Tiered Running Back Rankings: Top 37 in Fantasy Football

This is the third segment of our Fantasy Football Running Back Rankings.  We've already looked at the Top 12 and the Top 25 running backs, and we're getting into the lower tier options at this point, but these are still players you'll need to know as you prepare for your 2014 fantasy football drafts.

These rankings are tiered, and within each tier you can interchange players to your liking. Separate tiers signify where I think there are clear distinctions in value. For example, Tier 1 recognizes the elite at the position, feature backs and proven studs. Tier 2 has guys I would consider great, but with potential concerns, and so it goes down the list. I'd love to read your comments and disagreements below!

For more tiered rankings and analysis, be sure to check out our Wide Receiver Rankings (Top 20, Top 40, Top 60) and our Quarterback Rankings (Top 10, Top 21, Top 32, Dynasty Top 15), as well as RotoBaller's overall Standard League and PPR Rankings.

Tier 4 Running Backs (Cont.)

26. Stevan Ridley - New England Patriots - 5'11" 220 lbs

178 Att - 773 Yards - 7 TD / 10 Rec - 62 Yards - 0 TD

Coaching change: None

This next sentence is going to surprise some people BUT - In a world where Stevan Ridley has a more forgiving coach (Basically anyone but Belichick or Coughlin) he would probably be as highly regarded as Alfred Morris. Ridley has been in the league one year longer, but has just over 50 fewer attempts with the same number of touchdowns (20). They are also similarly unused in the passing game. The real surprising stat? Ridley has 9 fumbles and 6 lost while Morris has 9 fumbles and 7 lost.

If their teams were switched the rankings would probably be about an exact switch as well. But unfortunately Ridley remains on the Patriots where his leash will be very short. With LeGarrette Blount gone Ridley should resume full time duties as the feature back to start. It looks like Vereen will be almost unused as a runner. 4th round rookie James White will certainly have a shot at running duties as well, but he is 15 pounds lighter than Ridley and unproven. Ridley remains high-risk high-reward because one slip up could ruin the season for him, but if he can prevent that he has a great shot at double-digit touchdowns as a feature back.

27. Darren Sproles - Philadelphia Eagles - 5'6" 190 lbs (Formerly New Orleans Saints)

53 Att - 220 Yards - 2 TD / 71 Rec - 604 Yards - 2 TD

Coaching Change: None

Sproles is 31 and coming off his worst year as a Saint. At his age that would often indicate the end of fantasy relevance. But Sproles happened to land in the perfect spot with the Eagles. Yes, LeSean McCoy is easily the better back and a decent receiving back, but Sproles should see plenty of targets even as McCoy gets 40+ catches. In the high-octane offense of the Eagles I can't help but see good things for Sproles. He's nothing special as a runner and probably won't see any more attempts than he did last season. But as a pass-catcher he continues to shine. His numbers were very similar to previous years with the big difference being his lack of touchdowns (seven in '11 and '12, just two last year). I'm a big fan of the Eagles offense and I think he can continue to see 70 receptions with an increase in touchdowns similar to the two years before last.

28. Shane Vereen - New England Patriots - 5'10" 205 lbs

44 Att - 208 Yards - 1 TD / 47 Rec - 427 Yards - 3 TD

Coaching Change: None

For a while last season it looked like Shane Vereen would establish himself as a premier PPR running back. Through his first five games played (with significant time missed to injury in between) he averaged 8 receptions and 75 rec yards a game. Even mild regression from those numbers would put him on par for one of the greatest seasons for a running back in the passing game. However during the final three regular season games and two playoff games he failed to exceed those averages even once, leaving us unsure what to expect going forward. Furthermore, Pro Football Focus suggests his skill as a receiver isn't that great. While guys like Pierre Thomas and Danny Woodhead were catching 90% of their targets, Vereen ranked near the bottom at 71% and his average on yards after the catch were also fairly low. One last negative - of the 18 backs with 40+ receptions, Vereen was 16th of 18 in missed tackles.

All of this indicates that Vereen doesn't profile as an elite receiver and it's not like that was his specialty in college. Nevertheless, the Patriots seem committed to using him as their pass catching back which makes him a very intriguing option. I have no doubt he is talented but I definitely want to see some improvement.

Tier 5 Running Backs

29. Knowshon Moreno - Miami Dolphins - 5'11" 218 lbs (Formerly Denver Broncos)

241 Att - 1,038 Yards - 10 TD / 60 Rec - 548 Yards - 3 TD

Coaching Change: OC - Bill Lazor

Moreno may not have been the most talented Denver Broncos RB last year, but he was the only one that could hold onto major time, and it worked out nicely for him. A lot of his value came from being in a record-setting offense where he was often set up with plenty of opportunities to score. Moreno has been one of the biggest 'losers' of the offseason. After having knee surgery his fantasy stock plummeted as Lamar Miller gained big ground in the battle for the starting spot. I remain optimistic for Moreno for one specific reason: He was surprisingly apt as a pass-catcher and should be a better blocker than Miller. The blocking ability will go a long way in making sure he gets on the field.

Many will write off his excellent season as a receiver simply due to the fact that he had Peyton Manning throwing to him, but I think there is something more to it. As bad as the Dolphins O-line was last year, Lamar Miller had seven different games with 20 or fewer rushing yards which is simply inexcusable. The O-line can only be blamed for so much. If Moreno can show this with his on the field ability, he is in line for a lot of work.

30. Rashad Jennings - New York Giants - 6'1" 231 lbs (Formerly Oakland Raiders)

163 Att - 733 Yards - 6 TD / 36 Rec - 292 Yards - 0 TD

Coaching Change: OC - Ben McAdoo

Jennings blew his first chance in a starting role with the Jags in 2012. When he got a second chance last year, he ran with it. During a 7-game stretch ending in week 16, Jennings averaged over 100 total yards per game with 6 touchdowns. He has parlayed that into a crack at the starting job with the Giants. While he does have the easy lead going into the preseason, I think people have underrated his competition. If David Wilson can be cleared for contact he should get a decent number of touches even if he doesn't start. Rookie RB Andre Williams is a bruising back that put up huge numbers in college. Those two can easily put a hit on Jennings value, limiting his ability to have a major fantasy impact. Jennings did excel as a receiver last year, catching 36 of 39 targets. He should be able to grab 12-15 carries with another 3 catches or so per game which is enough for RB2 numbers if he continues to show the talent he exhibited last season.

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31. Trent Richardson - Indianapolis Colts - 5'9" 225 lbs

157 Att - 458 Yards - 3 TD / 28 Rec - 265 Yards - 1 TD

Coaching Change: None

It is never easy to switch teams in the middle of a season and try to learn a completely different offense, but that excuse can only go so far and Richardson's woes went well beyond that. Richardson was seen as an elite prospect coming out of college, but this year will likely define whether he can come close to fulfilling that potential. As bad as the last season was, I remain (very) cautiously optimistic. He had a fairly high number of missed tackles considering his low carries and he was actually a very good receiver, ranking near the top in yards per catch and yards after the catch. I'm not sure how talented he is as a runner, but he should be able to split time carrying the ball while upping his receptions to around the 50 mark. If he can do that, I think he might surprise some with RB2 value. I definitely believe he will provide sneaky value as a pass catching RB this year.

32. Ray Rice - Baltimore Ravens - 5'8" 206 lbs

214 Att - 660 Yards - 4 TD / 58 Rec - 321 Yards - 0 TD

Coaching Change: OC - Gary Kubiak

I look at those numbers and I am still baffled by just how bad Ray Rice was last year. He went from being one of the premiere dual-threat RBs in the league to your fantasy bench seemingly overnight. He had just one game with a 4.0 YPC last year. What went wrong? The blocking was pretty bad for the Ravens, but even after acquiring Eugene Monroe, not much changed for Rice. He was dealing with some injuries throughout the season. Joe Flacco took a big step backward. But even all of that can't really add up to just how poor Rice did last year. His PFF rating was dead last and it wasn't even close. Of RBs with 200+ carries he was last in missed tackles by more than 10. He was last in yards after contact. He was slightly better as a receiver, but still ranked near the bottom in yards per catch and yards after catch.

As you can see I'm having a hard time playing the role of optimist. I've also basically ignored the two-game suspension that Rice faces. With all of that said, for as bad as he was last year, he was that good throughout the rest of his career. Gary Kubiak is a good offensive mind and gives hope for Rice, but it wouldn't be unprecedented if Rice is simply at the end of his career.

33. DeAngelo Williams - Carolina Panthers - 5'9" 215 lbs

201 Att - 843 Yards - 3 TD / 26 Rec - 333 Yards - 1 TD

Coaching Change: None

Williams is another back on the wrong side of 30 that still shows a lot of promise. He has put up ridiculous averages as a receiver over the past two seasons, but remains criminally underused in that department. Looking at all RBs that recorded a minimum of 10 catches in 2012 or 2013, Williams ranks #1 and #2 in Yards per catch and average yards after the catch. Yet somehow the Panthers didn't get him more involved and he caught a total of 39 balls in that span. With the Panthers losing their top three wide receivers from 2013, you'd think Williams would be in line for more receptions. At this point in the draft it is well worth drafting him on that possibility. He remained a solid runner last year as well, though I could certainly see him losing carries to Jonathan Stewart or one of the younger backs. Williams is a potential sneaky PPR guy.

34. Fred Jackson - Buffalo Bills - 6'1" 216 lbs

206 Att - 890 Yards - 9 TD / 47 Rec - 387 Yards - 1 TD

Coaching Change: None

Ancient for a running back (33 this year), Jackson looked done after a 2012 season which saw him hobble through injuries while seeing his worst YPC ever. At age 32 last year he bounced back to have a really solid year. Unfortunately for Jackson even the most durable and long-lasting backs rarely make it this far with continued success. When it comes to age you are far better off being pessimistic versus an optimistic view that accounts for even a slight dropoff in production. The Bills acquired Bryce Brown in the offseason which is a definite indicator that they are prepared for the worst in FJax. If he can magically defy age once again he will be awesome value this late in the draft. Realistically, all historical evidence points downward.

Tier 6 Running Backs

35. Danny Woodhead - San Diego Chargers - 5'8" 200 lbs

106 Att - 429 Yards - 2 TD / 76 Rec - 605 Yards - 6 TD

Coaching Change: OC - Frank Reich

Woodhead would be ranked a lot higher in a PPR league. He cracked 1,000 total yards for the first time in his career last year. The small and speedy Woodhead saw a surprising number of carries last year even despite the emergence of Ryan Mathews. With Donald Brown now part of the group, Woodhead will likely see a reduction in carries to his previous totals hovering around 75. Woodhead's value continues to lie in his ability as a receiver. He had the second most receptions of any running back last year, and I see no reason why that shouldn't happen again. The Chargers lack a strong set of wide receivers after Keenan Allen, and Antonio Gates is on the downside of his career while Ladarius Green is full of potential but we can't count on him to deliver yet.

36. Chris Ivory - New York Jets - 6'0" 222 lbs

182 Att - 833 Yards - 3 TD / 2 Rec - 10 Yards - 0 TD

Coaching Change: None

Going into last season I was very optimistic on Ivory, mostly due to a complete lack of belief in any other RB on the team, or most of the offense for that matter. Throughout the first eight games Ivory played awful and lost most of his playing time to the truly mediocre Bilal Powell. Something appeared to click after that point and Ivory became the unquestioned number one for the Jets averaging almost 5.6 yards per carry in the final 8 games! That would have put him at 1200 yards and 6 TD over a full season. That would have made him an extremely desirable option heading into 2014 but the Jets signed Chris Johnson who will at least start as the primary runner.

I don't normally worry about handcuffing my guys, but if I were a Chris Johnson owner I would seriously consider getting Ivory as well. If Johnson flops hard, Ivory has the talent to gain serious value. It's worth noting that regardless of how much time Ivory gets, he has zero value as a receiver with just five receptions in his career. As a runner, Ivory is talented and one of the bigger backs. He ranked fourth among all backs (min 100 carries) with 3.0 yards after contact last year.

37. Lamar Miller - Miami Dolphins - 5'10" 224 lbs

177 Att - 709 Yards - 2 TD / 26 Rec - 170 Yards - 0 TD

Coaching Change: OC - Bill Lazor

Considering how terrible Miller was for several games last year - 7 different games with 20 or fewer rushing yards, including a three game stretch with 27 total rushing yards - it's pretty impressive he managed a 4.0 YPC. The offensive line was a mess last year so its hard to say how much of it was not his fault but you can only excuse so much of a bad performance, and those several absolutely atrocious games have me worried.

With a new offensive coordinator in town, it is unclear what Miller's role is. He has the early advantage over Knowshon Moreno, who had offseason surgery, but I don't believe he can retain it. With an improved offensive line I believe Miller has some upside this year. He did show some talent as a receiver as well, but Moreno was among the best receiving running backs last year (granted, it was with the best offense and quarterback). Miller is one to keep an eye on as the preseason progresses. If he becomes the clear #1, his value could rise considerably.