The NFL is approaching very quickly, and every running back in the league, is yet again looking to run for as much yards and touchdowns as humanly possible, break all the records, and become the next Barry Sanders. Let's look at a few big dogs to look for come the 2010 season:
Chris Johnson
This is the easiest pick of them all, Chris Johnson was just phenomenal last year, coming right to the precipice of breaking the NFL record for most rushing yards in a season (CJ ran for 2006 yards in 2009). In 2009, CJ had a fantastic 5.6 yard per carry average, over 500 yards receiving, he was nearly unstoppable. His athletic ability mixed in with unheard of speed, and elusiveness made him the best running back in the league last year and certainly sets him up to retain that title in 2010. CJ hopes a repeat performance of his over two thousand yard season can put him up for a Most Valuable Player award (he didn't receive one vote for MVP last year). What's disappointing is even with this dominating performance, the Titans were still 8 - 8 last year.
Maurice Jones-Drew
Maurice Jones-Drew was an elite fantasy back last year, ending up 4th overall in yards and 2nd in touchdowns, all while being on a pretty anemic Jaguars offensive unit. Don't expect his numbers to plummet this season though as Jones-Drew will no doubt produce similar numbers this season.
Adrian Peterson
Peterson's numbers may have dropped from 2008 to 2009, but his touchdowns nearly doubled. The lowest production he's ever had in his 3 short years in the NFL was his rookie season in which he ran for over 1300 yards (while only starting nine games). Peterson is the player that in his rookie season, broke the all time NFL record for most rushing yards in a game (Peterson ran for 296). He is always dangerous, always turning small plays into highlight reel moments, and will be near the top of most every draft board.
Cedric Benson
Cedric Benson played his best season of his career last year, looking great in his second year with the Bengals rushing for over 1200 yards. If that wasn't enough, Benson is in a contract year, and history has shown that players put up some of their best statistics during this period to ensure that they get big financial rewards. The additions of Terrell Owens, Antonio Bryant and Jermaine Gresham lend a lot of help the the Bengals passing attack, balancing out the offense and freeing up defenders from hounding Benson.
Ray Rice
Ray Rice ran for over 1300 yards last year, but their are a few reasons why he could see even more production this year. With the additions of Donte Stallworth and Anquan Boldin to help the Ravens offense evolve, it will balance out their previous run heavy game plan, allowing Ray Rice to get better coverages. And with only a few years under his belt, he is still a young player and as he gains experiences, his awareness will improve.
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