Gore SF, 27/6
8 (13). Rashard Mendenhall PIT, 23/3
9 (11). Jonathan Stewart CAR, 23/3
10 (8). Michael Turner ATL, 28/7
On the Cusp of Elite
11. Ryan Mathews SD, 23/R
12 (18). Chris Wells ARI, 22/2
13 (44). Jamaal Charles KC, 23-24/3
14. Jahvid Best DET, 21/R
15 (32). Shonn Greene NYJ, 25/2
16 (7). Matt Forte CHI, 24-25/3
17 (12). Cedric Benson CIN, 27-28/6
18 (26). Felix Jones DAL, 23/3
Sub-Elite
19 (25). Ryan Grant GB, 27-28/5
20. C.J. Spiller BUF, 23/R
21. Ben Tate HOU, 22/R
22 (17). Knowshon Moreno DEN, 23/2
23 (10). Ronnie Brown MIA, 28-29/6
24 (16). Pierre Thomas NO, 25-26/4
25 (28). Joseph Addai IND, 27/5
26 (19). LeSean McCoy PHI, 22/2
27. Montario Hardesty CLE, 23/R
Muy Bueno
28 (20). Darren McFadden OAK, 23/3
29 (29). Donald Brown IND, 23/2
30 (23). Brandon Jacobs NYG, 28/6
31 (15). Marion Barber DAL, 27/6
32 (NR). Justin Forsett SEA, 24-25/3
33 (30). Leon Washington SEA, 28/5
34 (14). Steve Slaton HOU, 24/3
Bueno
35 (54). Michael Bush OAK, 26/4
36 (33). Laurence Maroney NE, 25/5
37 (50). Cadillac Williams TB, 28/6
38 (36). Jerome Harrison CLE, 27/5
39 (37). Reggie Bush NO, 25/5
40 (34). Tim Hightower ARI, 24/3
41 (35). Darren Sproles SD, 27/6
42 (38). Tashard Choice DAL, 25-26/3
Average Potential
43 (40). Ahmad Bradshaw NYG, 24/4
44 (51). Fred Jackson BUF, 29/4
45 (22). Kevin Smith DET, 23-24/3
46. Jonathan Dwyer PIT, 21/R
47 (39). Clinton Portis WAS, 29/9
48 (43). Willis McGahee BAL, 28-29/8
49 (21). Marshawn Lynch BUF, 24/4
50 (47). Andre Brown NYG, 23-24/2
Just Made the Cut
51 (24). Thomas Jones KC, 32/11
52. Toby Gerhart MIN, 23/R
53 (65). Rashad Jennings JAC, 25/2
54 (60). Chester Taylor CHI, 30-31/9
55 (86). Jason Snelling ATL, 26-27/4
56 (41). Mike Bell PHI, 27/5
57 (64). Bernard Scott CIN, 26/2
58 (49). Glen Coffee SF, 23/2
59 (53). Mike Goodson CAR, 23/2
60 (31). James Davis CLE, 24/2
61 (77). Arian Foster HOU, 24/2
62. James Starks GB, 24/R
63. Joe McKnight NYJ, 22/R
Sub-Par
64 (48). LaDanian Tomlinson NYJ, 31/10
65 (57). Ricky Williams MIA, 33/10
66 (118). Ryan Torain WAS, 24/3
67 (74). Javon Ringer TEN, 23/2
68 (42). Willie Parker WAS, 29-30/7
69 (63). Maurice Morris DET, 30-31/9
70 (NR). Lynell Hamilton NO, 25/3
71. Anthony Dixon SF, 22-23/R
72. LeGarrette Blount TEN, 23-24/R
Best of the Rest
73 (66). Mewelde Moore PIT, 28/7
74. Lonyae Miller DAL, 22/R
75. Shawnbrey McNeal SD, 21-22/R
76 (61). Derrick Ward TB, 30/7
77 (27). Brian Westbrook FA, 31/9
78 (55). Correll Buckhalter DEN, 31-32/10
79 (85). Leonard Weaver PHI, 27-28/6
80 (96). Mike Hart IND, 24/3
81 (46). Julius Jones SEA, 29/7
Deep Sleepers
82. Charles Scott PHI, 22/R
83 (52). Jerious Norwood ATL, 27/5
84 (75). BenJarvis Green-Ellis NE, 25/3
85 (NR). Lex Hilliard MIA, 26/3
86. Deji Karim JAC, 23-24/R
87. Keiland Williams WAS, 24/R
88 (76). Kenneth Darby STL, 27-28/3
89 (78). LeRon McClain BAL, 25-26/4
90 (79). Gartrell Johnson NYG, 24/2
91 (81). Patrick Cobbs MIA, 27/5
92 (95). Peyton Hillis CLE, 24/3
93 (84). Kory Sheets MIA, 25/2
94 (NR). Chris Jennings CLE, 24-25/2
95 (NR). Kahlil Bell CHI, 23-24/2
96 (NR). Marcus Mason SD, 26/4
97 (NR). Tyrell Sutton CAR, 23-24/2
Dirty Diapers
98 (72). Fred Taylor NE, 34/13
99 (73). Sammy Morris NE, 33/11
100 (68). Kevin Faulk NE, 34/12
101 (70). Earnest Graham TB, 30/7
102. Brandon Minor CHI, 22/R
103. Javarris James IND, 22-23/R
104. Joique Bell BUF, 24/R
105. Alfonso Smith ARI, 23/R
106. Chris Brown DEN, 23/R
107 (67). Chris Brown FA, 29/8
108 (91). Larry Johnson WAS, 30-31/8
109 (62). Brandon Jackson GB, 24-25/4
110 (80). Danny Ware NYG, 25/4
111 (83). Aaron Brown DET, 24-25/2
112 (87). Garrett Wolfe CHI, 26/4
113 (56). Ryan Moats MIN, 27-28/6
114 (45). Justin Fargas FA, 30/8
115 (82). Brian Leonard CIN, 26/4
116 (89). P.J. Hill NO, 23/2
117 (92). Greg Jones JAC, 29/7
118 (94). Jacob Hester SD, 25/3
119 (97). Devin Moore IND, 24-25/2
120 (98). Chris Ogbonnaya STL, 24/2
121 (99). Javarris Williams KC, 24/2
122 (58). Ladell Betts FA, 31/9
123 (59). LenDale White FA, 25-26/5
124 (71). Kevin Jones FA, 28/7
125 (69). Kolby Smith DEN, 25-26/4
126 (100). Jeremiah Johnson HOU, 23/2
127 (NR). Quinton Ganther SEA, 26/5
128 (101). LaRod Stephens-Howling ARI, 23/2
129 (104). Chris Taylor NE, 26-27/5
130 (111). DeShawn Wynn FA, 26-27/4
131 (112). Chris Henry HOU, 25/4
132 (113). Chauncy Washington NYJ, 25/3
133 (114). Kregg Lumpkin GB, 26/3
134 (115). Jalen Parmele BAL, 24-25/3
135 (116). Samkon Gado FA, 27-28/6
136 (119). Antonio Pittman FA, 24-25/4
137 (120). Lorenzo Booker FA, 26/4
Notes
~Adrian Peterson is still the top RB, even in the face of the elite emergence of Chris Johnson. Once Peterson cures his fumbilitis...and he will, his stats will take a noticeable step up.
~I still have DeAngelo Williams ranked at 6 because this is a contract year for him. Not only will he be running hard as usual, but it will more than likely be his application for another team, one without another stud RB breathing over his shoulder. Jonathan Stewart is ranked in the elite category for the exact same scenario...Williams departing in 2011.
~I love what Jahvid Best brings to the table. He is very very fast, very quick, very agile, very elusive, and he is no slouch breaking tackles, even though he is smallish. Unfortunately, he can't keep himself on the field. If injuries were not a concern, he would be ranked higher than his fellow rookie Ryan Mathews.
~"Party on a Boat" Cedric Benson may have just returned. He is still ranked pretty high, but an almost certain suspension will shoot his value down.
~Felix Jones will be the starter in Dallas, and I expect him to see almost half of the RB touches...if he stays healthy. He could be an elite stud in the making...if he stays healthy. Which reminds me...with Tashard Choice and now Lonyae Miller in the fold, why is Jerry Jones not trading Marion Barber? Don't the Cowboys need a solid LT (hint, hint)?
~I love Ben Tate as an every-down RB. Obviously, Steve Slaton will be handling pass-down duties, not that Tate lacks receiving and blocking abilities. I expect Tate to be in the mix for the Offensive Rookie of the Year award, along with Ryan Mathews and Jahvid Best.
~Knowshon Moreno, Pierre Thomas, LeSean McCoy, and a few other RBs didn't necessarily lose any value. They simply had 4 rookies, Felix Jones, Shonn Greene, and Jamaal Charles jump ahead of them in the rankings.
~Joseph Addai is in a contract year. Donald Brown should prove he can handle the increased workload next season.
~Justin Forsett is well liked and favored by the coaching staff, took a majority of the first team reps in the OTAs, and many football "experts" expect him to not only be the starter for the season, but also take the lion's share of RB reps. Much of that could change once Leon Washington is back to form during training camp. As long as his broken leg didn't rob any speed from him, I expect him to be a bit more than simply a third-down RB. Notice how I didn't mention Julius Jones here?
~Michael Bush should finally get half of the RB carries. He and Darren McFadden will form a true RB committee, "Thunder and Lightning" (or "Smash and Dash") style.
~Adios, Clinton Portis. He is still the starting RB this season, but I expect him to be relatively ineffective, and I don't expect him to keep healthy. He has a lot of mileage on his tires. Ryan Torain could start squeaking a few carries away from him, with Coach Shannahan giving Torain a chance to prove himself against starting NFL defenders. Forget about Larry Johnson, and Willie Parker could be cut.
~I wasn't crazy about the way Ahmad Bradshaw performed last season. I expect Andre Brown to start making his presence felt.
~Jason Snelling has moved up into the realm of being one of the best backup RBs. He will see a bit more action than your regular backup in order to help keep Michael Turner healthy. Snelling should also take over the third-down role completely.
~Once drafted by the Texans and Browns, Ben Tate and Montario Hardesty have effectively dropped the values of Arian Foster and James Davis. Both Foster and Davis are still very talented, but we don't know exactly how long they will be third-string RBs.
~I would expect Lynell Hamilton to take over the short-yardage and goalline duties in New Orleans, since Mike Bell has departed. However, I wouldn't expect him to be any more than that, even if Pierre Thomas gets injured.
~Even if Brian Westbrook signs with a new team, his value will not be resurrected. After the concussions he suffered last season, being 31 years old this season, and having health problems his whole career, the smart move for him is to retire. However, he has made it apparent that he will sign with a new team, and he could still be a useful bye week/injury replacement for your dynasty team.
~Notice the trio of Patriots RBs at the top of the "Dirty Diapers" tier? Exactly how long do those "old farts" plan to be NFL RBs? By the way, this will be Laurence Maroney's last chance to prove himself worthy of being a starting RB for the Patriots. Fred Taylor, Sammy Morris, and Kevin Faulk are at retirement ages, and the Patriots did not address the position during the draft or this offseason. The door is wide open for Maroney to secure the starting spot.
~As usual, I didn't put much effort into sorting out the bottom tier ("Dirty Diapers"). All players in that category shouldn't own a roster spot, in my opinion, but they are all worth noting. The only major sorting of that tier I did was to put the trio of aging Patriot RBs at the top. Fred Taylor could still have a good game or two, but his age and health are really hurting him.
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