1. Adrian Peterson (MIN) – The NFL’s leading rusher has been taking it easy this week after taking a beating in week 11, but he should be well rested and ready to go in week 12 against Jacksonville. The Jaguars rank just 20th in the NFL against the run, so Peterson should rebound from a pretty average performance last week. He is a must start.2. Matt Forte (CHI) – While he was unable to find the end zone in week 11, he shouldn’t have much trouble making up for it with an excellent week 12 match up against St. Louis. The Rams have allowed more rushing TD’s this season than any other team in the NFL giving up 18 ground scores through 10 games. In addition, St. Louis ranks just 29th in the NFL giving up 158 rushing yards per game. Forte should be very busy on Sunday and he could be in for a monster fantasy day.
3. LaDainian Tomlinson (SD) – He hasn’t been the easiest guy to get a gauge on this season, but you have to love his chances against a porous Indianapolis run defense in week 12. The Colts rank just 25th in the NFL against the run this season and have allowed 15 rushing TD’s in 10 games. In their last 5 games, Indy is giving up 2 rushing TD’s per game on average and allowed 3 TD’s via the ground game last week against Houston. This match up should provide Tomlinson with a great opportunity to prove that he can still produce elite fantasy numbers. Start him.
4. Marion Barber (DAL) – After several failed attempts at success against Washington, Barber was finally able to put an end to his slump against his arch rival in week 11 with a big performance. Barber looked great and he should be even better in week 12 with a promising match up against San Francisco. The 49ers run defense is not horrible, but they are far from great, giving up 107 rushing yards and a TD per game.
5. Marshawn Lynch (BUF) – He finally managed to reach the magic 100 yard rushing mark in week 11 and added 58 yards and a TD on 10 receptions. This was exactly the kind of performance that Lynch needed to get back on track and a week 12 match up against Kansas City appears to be even more promising. The Chiefs have tightened up their run defense a bit in recent weeks due to the emergence of their offense actually being able to sustain drives long enough to give the defense a rest, but they are still far from good. The Chiefs rank 31st in the NFL against the run and have allowed 16 rushing TD’s on the season. If Lynch can carry last week’s momentum into this match up, he should produce a huge fantasy effort.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE ENTIRE TOP 40 RUNNING BACK RANKINGS TO DECIDE WHO TO START/SIT FOR WEEK 12.
