Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

Sadly, it was easier coming up with the list of THE UGLY running backs this year than it was coming up with either THE GOOD or THE BAD for 2009. Sure, there were some really good running backs this year like Chris Johnson of the Tennessee Titans and Ray Rice of the Baltimore Ravens, who met or exceeded preseason expectations. And, yes, there were also several running backs that fell just below expectations. Still, it seemed that the list of those running backs that received a lot of off-season hype, but for one reason or another completely failed their fantasy owners in the 2009 season was endless.

With Super Bowl XLIV behind us, it is time for yet another installment of the Bruno Boys annual “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly” series. This week we take a look at THE UGLY running backs. As mentioned above, the running backs on this list were extreme underachievers and failed their fantasy owners big time in 2009. Whether it was due to injury, lack of playing time or just extremely poor play, these players fell well below their average draft day position and left fantasy football fanatics scrambling to replace them in their fantasy lineups.

THE UGLY

1. Matt Forte (Chicago Bears) — In a year where there were a lot of disappointing running backs in fantasy football, Matt Forte was the most disappointing of all. The Bears’ back finished the year with 258 carries for 929 yards and four touchdowns, while adding 57 receptions for 471 yards. The yardage totals may not appear that bad, but when you consider that he was a consensus top-five fantasy pick in 2009, these number were not very good. As a rookie in 2008, Forte not only posted 1,715 total yards, he also had 12 total touchdowns. Expected to improve on these numbers, Forte instead regressed and left fantasy owners cursing his name.

Was it the dreaded sophomore slump that caused Forte’s dip in his numbers? Possibly. It also could have been the addition of gun-slinging quarterback Jay Cutler to the Bears roster or even the poor offensive line play that Chicago received throughout the year. Injuries very likely played a part in his struggles this season as well. He was dealing with a partially torn hamstring heading into the season, and after the Bears’ season ended, he had to have arthroscopic surgery on his left knee. The knee injury apparently happened as early as Week 2, causing him problems all year long. Forte is a very talented dual threat running back, and it is very likely that if he can come into 2010 healthy, he could have a bounce back year. Keep an eye on his health heading into next season, but he will very likely be worth using as a RB1 once again, with the best part being you probably won’t have to draft him as one.

2. Steve Slaton (Houston Texans) — It was quite a battle for the biggest fantasy bust in 2009, but Steve Slaton had to be right up there, and if he was on your fantasy football team as a first round draft pick, you are probably making a pretty good case as to why he should be the biggest bust of the year. In 2008, Slaton came out of nowhere as a rookie third round draft pick and was one of the biggest surprises in fantasy football as he finished the season with 268 carries for 1,282 yards with nine touchdowns. He also proved to be a good pass catcher with 50 receptions for 377 yards with another touchdown. As a dual threat running back, he went from an unknown commodity as a rookie to being drafted in the first or second round of fantasy drafts in 2009 as a RB1. Many fantasy owners were banking on Slaton to pick up right where he left off in 2008 and were hoping he would lead them to fantasy glory. What they got, though, was an underachieving running back, who had a hard time holding onto the starting job in Houston and eventually had a season ending neck injury that cut his season five games short.

Slaton finished the year with 131 carries for 437 yards with three touchdowns. He did once again prove to be a very effective pass catcher, as he had 44 catches for 417 yards with four touchdowns. His overall numbers don’t look too bad, and he did manage 107 fantasy points in 11 games, but he only surpassed 75 rushing yards once all year and also lost five fumbles before ending the season on the injured reserve. If Slaton is going to rebound in 2010, he is going to have to re-earn the trust of the Texans coaching staff during the off-season, proving that his fumbling issue is a thing of the past. Whether it’s Ryan Moats, Chris Brown or Arian Foster, Slaton will likely lose some carries in the upcoming fantasy season, but he is talented enough to be considered a potential RB2 heading into the year.

3. Brian Westbrook (Philadelphia Eagles) — Even though Brian Westbrook battled through a plethora of injuries in 2008, he still managed to play in 14 games, finishing the season with 1,338 total yards, while adding 14 total touchdowns. This left expectations high for him heading into 2009. He was considered a low-end RB1 and a value pick late in the first or early in the second rounds, but if you spent a first or a second round pick on him what you got was a big old bust. He played in a career-low nine games (starting seven) and had his worst statistical season since his rookie year. He finished the year with 482 total yards and two touchdowns, definitely not what many of us expected from the former All-Pro running back.

The big question now becomes what happens with Westbrook in 2010. He will be 31 when the season starts, and even if he remains the team’s starting running back, he will certainly lose carries to LeSean McCoy whom the Eagles drafted in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft. With all the injuries that sidelined Westbrook during the year, McCoy received more carries than anyone expected heading into his rookie year, and he will likely build off that heading into next year. Westbrook’s days as a NFL running back might not be over, but chances are he will no longer be an elite level fantasy running back.

4. Clinton Portis (Washington Redskins) — 2009 is a year that Clinton Portis and his fantasy owners would like to forget, although that’s probably not going to happen anytime soon. Coming off back-to-back seasons in 2007 and 2008 in which he topped 1,200 yards with a combined 20 total rushing touchdowns, expectations were high for the veteran running back heading into this past season. He was drafted as a low-end RB1 or RB2 and picked within the first two rounds of most drafts. But, even before the season ending concussion he suffered in Week 9, he managed just 58 fantasy points in eight games played; definitely an UGLY season for a veteran back that many owners were hoping would lead them to fantasy football success.

Next season should prove to be an interesting one for Portis, with the Redskins hiring the coach (Mike Shanahan) who traded him out of Denver. He had two of his most productive seasons as a member of the Broncos, and as we all know, Shanahan has a knack for turning running backs into stars. It will be interesting to see where Portis is on the depth chart to start the 2010 season, especially when you consider that Ladell Betts, Rock Cartwright, Quinton Ganther and even Marcus Mason had some success at times filling in for Portis after the injury. Keep a close eye on this situation in the off-season as Portis is not a lock to be the team’s opening day starter at running back.

5. Darren McFadden (Oakland Raiders) — There was a lot of hype surrounding Darren McFadden heading into his sophomore season in the NFL as he showed promise as a rookie for the Oakland Raiders in 2008, finishing the year with 784 total yards with four touchdowns in 13 games while dealing with some injuries. He was a sheik pick heading into 2009 as a potential breakout player and many owners took him as a RB2 with hopes of him being a sleeper RB1. Instead what they received was a player who was injured four games into the season, which caused him to miss his next four games. And, even when on the field, he didn’t knock anyone’s socks off. McFadden finished the year with 104 carries for 356 yards with one touchdown, while adding 21 receptions for 245 yards, not exactly the numbers of a sleeper pick.

In all fairness to McFadden, he plays for an Oakland franchise that is among the worst in the NFL at this time as they continually make bad draft picks and signings. Not to mention their starting quarterback at the start of the year (JaMarcus Russell) may be among the worst starting quarterbacks in NFL history. However, the Raiders do have a solid defense and have some pieces in place on offense that give the Raider Nation some hope. McFadden is one of those players. He has a ton of potential, and it is too early to give up on this kid. He is young, fast and has excellent hands out of the backfield. If he can ever put together an injury free season, he has the potential to be a Pro-Bowl caliber running back. McFadden will likely be a sleeper pick once again heading into 2010, and he will definitely be a high-risk/high reward type of player.

6. Larry Johnson (Kansas City Chiefs / Cincinnati Bengals) — Not only was Larry Johnson an UGLY fantasy running back in 2009, he was an UGLY person. In seven games with the Kansas City Chiefs, he had 132 carries for 358 yards without a touchdown with his highest single game rushing output being a mere 83 yards. He is such a class guy that instead of looking in the mirror and figuring out what he could do to improve, he decided to blame the coaching staff and the Chiefs’ organization. He made unsavory comments about team management in the media, and he even managed to throw in some derogatory homosexual comments that helped to earn him a suspension before he was given his outright release from Kansas City.

He did land on his feet to a certain extent when he was picked up by the Cincinnati Bengals, and fantasy owners were once again hopeful that he would have some fantasy value left, but he didn’t. He managed just 46 carries for 204 yards in seven games with the Bengals. He did not score a single touchdown all season, which was a huge disappointment for fantasy owners when you consider he scored 40 total touchdowns between 2005 and 2006. Johnson will likely remain in Cincinnati in 2010, but keep your expectations limited. He will be a backup to Cedric Benson at best, and he could be third on the depth chart behind second-year back Bernard Scott. At this point, consider him nothing more than a potential low-end flex option heading into next season.

7. Marshawn Lynch (Buffalo Bills) — Even though Marshawn Lynch was suspended for the first three games of the season, he was still so valuable over his first two seasons in the NFL that he was ranked No. 18 in the Bruno Boys Preseason Cheat Sheet Magazine. After all, he had posted at least 1,000 rushing yards and seven rushing touchdowns in each of his first two years in the league. In 2008, he also proved to be very effective catching the ball as he had 47 receptions for 300 yards with a touchdown. Despite some off the field issues that caused the three game suspension and a meeting with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, Lynch appeared to be a star on the rise. After serving the three game suspension, his star did anything but rise. As a matter of fact, it is quite dim at this point, especially in Buffalo as a member of the Bills.

He finished the year with 120 carries for 450 yards with two touchdowns in 13 games, while playing second fiddle to Fred Jackson who had 238 carries for 1,062 yards with two touchdowns in 16 games. Jackson was the more effective of the two running backs, and it is he and not Lynch that has become a fan favorite. Not only do the fans in Buffalo seem to want Jackson as the starting running back for the Bills, The Buffalo News is reporting that the Bills should release Lynch because “he isn’t worth the trouble.” Besides two previous off the field incidents that led to Lynch’s early season suspension, he is now being accused of stealing $20.00 from a police officer’s wife. Sounds like the only way Lynch has a chance to rebound in the NFL is with a new address in a new city. If he lands in the right situation, he could once again have some fantasy value, but with his history of trouble he will be a big question mark moving forward in his career.

8. Willie Parker (Pittsburgh Steelers) — From 2005 to 2008, Willie Parker earned the nickname “Fast Willie” as the starting running back in Pittsburgh. He posted more than a 1,000 rushing yards in three straight seasons, and if not for injuries in 2008 that caused him to miss five games, he very likely would have made it four straight with more than 1,000 rushing yards. But, in 2009, the only thing Parker did fast was disappear. After starting the first three games of the season for Pittsburgh, he suffered an injury that caused him to miss two games. Rashard Mendenhall was so effective during the two game span that he held onto the starting job for the remainder of the season.

Parker had just 98 carries for 389 yards with a receiving touchdown during the season, while losing his starting job and possibly ending his tenure in Pittsburgh. He is a free agent and the best thing that could happen to him at this point is a change of scenery. Who knows where he will end up in 2010, but his fantasy value will greatly depend on his new NFL residence. If Parker ends up in the right situation, he could once again become an effective fantasy option, but how effective won’t be known until we see where he is playing.

9. LenDale White (Tennessee Titans) — While sharing carries with then rookie Chris Johnson in 2008, LenDale White had 200 carries for 773 yards with 15 touchdowns. Then during the off-season he quit drinking tequila and lost 30 pounds, leaving him in the best shape of his career. This not only improved his fantasy draft status for 2009, it also lowered expectations for Johnson. As we all know now, Johnson was arguably the best player in all of fantasy football, leaving White in his dust. White finished the season with just 64 carries for 222 yards with two touchdowns, a far cry from what we expected of him heading into the season.

In all fairness to White, with Chris Johnson running so well and having one of the best statistical seasons by a running back in NFL history, White wasn’t really given a chance to help his fantasy owners. What does this mean for White in 2010, though? Johnson isn’t going anywhere, and he will obviously be the Titans’ feature back for next year and likely many years to come. A change of scenery could help White, but at this point it’s hard to picture him as a starting NFL running back next season, meaning he will have minimal fantasy value. Unless the stars align and White ends up in the perfect situation, he will be worth nothing more than a late round fantasy pick in drafts this coming summer as a handcuff to Johnson.

10. Earnest Graham (Tampa Buccaneers) — With the Tampa Bay Buccaneers signing Derrick Ward as a free agent running back from the New York Giants and the possible return of Cadillac Williams, expectations were not real high for Earnest Graham heading into this past season. So, how does he end up on THE UGLY running backs list for 2009? Even though Graham had lowered expectations, he was still expected to be fantasy relevant as made evident by the fact that he ranked at No. 36 in our Preseason Cheat Sheet Magazine, yet he finished the year with just 14 carries for 66 yards and 14 catches for 109 yards without a touchdown. Yes, you read that correctly, 28 total touches. That is UGLY, even when you consider injuries limited him to 13 games played.

Even with Cadillac Williams having a comeback year and Derrick Ward taking away carries, Graham was unbelievably ineffective for a running back that started six games. Tampa Bay’s offense as a whole was not very good in 2009, and we are not sure they will be that much better in 2010. Even if they are better, there is no reason to believe that Graham will once again be a relevant fantasy football option. The season may be seven months away, but don’t plan on drafting him in 2010.

2009 The Good:  QB  |  RB  |  WR  |  TE  |  K  |  DEF

2009 The Bad:  QB  |  RB  |  WR  |  TE  |  K  |  DEF

2009 The Ugly:  QB  |  RB  |  WR  |  TE  |  K |  DEF

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