Fantasy football rankings 2015: Running backs for standard leagues, Week 17
It’s the biggest guessing week of 2015. Here are our fantasy football running back rankings for standard leagues for Week 17.
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Let’s be clear: There’s a reason most fantasy football leagues end in Week 16.
As we gear up for Week 17 of the 2015 NFL season, we’re checking in for one last week of regular-season position rankings. And we don’t know crap.
That's not totally true. We do know that, to name some names, the players on Cincinnati, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Denver, Green Bay, Minnesota and the Jets will at least be going all out, or close to it. Those teams are battling for playoff spots and/or playoff seeding, and have no incentive to shut it down early. To name some names, DeAngelo Williams, Adrian Peterson, Charcandrick West? Those guys will be playing hard for at least most of Sunday.
But after that? The Panthers and Cardinals both have byes locked up, but still could battle for seeding. Will the Cardinals push David Johnson in the longest season he's ever played? Will the Panthers rush Jonathan Stewart back onto the field? Washington is locked into the fourth seed in the NFC; Houston might as well be the same in the AFC. Odds are you weren't using Matt Jones or the Alfreds, Morris or Blue, to begin with, but if you were, how much can you count on them playing?
And all this is to say nothing of the teams who have been eliminated. How much incentive do the Rams really have to use Todd Gurley any more than necessary? Or the Giants with Rashad Jennings, the Cowboys with Darren McFadden?
Below, you’ll find our running back rankings for Week 17 in standard leagues. We ranked these guys with the best knowledge we have early in the week. But this week, more than any other in the season, is a lot of guesswork. I hope either your league ended last week, or you have a lot of guys on contenders’ rosters. It’s the only way to be sure.
Running backs for standard leagues, Week 17
(DK: Daniel Kelley; DC: Dan Ciarrocchi; AM: Andrew Miller; JD: John Daigle; SK: Scott Kaliska)
| Rk | Consensus | Tm | Opp. | DK | DC | AM | JD | SK |
| 1 | DeAngelo Williams | PIT | @CLE | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Adrian Peterson | MIN | @GB | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| 3 | Devonta Freeman | ATL | NO | 6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 4 | Todd Gurley | STL | @SF | 2 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
| 5 | David Johnson | ARI | SEA | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 |
| 6 | Doug Martin | TB | @CAR | 4 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 |
| 7 | Tim Hightower | NO | @ATL | 8 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
| 8 | Darren McFadden | DAL | WAS | 9 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 8 |
| 9 | Latavius Murray | OAK | @KC | 11 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 9 |
| 10 | Charcandrick West | KC | OAK | 19 | 9 | 12 | 10 | 10 |
| 11 | Matt Forte | CHI | DET | 10 | 16 | 10 | 16 | 14 |
| 12 | Eddie Lacy | GB | MIN | 12 | 12 | 17 | 13 | 13 |
| 13 | Frank Gore | IND | TEN | 22 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 11 |
| 13 | Karlos Williams | BUF | NYJ | 20 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 12 |
| 15 | James White | NE | @MIA | 13 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 15 |
| 16 | Rashad Jennings | NYG | PHI | 7 | 18 | 20 | 14 | 16 |
| 17 | Lamar Miller | MIA | NE | 14 | 14 | 22 | 17 | 17 |
| 18 | Bilal Powell | NYJ | @BUF | 15 | 20 | 15 | 20 | 18 |
| 19 | Buck Allen | BAL | @CIN | 16 | 23 | 16 | 24 | 21 |
| 20 | Jeremy Hill | CIN | BAL | 21 | 22 | 18 | 22 | 20 |
| 21 | Danny Woodhead | SD | @DEN | 18 | 19 | 26 | 21 | 23 |
| 22 | Chris Ivory | NYJ | @BUF | 25 | 17 | 19 | 23 | 24 |
| 23 | Denard Robinson | JAC | @HOU | 17 | 24 | 32 | 18 | 22 |
| 24 | Jeremy Langford | CHI | DET | 29 | 21 | 29 | 19 | 19 |
| 25 | Cameron Artis-Payne | CAR | TB | 23 | 27 | 21 | 29 | 27 |
| 26 | Ronnie Hillman | DEN | SD | 24 | 28 | 27 | 28 | 31 |
| 27 | Giovani Bernard | CIN | BAL | 35 | 26 | 25 | 26 | 28 |
| 28 | C.J. Anderson | DEN | SD | 34 | 29 | 24 | 31 | 25 |
| 29 | Ryan Mathews | PHI | @NYG | 38 | 25 | 35 | 25 | 26 |
| 30 | Alfred Blue | HOU | JAC | 37 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 29 |
| 31 | Christine Michael | SEA | @ARI | 30 | 32 | 36 | 34 | 34 |
| 32 | Mike Gillislee | BUF | NYJ | 28 | 36 | 38 | 32 | 33 |
| 33 | Theo Riddick | DET | @CHI | 33 | 35 | 31 | 38 | 37 |
| 34 | Isaiah Crowell | CLE | PIT | 31 | 34 | 40 | 36 | 36 |
| 35 | DeMarco Murray | PHI | @NYG | 32 | 44 | 28 | 37 | 38 |
| 36 | Alfred Morris | WAS | @DAL | 39 | 31 | -- | 27 | 32 |
| 37 | Charles Sims | TB | @CAR | 26 | 38 | 37 | 41 | 39 |
| 37 | Ameer Abdullah | DET | @CHI | 43 | 33 | 42 | 33 | 30 |
| 39 | Brandon Bolden | NE | @MIA | 44 | 43 | 33 | 43 | 40 |
| 40 | Spencer Ware | KC | OAK | 42 | 39 | 45 | 39 | 41 |
| 41 | Darren Sproles | PHI | @NYG | 49 | 37 | -- | 35 | 35 |
| 42 | Pierre Thomas | WAS | @DAL | -- | 41 | 23 | -- | 48 |
| 43 | DuJuan Harris | SF | STL | 41 | -- | 34 | 45 | 44 |
| 44 | Joique Bell | DET | @CHI | 27 | 50 | 41 | 49 | 49 |
| 45 | James Starks | GB | MIN | 45 | 40 | 49 | 40 | 43 |
| 46 | Jay Ajayi | MIA | NE | 46 | 42 | 46 | 42 | 42 |
| 47 | Donald Brown | SD | @DEN | -- | 45 | 48 | 44 | 45 |
| 48 | Shane Vereen | NYG | PHI | -- | 48 | 43 | 47 | 46 |
| 49 | Jerick McKinnon | MIN | @GB | 36 | 49 | -- | 50 | 50 |
| 50 | Andre Ellington | ARI | SEA | -- | -- | 39 | -- | -- |
| -- | Travaris Cadet | NO | @ATL | 40 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| -- | Duke Johnson Jr. | CLE | PIT | 48 | 47 | 50 | 48 | -- |
| -- | Bryce Brown | SEA | @ARI | -- | -- | -- | 46 | 47 |
| -- | Antonio Andrews | TEN | @IND | -- | -- | 44 | -- | -- |
| -- | Steven Jackson | NE | @MIA | -- | 46 | -- | -- | -- |
| -- | David Cobb | TEN | @IND | 47 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| -- | Fred Jackson | SEA | @ARI | -- | -- | 47 | -- | -- |
| -- | Chris Thompson | WAS | @DAL | 50 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
