After a Thanksgiving
break filled with family, football, and some stuff I shouldn’t mention, I’m
returning to my positional rankings. Next week: Wide Receivers.
1) Arian Foster
(Houston Texans)
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| (Getty Images/Chris Greythen) |
After signing with Houston as an undrafted free agent in May
2009, Foster has become one of the best backs in the NFL. As the workhouse for
the top team in the AFC, the University of Tennessee product, has been a tank
over the past three years. During his breakout season in 2010, Foster averaged,
4.9 yards per carry (YPC), scored 16 touchdowns, and averaged an incredible 101
yards per game, 6 more than the next highest rusher. Last year, Foster was
slightly less effective, with 4.4 YPC and 94.2 yards per game, and finished
fifth in rushing. With only 278 carries a year ago, Foster was fresh for the
playoffs after sharing time with Ben Tate in the regular season. Through 11 games
this year, Foster has almost eclipsed his total, with 269 carries through week
12. The Texans have all but wrapped up their division, and it will be
interesting to see if Foster’s workload decreases to get him ready for the
playoffs.
2) Maurice Jones-Drew
(Jacksonville Jaguars)
As the most consistent back among the division, Jones-Drew
takes his place in the second spot. Although he is nursing a foot injury this
season, he has been a model of consistency and has usually had a clean bill of
health throughout his career. Jones-Drew has missed only three games in his
first six years, with his best years being from 2009-2011, where he never
rushed for less than 1,324 yards nor averaged less than 4.4 YPC. “Mo-Jo” has
been the only weapon on the Jaguars for most of his career, and has only had
one year with a Pro Bowl receiver/tight end. Even while being the focus of the
defensive gameplan for much of his time with the Jaguars, Jones-Drew led the
league in rushing last year, and was a top-5 rusher three years in a row.
3) Chris Johnson
(Tennessee Titans)
Yes, everyone knows “CJ2K” for his incredible 2009 season
where he rushed for 2,006 yards. But, what else has he done? Quite a bit,
actually. Johnson averaged 4.9 YPC as a rookie in 2009, rushing for 1,228 yards
while missing only one game. Over his next three seasons, Johnson played every
game and averaged 4.7 YPC, while racking up over 4,400 yards. Not only has he
been active in the ground game, but has been a weapon through the air. The
former ECU Pirate has never caught fewer than 43 passes in a full season, with
his career-high of 57 catches last year. Johnson looks to be back to his old
self after a down year last year, and is projected to rush for almost 1,400
yards this season. Look for CJ2K to be around the 1,300-yard mark for the next
few years.
4) Donald Brown/Vick
Ballard/Delone Carter (Indianapolis Colts)
The Colts have had a lot of success this year, but have work
to do on their ground game. First-stringer Donald Brown has been less than
impressive, averaging 4.1 YPC on 92 carries this season while nursing a knee
injury. Rookie Vick Ballard and second-year back Delone Carter have played
significant minutes in place of the injured Brown. Ballard, the rookie from
Mississippi State, has been the go-to back, averaging 60 yards almost 15
carries per game over his last 6 games. Carter has been used sparingly, mainly
as a goal line back, with 2 scores in 29 carries this year. Until Brown gets
healthy and proves he is durable enough to shoulder the load, expect the Colts
to lean on Andrew Luck to win games.
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