Risky 3 (Running Backs)

Risky 3

Jamal Lewis- Lewis hits the magical age of 30 this August when all running backs start to head downhill fast. In fact, it might have happened a year earlier. In ’07 he exploded and rushed for 1,304 yards and 4.6 yards per carry but last year he only rushed for 1,002 yards and 3.6 yards per carry with just about the same offense around him. The Browns are a team that has some major rebuilding work to do. That also can hurt Jamal’s chances to be a star in ’09. But don’t forget that they just barely missed the playoffs in ’07. This year I think Lewis will run for 876 yards and only 4 touchdowns. He’s not the same bruising runner that he once was.

Cedric Benson- Benson was on the Bears for much of the offseason last year until right before the season started. They cut him because they knew they had struck gold with Matt Forte. So Benson was a Free Agent waiting to be picked up and the Bengals decided to take a chance on him and from weeks 5-15 he had 465 on 161 carries. But in weeks 16 and 17, Benson was phenomenal. He had 282 rushing yards and 1 touchdown on 63 carries. Those last two games were probably the reason why the Bengals re-signed him to a 2 year deal this offseason. But I just don’t trust Benson. After 4 and a half years of killing fantasy owners, he finally has 2 good games and then we call him worthy of a starting job? I don’t think so. I think he will manage 727 yards and 3 touchdowns and shouldn’t even be thought of picking until the 10^th round.

Joseph Addai- Addai has seen a steady decrease in production ever since his rookie season. His yards per carry have gone from 4.8, to 4.1, to 3.5. This year I think the decrease will continue now that the Colts drafted running back Donald Brown. Addai will have to split carries with Brown and that is a huge drain on his fantasy value. Plus, durability is a major concern with him. I don’t think he can hold it together for much longer. He only had 544 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns last year. This year I think he could have 703 rushing yards with 6 touchdowns but only 3.2 yards per carry. He is ranked 47^th on my Top 200 but I don’t think he should be drafted until the sixth round.