Oct 19, 2013

55 & 5: Week 7 RB Rankings - The always tantalizing C.J. Spiller and possibly the last time Brandon Jacobs will be relevant. Ever.

C.J. Spiller, I swear this is the last week I believe you in. Another letdown and our relationship is done for! Seriously though, its a great week for a big 60 yard play again from one of the best playmakers in the game. Brandon Jacobs is a low end RB2 this week or solid flex play.

Brandon Jacobs missed practice Saturday. It is a BAD idea to risk hoping he's active Monday night at this point with no other solid option. He has been removed from rankings to reflect this advice. Figures Jacobs can't even be relevant this week...


  1. LeSean McCoy
  2. Matt Forte
  3. Adrian Peterson
  4. Jamaal Charles
  5. Arian Foster
  6. Reggie Bush
  7. Alfred Morris
  8. Knowshon Moreno
  9. Frank Gore
  10. Eddie Lacy
  11. C.J. Spiller
  12. DeAngelo Williams
  13. Ray Rice
  14. Giovani Bernard
  15. Trent Richardson
  16. Doug Martin
  17. Lamar Miller
  18. Fred Jackson
  19. Stevan Ridley
  20. Le'Veon Bell
  21. Ryan Mathews
  22. Danny Woodhead
  23. Chris Johnson
  24. Maurice Jones-Drew
  25. Joseph Randle
  26. BenJarvus Green-Ellis
  27. Bilal Powell
  28. Willis McGahee
  29. Zac Stacy
  30. Jacquizz Rodgers
  31. Mike Tolbert
  32. Chris Ogbonnaya
  33. Joique Bell
  34. Chris Ivory
  35. Daryl Richardson
  36. Ben Tate
  37. Bryce Brown
  38. Roy Helu
  39. Donald Brown
  40. Ronnie Hillman
  41. Kendall Hunter
  42. LeGarrette Blount
  43. Bernard Pierce
  44. Jason Snelling
  45. Brandon Bolden
  46. Jonathan Franklin
  47. Michael Bush
  48. Peyton Hillis
  49. Phillip Tanner
  50. Jackie Battle
  51. Felix Jones
#10 Marshawn Lynch - 4th on ESPN Rankings
Marshawn Lynch is a beast and you are starting him if you have him. This ranking is just a warning to temper expectations a bit. He was listed with a hip injury and did miss a practice. Thursday games are rough in that kind of situation. Luckily its still Marshawn Lynch and there is a good chance he gets in the endzone even if his yardage is a bit lower.

#12 C.J. Spiller - 20th on ESPN Rankings
Disclaimer: Spiller is a weakness of mine, and my continued belief in him will be my downfall. But its a very nice matchup and he has shown promising signs lately. His ankle continues to improve. He has put up nice YPC numbers the past two weeks (8.3, 5.5). The biggest thing I'd like to see is an improvement in the passing game from Spiller, where his longest catch this year is 8 yards. Its bound to improve sooner than later, I'm banking on the sooner.

#14 DeAngelo Williams - 16th on ESPN Rankings
This ranking isn't a marked difference from ESPN, but I wanted to take a moment to point out how bad the Rams have been against the run this year. In the past four games, they gave MJD his highest yardage total of the year at 86. The other three games? DeMarco Murray 203 total yards, Frank Gore 153 total yards, Arian Foster 198 total yards. DeAngelo won't get there, but 100+ total yards is a reasonable expectation right now.

#18 Doug Martin - #12 on ESPN
Plain and simple, Martin has looked bad this year. Averaging a paltry 3.5 yards per carry with just one touchdown. He did get 91 yards against the Eagles, but that surely wasn't what owners were hoping. Right now, anything more than 10 points is a good game for Martin.

#21 Brandon Jacobs - #28 on ESPN
I might regret this ranking, but Jacobs really did look good last week. With Da'Rel Scott's injury, they waived him again and brought in Peyton Hillis. I can't see Hillis immediately jumping in for anything more than 3-4 carries. That makes Brandon Jacobs the guy against a Minnesota defense allowing the MOST fantasy points to running backs this season. A big tough guy like Jacobs should be able to take advantage.

Deeper thoughts...It's a brutal matchup for Le'Veon Bell, I'm not starting him if I can help it. ESPN likes Joseph Randle more than I do. He didn't look great when he was thrust into the role of main RB last week, but going against Philadelphia should present opportunities. Andre Ellington continues to climb up the rankings. Very explosive talent, its just a matter of how many touches he gets. I'm not big on Zac Stacy this week, its a tough matchup and he missed Wednesday practice. He might see an improvement in rankings later this week though. BenJarvus Green-Ellis has continued to look pretty good for whatever reason, he would be a deeper league flex consideration this week. As mentioned with DeAngelo Williams, Mike Tolbert could find his way into the endzone this week again, fantastic matchup. Chris Ogbonnaya looked great last week, a nice refresher from the old and slow McGahee, worth an add in deeper leagues as well.

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