Fantasy Football Week 1 Fantasy Picks: Running Backs (2010)
August 30, 2010 by The Sports Watchers
TheSportsWatchers.com: This post was published 1 year 5 months 11 days ago which may make it irrelevant to your fantasy football inquiry. For up to date fantasy football projections and predictions, go to our homepage at TSW Fantasy Football. 
One can’t help but get excited for Fantasy Football Week 1! This 2010 NFL Football season promises to be another eventful, exciting and engaging season, and the fantasy football season that parallels it should be just as entertaining. Especially at the running back position, where there appears to be more names vying for the Top 10 spot than ever before. So let’s not waste any more time, and let’s get right into our Fantasy Football Week 1 fantasy picks and projections at the running back position.
Chris Johnson, Tennessee Titans vs. Oakland Raiders
Chris Johnson wasn’t just the best running back in fantasy football last year, he was the best player in fantasy football. He eclipsed the best of the best with his 2,000 yards rushing, and long touchdown runs made his season one to remember. In Week 1, Johnson should get off to yet another good start as his Tennessee Titans face off against the Raiders. The Raiders do have some semblance of defense, as they were the 7th best team in the NFL at defending the pass. However, the Raiders had the 29th worse rushing defense in football last year, and they didn’t do a ton to address that for the 2010 NFL football season. Yes, the addition of MLB Rolando McClain is a move in the right direction, but he’s a rookie, and he’s bound to mess up once or twice in Fantasy Football Week 1. Unfortunately, a missed gap or missed assignment against Chris Johnson can result in a very, very long touchdown run, something I fully expect Johnson to do against this Raiders defense.
Matt Forte, Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions
The Lions are doing their best to go in the right direction, but try as they might, they aren’t even at the level of a mediocre team like the Chicago Bears, which has superior talent on offense. When it comes to Bears this season, everybody is focusing on how new offensive coordinator Mike Martz is going to improve Jay Cutler. However, people are forgetting just how good Martz is with running backs, too! Martz has gotten 1,000-yard seasons out of Marshall Faulk, Steven Jackson and Frank Gore. So why can’t he do it with Matt Forte? I don’t see why not, which is why I expect big things from this third-year running back. Forte should run wild against this Lions defense, which struggles to stop every running back they face. Even Steven Jackson ran up and down the field against the Lions last year, and the Rams didn’t have one other player worth stopping. If Forte goes for anything less than 90 rushing yards and a touchdown, I would be unbelievably surprised.
DeAngelo Williams, Carolina Panthers at New York Giants
The Giants may be opening their new stadium, but it is probably going to be DeAngelo Williams that breaks in the ground game. With all due respect to Brandon Jacobs, I am not sure he will ever be the same, but Williams appears to be in good shape and ready for a spectacular 2010 fantasy football season. Fortunately for Williams, the Giants do not have the best rush defense in the world. Last year, the Giants were mediocre at best when it came to stopping the run, while the Panthers were 3rd in the NFL at rushing the ball. In fact, on top of Williams going over 1,100 yards last season, so did the Carolina Panthers’ Jonathan Stewart. Williams, however, also added 29 catches to his stat sheet and 7 touchdowns. So if you’re tuning into the Giants game to see New York open their new stadium on a high note, don’t expect good things to come via the ground game, where the Panthers DeAngelo Williams will be ripping up the Giants new field.
