Running Back Rankings

1)Marshall Faulk, STL. Might not be the most effective rusher, although he's very close, but his receiving abilities make him the top RB available. The emergence of other key WR might eat into his receiving yards but Warner won't possibly ignore him as a safety valve or dump-off guy.

2)Edgerrin James, IND. Everyone knows this guy has tremendous talent. What we don't know is whether he can unseat Faulk as the king of RB this year. Indy has a teriffic team that will only get more effective offensively as Manning matures. I wouldn't blame you if you took him over Faulk.

3)Fred Taylor, JAX. Taylor has as much talent as either of the two backs ahead of him and if it weren't for injuries, would probably top this list. Last year I would have drafted him in the top 5 overall, and QB's are worth more in my league!!!

4)Eddie George, TEN. A big strong power runner who has great speed and catches well out of the backfield. Ten TD's isn't out of the question, if McNair doesn't take them all!!

5)Stephen Davis, WSH. Davis really showed up last year, surprising everyone including me. For a back who probably didn't get drafted in many leagues he definitely proved himself worthy. The totals of last year might be hard to match with defenses keying on the ground game but a good season is far from out of the question. With over 1400 yards rushing last year, he was the only RB to average over 100 yds a game.

6)Dorsey Levens, GB. Some may be surprised at this ranking but Levens had the 6th most overall yards for a RB in 1999. The downside is that he has tendenitis. Not serious but if hes not careful he'll get the lovely label. injury prone.

7)Curtis Martin, NYJ. Martin should be another great back this year and if Testaverde can stay healthy, and another receiver steps up besides Chrebet, look for Martin to take off. He should get some of the TD's that Keyshawn got in the red zone last year.

8)Emmit Smith, DAL. Even though age is catching up to him, Smtih still has the talent to put up decent, at the very least, fantasy numbers. With the Aquisition of Galloway to stretch defenses we could see Emmith rip off a few more long runs.

9)Corey Dillon, CIN. Dillon should be a great back no matter where he goes. Should he stay with Cincinatti he could really help them since the team seems to be gaining talent at every position. Rumor has it he may pull a Galloway and sit out until week 11 so he can still be a free agent next year. Let's hope this doesn't happen.

10)Ron Dayne, NYG. Dayne has great talent and I dispute anyone who says he doesn't have any agility. With the emergence of Toomer and Hilliard last year this team could take off. Collins is the key to getting Dayne his yardage.

11)Terrell Davis, DEN. At this ranking I could be eating my words by midseason, but I don't think so. First of all not many players have come back from the ACL tear and been just as effective. The second thing is that Elway AND Sharpe are both gone, which takes away two weapons and narrows the focus more to Davis, and since any QB Denver has probably won't be able to get the ball in the air often or as well as they need to.

12)Rickey Williams, NO. In my opinion Ricky has more than enough talent and toughness to play very effectively at this level. I only got to see him in one game all last year but i was impressed to see his porductive running style. If Blake and WR's Horn and Reed can produce marginally this year Williams should produce at a high level.

13)Duce Staley, PHI. Duce is about all that Philly fans have to look forward to next year. This can go both ways since Duce will be getting the most touches on the team. Either defenses will key on him and his performance will decline or he will get so many touches that he'll get good yardage no matter what. I think he'll do OK, not spectacular.

14)James Stewart, DET. James has good talent and although I don't personally think he'll ever be a top 5 or even top 10 back, he has enough to contribute to Detroit and your fantasy team. If Batch stays healthy this could end up being a very well rounded team.

15)Curtis Enis, CHI. Curtis was supposed to be a fantastic back out of college but injuries and weight problems have hampered his productivity. This could be his first healthy year and his stats could show it. Word has it that he has been working out like a mad man this offseason and should be ready to show what he's made of in camp.

16)Jamal Lewis, BAL. There is so much talent going into the year that Lewis won't be required to perform at the all-pro level, right away. I predict a darn good rookie year for him though, as he is eased into the NFL with a great supporting cast. Definitely could be one of the best offensive teams by the end of the year.

17)Antowain Smith, BUF Thsi guy definitely has talent size and speed, what might be lacking is heart. Word has it that he is tearing up training camp.

18)Mike Alstott, TB. The best running threat that Tampa has will again get all the TD's this season. Dunn is too small for goal line runs and Keyshawn will open the field up for both runners. I see big Mike getting over 1000 yards.

19)Robert Smith, MIN. After his injury last year Smith had a manly season, getting 5 100 yard games in the last 8 games. Minnesota has great WR's so he probably wont get crowded unless Culpepper flops.

20)Charlie Garner, SF. Garner is undersized but has a huge heart. I loved this guy in his days with Philly and barring his injuries then, I thought he was going to be a good back. Finally the injury to Hearst gave him a chance to show what he's got. Along with good running skills he has more than adequate receiving skills.(over 500 yards last year) Look for Garner to once again carry this team.

21)Jamal Anderson, ATL. Word is that Jamal's knee isnt healing as fast or as well as previously hoped. He moves way down, for now. We'll see if better news comes out soon.


For the rest of the backs I just give rankings not explanations. email any questions about these rankings to bowm4503@students.sou.edu

22)Tyrone Wheatley, .
23)Thomas Jones.
or michael Pittman, whoever starts. 24)Rickey Watters, SEA.
25)Warrick Dunn, TB.
26)J.J. Johnson, MIA
27)Kimble Anders, KC.
28)Tim Biakabutuka, CAR.
29)Ericht Rhett, CLE.
30)Napolean Kaufman, OAK.
31)Jerome Bettis, PIT.
32)Shaun Alexander, SEA.
33)J.R. Redmond, NE.
34)Richard Huntley, PIT.
35)Jermaine Fazande, SD.