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Below you will find our Week 3 running backs rankings, to help determine your WR starts/sits for this week, brought to you by Edward Gorelik (@EdwardGorelik) and Zach Wilkens (@LopsidedTrades).
Featured fantasy football writer Zach Wilkens also highlights some WR rankings and matchups analysis for Week 3, and draws some matchup conclusions. He tells you who he likes, who he doesn't, and most importantly who he thinks you should be starting in Week 3.
You can also check out our 2015 fantasy football ranking dashboard, for more in depth rankings analysis on all positions including rookies and dynasty leagues.
Editor's Note: Access RotoBaller’s trusted fantasy football rankings for PPR, Standard, Dynasty, Super Flex, and Best Ball formats. Get tiered cheat sheets, expert analysis, and player outlooks to dominate your draft from every angle.
Week 3 Fantasy Football Rankings - Running Backs
| RotoBaller Staff Ranks |
Player Name (Team - Position) |
Zach Wilkens Rankings |
Ed Gorelik Rankings |
| 1 | Le'Veon Bell PIT at STL | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Adrian Peterson MIN vs. SD | 2 | 3 |
| 3 | Jamaal Charles KC at GB | 3 | 4 |
| 4 | Marshawn Lynch SEA vs. CHI | 7 | 2 |
| 5 | Matt Forte CHI at SEA | 4 | 8 |
| 6 | Latavius Murray OAK at CLE | 9 | 5 |
| 7 | Mark Ingram NO at CAR | 8 | 7 |
| 8 | Justin Forsett BAL vs. CIN | 5 | 12 |
| 9 | LeSean McCoy BUF at MIA | 6 | 11 |
| 10 | Eddie Lacy GB vs. KC | 16 | 9 |
| 11 | Frank Gore IND at TEN | 17 | 10 |
| 12 | Lamar Miller MIA vs. BUF | 14 | 13 |
| 13 | Dion Lewis NE vs. JAC | 24 | 6 |
| 14 | DeMarco Murray PHI at NYJ | 10 | 21 |
| 15 | Shane Vereen NYG vs. WAS | 15 | 18 |
| 16 | Jeremy Hill CIN at BAL | 12 | 22 |
| 17 | Christopher Ivory NYJ vs. PHI | 11 | 24 |
| 18 | Jonathan Stewart CAR vs. NO | 20 | 15 |
| 19 | Danny Woodhead SD at MIN | 18 | 17 |
| 20 | C.J. Anderson DEN at DET | 13 | 23 |
| 21 | C.J. Spiller NO at CAR | 19 | 19 |
| 22 | Giovani Bernard CIN at BAL | 28 | 14 |
| 23 | Devonta Freeman ATL at DAL | 27 | 16 |
| 24 | Carlos Hyde SF at ARI | 25 | 20 |
| 25 | Melvin Gordon SD at MIN | 22 | 25 |
| 26 | Ameer Abdullah DET vs. DEN | 23 | 27 |
| 27 | T.J. Yeldon JAC at NE | 21 | 32 |
| 28 | Doug Martin TB at HOU | 26 | 30 |
| 29 | Darren Sproles PHI at NYJ | 29 | 31 |
| 30 | Joseph Randle DAL vs. ATL | 33 | 28 |
| 31 | Alfred Morris WAS at NYG | 32 | 29 |
| 32 | Matt Jones WAS at NYG | 36 | 26 |
| 33 | Lance Dunbar DAL vs. ATL | 30 | 36 |
| 34 | Isaiah Crowell CLE vs. OAK | 35 | 33 |
| 35 | David Johnson ARI vs. SF | 34 | 34 |
| 36 | Tre Mason STL vs. PIT | 31 | 39 |
| 37 | Bishop Sankey TEN vs. IND | 37 | 35 |
| 38 | LeGarrette Blount NE vs. JAC | 39 | 37 |
| 39 | Benny Cunningham STL vs. PIT | 38 | 42 |
| 40 | James Starks GB vs. KC | 43 | 40 |
| 41 | Ronnie Hillman DEN at DET | 44 | 41 |
| 42 | Duke Johnson CLE vs. OAK | 42 | 44 |
| 43 | Arian Foster HOU vs. TB | 38 | |
| 44 | Rashad Jennings NYG vs. WAS | 40 | 49 |
| 45 | Theo Riddick DET vs. DEN | 46 | 45 |
| 46 | Joique Bell DET vs. DEN | 41 | 60 |
| 47 | Karlos Williams BUF at MIA | 45 | 48 |
| 48 | Chris Johnson ARI vs. SF | 53 | 43 |
| 49 | Dexter McCluster TEN vs. IND | 56 | 46 |
| 50 | Chris Polk HOU vs. TB | 47 | 55 |
| 51 | Todd Gurley STL vs. PIT | 47 | |
| 52 | Jonathan Grimes HOU vs. TB | 48 | 65 |
| 53 | Damien Williams MIA vs. BUF | 49 | 62 |
| 54 | Ryan Mathews PHI at NYJ | 52 | 50 |
| 55 | Bilal Powell NYJ vs. PHI | 50 | 51 |
| 56 | Charles Sims TB at HOU | 51 | 57 |
| 57 | DeAngelo Williams PIT at STL | 57 | 52 |
| 58 | Darren McFadden DAL vs. ATL | 59 | 53 |
| 59 | Fred Jackson SEA vs. CHI | 60 | 54 |
| 60 | Lorenzo Taliaferro BAL vs. CIN | 54 | 56 |
| 61 | Knile Davis KC at GB | 55 | 63 |
| 62 | Alfred Blue HOU vs. TB | 61 | 58 |
| 63 | Bernard Pierce JAC at NE | 58 | |
| 64 | Andre Williams NYG vs. WAS | 62 | 59 |
| 65 | Khiry Robinson NO at CAR | 61 | |
| 66 | Mike Davis SF at ARI | 63 | |
| 67 | Jeremy Langford CHI at SEA | 64 | |
| 68 | Josh Robinson IND at TEN | 64 | |
| 69 | Alonzo Harris GB vs. KC | 65 | |
| 70 | Javorius Allen BAL vs. CIN | 66 | |
| 71 | Marcel Reece OAK at CLE | 67 | |
| 72 | Reggie Bush SF at ARI | 68 | |
| 73 | Terrance West TEN vs. IND | 69 | |
| 74 | Andre Ellington ARI vs. SF | 70 | |
| 75 | Anthony Dixon BUF at MIA | 71 | |
| 76 | Terron Ward ATL at DAL | 72 | |
| 77 | Denard Robinson JAC at NE | 73 | |
| 78 | Jerick McKinnon MIN vs. SD | 74 | |
| 79 | Mike Tolbert CAR vs. NO | 75 |
Week 3 Quick Hit Running Back (RB) Rankings Analysis
By Zach Wilkens (@LopsidedTrades)
Looking through my top 10 RBs this week, I don’t differ from the consensus significantly at all, but I would like to touch on a couple players. First, I have Matt Forte at RB6. He has a tough matchup against the Seahawks, and the Bears will be rolling with Jimmy Clausen under center, which means they will struggle to move the ball all day long - unless Matt Forte can carry the team on his back, that is.
Forte will probably get 20+ touches this week. Early on look for them to run the ball as much as possible. When they inevitably fall behind Jimmy Clausen will probably have trouble finding open receivers downfield, which means more screens to Forte. This is a tough matchup but Forte can handle it. James Starks did rush for 95 yards last week after all.
Let’s also discuss Jeremy Hill. He got benched last week but the Bengals assure us they aren’t demoting him from the lead back role. I believe them, because I think Hill is a special player. I have him at RB10 this week, which is perhaps an acknowledgment that the split may shift a little bit in favor of Giovani Bernard but I still expect Hill to see 16-18 touches and any goal line looks. You are definitely starting him.
I am a little low on Latavius Murray this week even though I still see him as a good start at RB12. While he hasn’t had a bad game so far (80+ total yards in both games) he hasn’t shined either. I’m expecting a fairly close game between the Browns and the Raiders so expect similar touch totals to last week (15 carries, three receptions).
The Browns shut down Bishop Sankey after a strong first week but also allowed 98 rush yards to Dexter McCluster after getting beat bad by Chris Ivory the week before. The jury is still out on this Browns defense,and Murray will be a good indicator for what to expect going forward.
Another running back I am low on is Dion Lewis. I certainly feel like I am falling into a bit of a narrative trap here, but I do find it hard to trust Patriots running backs. I think the Patriots especially play to their opponents weaknesses, and last week pounding the ball with LeGarrette Blount didn’t make sense against the Bills. The Jags are a respectable defense but I think there is a very good chance we see a lot more of Blount. I am low on Lewis at RB28 and right around the consensus on Blount at RB32. This is solely the result of my distrust of the situation.
Another tough situation is the Washington Redskins backfield. It doesn’t help that they have a short week with a Thursday game vs the Giants. Matt Jones looked like a stud last week but this is very much a timeshare with no clear lead at this point. In fact if I had to guess I’d say Alfred Morris is still the leader if everything goes according to the Redskins plans. Of course, if Matt Jones gets a few carries and is getting seven or eight yards with those touches they will start using him over Morris once again. Beware of the situation. I prefer Alf at RB23 with Matt Jones at RB35 but mostly I am hoping we get more clarity on the situation this week.
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