September 14TH, 2011 Wednesday
The Morning Huddle
When I started writing this it was morning, but you do what you can. Yesterday I offered a few thoughts and observations from under center, this morning we’ll take a peek into the backfield. There were a few surprises on Sunday of week one that deserve mention; Earnest Graham’s eight catches out of the backfield against the Lions and Reggie Bushs’ near 100 yards of total offense with a score (and nine catches). These were a few of the more interesting performances in week one that should garner some attention, especially in PPR leagues. It doesn’t appear that neither back is going to emerge as a fantasy stud, although with his upside Bush could provide some nice totals from time-to-time, both look to be effective weekly rentals to fill a possible void in PPRs.
One more performance that should also be noted is running back Ben Tate. The Texan’s back-up ball carrier ran extremely effective in week one gaining over 100 yards (116) on 24 carries with a touchdown. Tate averaged nearly five yards a pop and carried much of the load down the stretch. The impact of his effectiveness is with Arian Foster still a little “iffy” there does not appear any urgency to bring him back sooner than later. If Tate can effectively carry the load like he did in week one, the Texans can be more cautious about bringing Foster back and wait until he is 100% healthy. This would make Tate a temporary solution, but if you were able to handcuff him with Foster, he could be a very productive solution as well.
Week one offered a few interesting plot lines for fantasy owners, but it also gave us some re-assuring answers. So let’s take a look at what was said after one week of the NFl…
Breaking Down the Running Backs
In most fantasy drafts, there’s little doubt about how high Ravens’ running back Ray Rice was taken and if you made that pick you could not have been happy with his week one matchup. Playing the Steelers did not offer any comfort or any hope for a big day, but as a fantasy owner you take the good with the bad and know there will be more good days down the road. Well that may have been your thought process heading into Sunday, but after Rice’s big day (149 yards of offense and two scores) you have to be licking your chops looking ahead. Rice was spectacular averaging over five yards per carry and adding four grabs out of the backfield. If you weren’t thinking that Rice was among the elite ball carriers in fantasy, you may have to start that conversation after week one.
Another eyebrow raising ball carrier in week one was the Eagles running back LeSean McCoy. Sharing the backfield with one of the leagues’ most dangerous players (Vick) has to offer some advantages and on Sunday against the Rams, it looked like McCoy took hold. The Eagles running back gained 122 yards on the ground and scored twice. He only caught two balls on the day, but we expect to see him be more involved in the passing game as the season moves forward. As long as McCoy continues to line up behind Vick, fantasy owners can expect more days like this.
Looking back over the day, there are plenty more names that deserve some kudos, but one name I would like to point out is Rams’ running back Carnell Williams. Cadillac Williams rose from the ashes of the past and turned in a nice fantasy day rushing for 91 yards, catching 5 passes for another 49 yards. He did not find the end zone, but with starter Steven Jackson going down, he’s a lock to see plenty of work on Monday night against the Giants. Williams will not be a long term solution for fantasy owners, but he is looking like a gem as a handcuff for Steven and great week 2 plug-in, if you need help.
Please note, my rankings are not solely based on how the backs played last week. They take into consideration how they were expected to perform, their draft position, and how they will fare going forward.
Top 20 Running backs (Week 1)
1. Ray Rice (Ravens)
2. LeSean McCoy (Eagles)
3. Matt Forte (Bears)
4. Darren McFadden (Raiders)
5. Maurice Jones-Drew (Jaguars)
6. Arian Foster (Texans) DNP*
7. Adrian Peterson (Vikings)
8. Jamaal Charles (Chiefs)
9. Chris Johnson (Titans)
10. Michael Turner (Falcons)
11. Peyton Hillis (Browns)
12. Frank Gore (49ers)
13. Steven Jackson (Rams)**
14. Tim Hightower (Redskins)
15. Ahmad Bradshaw (Giants)
16. Chris Wells (Cardinals)
17. Fred Jackson (Bills)
18. Mike Tolbert (Chargers)
19. Cedric Benson (Bengals)
20. Jahvid Best (Lions)
*Foster is likely to sit week 2 against the Dolphins.
**Jackson is expected to miss Monday night against the Giants
By David Ortega
One more performance that should also be noted is running back Ben Tate. The Texan’s back-up ball carrier ran extremely effective in week one gaining over 100 yards (116) on 24 carries with a touchdown. Tate averaged nearly five yards a pop and carried much of the load down the stretch. The impact of his effectiveness is with Arian Foster still a little “iffy” there does not appear any urgency to bring him back sooner than later. If Tate can effectively carry the load like he did in week one, the Texans can be more cautious about bringing Foster back and wait until he is 100% healthy. This would make Tate a temporary solution, but if you were able to handcuff him with Foster, he could be a very productive solution as well.
Week one offered a few interesting plot lines for fantasy owners, but it also gave us some re-assuring answers. So let’s take a look at what was said after one week of the NFl…
Breaking Down the Running Backs
In most fantasy drafts, there’s little doubt about how high Ravens’ running back Ray Rice was taken and if you made that pick you could not have been happy with his week one matchup. Playing the Steelers did not offer any comfort or any hope for a big day, but as a fantasy owner you take the good with the bad and know there will be more good days down the road. Well that may have been your thought process heading into Sunday, but after Rice’s big day (149 yards of offense and two scores) you have to be licking your chops looking ahead. Rice was spectacular averaging over five yards per carry and adding four grabs out of the backfield. If you weren’t thinking that Rice was among the elite ball carriers in fantasy, you may have to start that conversation after week one.
Another eyebrow raising ball carrier in week one was the Eagles running back LeSean McCoy. Sharing the backfield with one of the leagues’ most dangerous players (Vick) has to offer some advantages and on Sunday against the Rams, it looked like McCoy took hold. The Eagles running back gained 122 yards on the ground and scored twice. He only caught two balls on the day, but we expect to see him be more involved in the passing game as the season moves forward. As long as McCoy continues to line up behind Vick, fantasy owners can expect more days like this.
Looking back over the day, there are plenty more names that deserve some kudos, but one name I would like to point out is Rams’ running back Carnell Williams. Cadillac Williams rose from the ashes of the past and turned in a nice fantasy day rushing for 91 yards, catching 5 passes for another 49 yards. He did not find the end zone, but with starter Steven Jackson going down, he’s a lock to see plenty of work on Monday night against the Giants. Williams will not be a long term solution for fantasy owners, but he is looking like a gem as a handcuff for Steven and great week 2 plug-in, if you need help.
Please note, my rankings are not solely based on how the backs played last week. They take into consideration how they were expected to perform, their draft position, and how they will fare going forward.
Top 20 Running backs (Week 1)
1. Ray Rice (Ravens)
2. LeSean McCoy (Eagles)
3. Matt Forte (Bears)
4. Darren McFadden (Raiders)
5. Maurice Jones-Drew (Jaguars)
6. Arian Foster (Texans) DNP*
7. Adrian Peterson (Vikings)
8. Jamaal Charles (Chiefs)
9. Chris Johnson (Titans)
10. Michael Turner (Falcons)
11. Peyton Hillis (Browns)
12. Frank Gore (49ers)
13. Steven Jackson (Rams)**
14. Tim Hightower (Redskins)
15. Ahmad Bradshaw (Giants)
16. Chris Wells (Cardinals)
17. Fred Jackson (Bills)
18. Mike Tolbert (Chargers)
19. Cedric Benson (Bengals)
20. Jahvid Best (Lions)
*Foster is likely to sit week 2 against the Dolphins.
**Jackson is expected to miss Monday night against the Giants
By David Ortega
No comments:
Post a Comment