1. Eddie Lacy, Green Bay Packers, Bye 7
Lacy had a rough start to the season last year, but he quickly got his groove back to finish off as the 6th best running back. As defenses still have to worry about Green Bay's talented passing game, Lacy can find open holes in the defense to exploit. Lacy becomes a safe #1 pick for fantasy owners who love drafting running backs first.
2. Jamaal Charles, Kansas City Chiefs, Bye 9
Charles should continue to have a dominant season as he turns 29 years old. Being the centerpiece of the Chief's offense only helps his value as he will be relied on frequently. What gives Charles a top 3 running back slot is his catching ability and his explosiveness to break off for big plays.
3. Le'veon Bell, Pittsburgh Steelers, Bye 11
Le'veon Bell is the best running back in the league in my opinion. However, with his three game suspension, his value gets knocked down to #3. If you select Le'veon Bell in your drafts, make sure that you grab a solid RB2 and RB3 to make up for the first three weeks. Last year, he was ridiculously good, and he'll continue to produce great numbers.
Lacy had a rough start to the season last year, but he quickly got his groove back to finish off as the 6th best running back. As defenses still have to worry about Green Bay's talented passing game, Lacy can find open holes in the defense to exploit. Lacy becomes a safe #1 pick for fantasy owners who love drafting running backs first.
2. Jamaal Charles, Kansas City Chiefs, Bye 9
Charles should continue to have a dominant season as he turns 29 years old. Being the centerpiece of the Chief's offense only helps his value as he will be relied on frequently. What gives Charles a top 3 running back slot is his catching ability and his explosiveness to break off for big plays.
3. Le'veon Bell, Pittsburgh Steelers, Bye 11
Le'veon Bell is the best running back in the league in my opinion. However, with his three game suspension, his value gets knocked down to #3. If you select Le'veon Bell in your drafts, make sure that you grab a solid RB2 and RB3 to make up for the first three weeks. Last year, he was ridiculously good, and he'll continue to produce great numbers.
4. Marshawn Lynch, Seattle Seahawks, Bye 8
Marshawn Lynch is yet again a top 5 back in this Seattle offense. The ground and pound system gives Beastmode many carries to produce huge numbers. There is a downside with the whole ordeal of his back problems. However, I believe that Marshawn Lynch has at least one or two years of being elite left.
5. Arian Foster, Houston Texans, Bye 9
Arian Foster is one of the most talented running backs in the league but cannot stay healthy. I highly doubt that he will be playing in all 16 games. He should be a star yet again (5th last year) returning into the same situation as he was in last year.
6. Lesean McCoy, Buffalo Bills, Bye 8
McCoy underachieved last year only putting up 5 rushing touchdowns, but the reason of this was his inept offensive line. Now, on the Buffalo Bills, he has a better line to protect him. He is also with coach Rex Ryan, who is a primary run first coach. McCoy has a high upside and is a huge candidate for a deadly bounceback year.
7. Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings, Bye 5
Adrian Peterson is an interesting fantasy player this year as we do not know what is going to happen with him. His value either increases or decreases depending on where he plays. Peterson is 30 years old, but is still fresh as he was suspended the whole season last year. Peterson was a top 3 option in past years, so his status shouldn't be too risky.
8. Matt Forte, Chicago Bears, Bye 7
With the Chicago Bears losing their head coach, Forte enters a different system than last year. He is turning 30 years old but he is still considered an elite running back. The good news is that John Fox, the new head coach, actually likes running the ball so Forte will get enough touches to produce some nice numbers.
9. CJ Anderson, Denver Broncos, Bye 7
With Gary Kubiak on the Broncos, the system turns into a run-heavy offense. CJ Anderson comes off a strong year aside from the fact that he only started for 7 games. As of right now, he's an top 10 back with huge potential and upside. The risk is that Montee Ball, Denver's predicted starting back last year, failed despite all the hype.
10. Jeremy Hill, Cincinnati Bengals, Bye 7
Jeremy Hill is a fantastic running back, no question. He is on a team who runs the ball a solid amount of times. Hill has broken tackles to make big plays, but Giovanni Bernard is still in the mix. Bernard is also talented and should take some carries, but Jeremy Hill has proven that he is a legitimate RB1 this season.
11. Demarco Murray, Philadelphia Eagles, Bye 8
Obviously Demarco Murray has talent, but there a couple of problems that could worry many fantasy owners. First off, Murray switches teams from the Cowboys to the Eagles. The Eagles' offensive line is a lot worse than the Cowboys' line, so Demarco will be left less protected. Secondly, the Eagles also have Ryan Mathews and Darren Sproles, which could take away the passing downs for Murray. Lastly, he lead the league in carries resulting in an injury risk for this year. To close it up, Murray is talented and he could very well be a monster in Chip Kelly's system, but there are too many concerns for me to choose Murray in the early rounds of the draft.
12. Carlos Hyde, San Francisco 49ers, Bye 10
Hyde comes into 2015 with the starting job now that Frank Gore is out of the way. He is packed with potential, but we have not seen him play yet. On the downside, his team, the 49ers, are a mess and they have struggled to get it all together this offseason. Still, Hyde should see the field often to give him a high RB2 value.
13. Alfred Morris, Washington Redskins, Bye 8
Alfred Morris is not the type of back who breaks off for long runs or has spectacular plays, but he certainly is effective. He quietly was the 13th best fantasy running back last year, and it doesn't seem like it will train this year. The Redskins' new rookie, Matt Jones, is only a minor concern of hurting the value of Alfred Morris.
14. Lamar Miller, Miami Dolphins, Bye 5
Lamar Miller is running behind a weak offense line, but he still possesses the talent he needs to be a good fantasy start. The Dolphins did draft Jay Ajayi, the Boise State running back who may steal some touches. His offense is young, but Miller did play well last year, which is why I put him at #14 on the list.
15. Melvin Gordon, San Diego Chargers, Bye 10
Melvin Gordon has huge upside going into an offense with Philip Rivers and getting the starting job immediately. However, the Chargers line is a little shaky, which is never good for a rookie running back. He still has RB2 value in him.
16. Justin Forsett, Baltimore Ravens, Bye 9
Although Mark Trestman has a good system for passing, his running playset is solid too. Forsett comes into the year as the Raven's feature back. Even though Forsett was #5 in rushing yards last year, his numbers will not repeat, so his value remains as a RB2 candidate.
17. Mark Ingram, New Orleans Saints, Bye 11
Being on the Saints is a big upgrade to his value. However, CJ Spiller was signed and could take some of his carries away. Mark Ingram's injury history is also a concern, but he is good enough to be considered a top 20 back.
18. Latavius Murray, Oakland Raiders, Bye 6
Murray is now the starting back for the Raiders, which gives him good value. His explosiveness can lead him to break off for big runs. In the last few games of the season, Murray proved he's worthy of the starting position. The problem is that the Raiders are down early and often, which could lead to more pass plays rather to run plays.
19. Frank Gore, Indianapolis Colts, Bye 10
The Indianapolis Colts could be a good fit for Gore, as he is a great catcher and runner. However, Gore is predicted to be the oldest starting running back this year at age 32. That is never a trait that you want in picking a fantasy running back. Andrew Luck spreads the ball well so Gore has the potential score around 10 combined touchdowns this year.
20. Jonathan Stewart, Carolina Panthers, Bye 5
Now that DeAngelo Williams is out of the picture, Jonathan Stewart gets most of the workload to himself. This gives him a lot of hype, however, Stewart can never find himself healthy with a small workload, so what makes me believe he can do it with a heavier one?
21. Joique Bell, Detroit Lions, Bye 9
With Reggie Bush on the 49ers, it looked like Joique Bell would get the definite starting job on the Lions... that was until the Lions drafted Ameer Abdullah. Abdullah is a great back who could certainly steals some carries, but I'm not worried about Bell's status. Bell should still produce consistent numbers, but he is no more than a low RB2, high RB3 in most leagues.
22. Todd Gurley, St. Louis Rams, Bye 6
A rookie coming off a torn ACL injury does not sound to pleasing to me. However, when he's healthy, in the later weeks of the year, he could get a nice workload to strive in the St. Louis offense.
23. Andre Ellington, Arizona Cardinals, Bye 9
Ellington proved that he is a strong fantasy play, but he struggles when carrying a heavy workload. Injuries come piling down on him which is a huge downside. His huge downside comes with a huge upside so he mainly is a high risk/high reward play.
24. TJ Yeldon, Jacksonville Jaguars, Bye 8
TJ Yeldon is a very good running back, and he lands a nice situation in Jacksonville. He is projected to be the starting back so he could very well shine. However, the offensive line at Jacksonville is pretty weak.
25. Tevin Coleman, Atlanta Falcons, Bye 10
Coleman is a young back, who could make a starting debut with the Atlanta Falcons. However, the battle is between Coleman and Freeman. Freeman has not looked like a top back, but he is still a threat. I will be monitoring this close battle throughout summer.
26. Joesph Randle, Dallas Cowboys, Bye 6
Although Randle has had some offseason issues, he is still a gifted back. The Dallas Cowboys' offensive line is ridiculously good, so he'll have no problem breaking away for some nice plays. Darren McFadden is the other back, who will be splitting carries with him. Randle is more talented, so I believe that he might get the majority of carries in this running back committee.
27. LeGarrette Blount, New England Patriots, Bye 4
In the Patriots rotation of backs, Blount is the leader. The Patriots are playing some weak defenses, which can lead Blount to put up some nice points. In addition to the weak defenses, Tom Brady is suspended for the first few games. For that reason, the offense can switch to a heavier run system in the beginning games.
28. Chris Ivory, New York Jets, Bye 5
Chris Ivory is only one of the many backs on the Jets roster. However, Stevan Ridley is battling injuries and Zac Stacy busted last year by not performing well at all. Ivory did play well last year, and he should maintain the most carries in that offense.
29. CJ Spiller, New Orleans Saints, Bye 11
Spiller finally leaves the Bills, a team that did not use him correctly, to the Saints, a team who may know how to use him. However, he is not the starter on this team. With Darren Sproles gone, he will fill that role of being the speedy back to catch passes.
30. Isaiah Crowell, Cleveland Browns, Bye 11
Last year, it was almost like the Browns flipped a coin on who to start, Isaiah Crowell or Terrence West. After multiple games, it seemed clear that Crowell is the better back. West still interferes with Crowell's value, but he should get a good amount of carries in 2015.
31. Giovanni Bernard, Cincinnati Bengals, Bye 7
Bernard lost the starting job and a whole lot of carries to Jeremy Hill. Now, Bernard has the job of the pass-catching back. He produced decent numbers in this role last year, so I'm sure he'll do it again. If Hill ever gets hurt, Bernard has tons of upside as well.
32. Rashad Jennings, New York Giants, Bye 11
Jennings' fantasy value really suffered with the addition to Shane Vereen. The reason of this is that Jennings will no longer get the yards off of receptions. Plus, Andre Williams is still fighting for the starting job and he's only getting better. Lastly, Jennings is not one to stay healthy. Avoid drafting Jennings unless he falls to you at a good spot.
33. Ameer Abdullah, Detroit Lions, Bye 9
Abdullah is a candidate to steal the starting job from Joique Bell. He is young and talented, so if he wins the job, he'll have great value. They drafted him hoping that he'll turn into a Reggie Bush type player.
34. Charles Sims, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Bye 6
Despite what some may say, I believe that Charles Sims will get the majority of the carries over Doug Martin. The coaches at Tampa Bay even said that they were "high on him" this year. Martin and Sims will still split carries, so neither of them will really make an impact on your fantasy roster.
35. Bishop Sankey, Tennessee Titans, Bye 4
Bishop Sankey was a major bust in his rookie year, but the Titans did not sign anyone that can start over him. He still has the upside that he did last year, but we need to see more proof over the summer. They also drafted David Cobb in the 5th round, who may steal some touches. Yes, Cobb may get the start but let's remember that Cobb was not a top tier rookie.
36. Ryan Mathews, Philadelphia Eagles, Bye 8
Mathews got signed to the Eagles, which would be great news if the Eagles didn't also sign Demarco Murray. Mathews is a great back, even with his injury problems. If Murray were to get hurt, Mathews could become an RB2 or Flex Play, but for now, he's no more than a deep option in leagues.
37. Doug Martin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Bye 6
Martin still has a chance to win the starting job, but his career has traveled downhill ever since his disappointing season. The coaches loved how Charles Sims was doing so far, so Martin might get the lower end of the carries. However, if Martin proves himself to be half the guy he was in 2012, then he could put a solid year.
38. Andre Williams, New York Giants, Bye 11
Williams is a back with potential to give you great value. The reason of this is because he is splitting with Rashad Jennings, an injury-prone player. If Jennings goes down, then Williams is the next guy in line. However, his catching needs some work, so Vereen wills still steal all the pass catching snaps. He also could vulture some touchdowns as he is good near the goal line.
39. Tre Mason, St. Louis Rams, Bye 6
Mason showed how effective he can be last year, and he has not changed. What has changed is the drafting of Todd Gurley. Todd Gurley is the heavy favorite for starter but he is coming off an injury. If Gurley misses any time, Mason will get the nod and will continue to show what he has in store.
40. David Johnson, Arizona Cardinals, Bye 9
Ellington struggled with the heavy workload, resulting in Arizona drafting David Johnson. Johnson can get the goalline work in this offense.
41. Terrence West, Cleveland Browns, Bye 11
Terrence West is involved in a dreadful running back committee. Crowell is obviously the best back there but the Browns still decided to start West in many games. This could happen again, but West just isn't that great.
42. Shane Vereen, New York Giants, Bye 11
Vereen gets the pass-catching duties in New York as Williams and Jennings split the run duties. Vereen is a better PPR option but in standard formats, he does not bring any significant value.
43. Roy Helu, Oakland Raiders, Bye 6
Helu may get the 3rd down duties in Oakland. He's not good enough to take over the starting job though.
44. Alfred Blue, Houston Texans, Bye 9
Arian Foster may be one of the best backs in the NFL, but he is almost always gets hurt every year. When he does get hurt, Alfred Blue gets the top spot.
45. Devonte Freeman, Atlanta Falcons, Bye 10
Freeman is fair at best. He needs to work hard if he wants to beat out Coleman for the starting job. If he gets the nod, he'll move up in the rankings, but for now, he's #45 on the list.
46. Knile Davis, Kansas City Chiefs, Bye 9
Davis showed his talent when Charles was out last year, as he put up a pair of 100+ yard games. The problem is he never gets to play due to the fact that Charles, one of the best backs in the league, is the starter there.
47. DeAngelo Williams, Pittsburgh Steelers, Bye 11
Williams is only a good pick if you pair him with Le'Veon Bell. This is because Bell is suspended, and Williams will get the start for the first three games.
48. Christine Michael, Seattle Seahawks, By