Fantasy RB Rankings Week 15: Who to start, sit at running back in fantasy football

Matt Lutovsky

Fantasy RB Rankings Week 15: Who to start, sit at running back in fantasy football image

It's time for fantasy football's second season, and every start 'em, sit 'em decision is under intense scrutiny. That's especially true at running back, where injuries create constant tension. Our Week 15 fantasy RB rankings can help ease some of the burden in finding studs, sleepers, and potential stumblers, but chances are all the "questionables" will force several updates before kickoffs. 

Thankfully, the byes are over, but some of the teams coming off bye -- namely, the Eagles and Patriots -- had key backs injured in their last games. That makes it tough to project who will lead the way this week. The Eagles are an especially big mystery with Jordan Howard (knee) already hurt before Miles Sanders (ankle) got dinged and Boston Scott (illness) essentially sat out. Look for updates early in the week on those players. 

WEEK 15 STANDARD RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Wide Receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker

Some of the best matchups this week go to backs who aren't normally considered "RB1s." Myles Gaskin (vs. Jets), Darrell Henderson (vs. Seahawks), James Conner and Chase Edmonds (@ Lions), and Clyde Edwards-Helaire (@ Chargers) are all must-starts thanks to highly favorable situations. Even D'Onta Foreman (@ Steelers) is in that group. They join the slumping James Robinson (vs. Texans) as backs with top-five matchups (and, yes, Robinson is also a must-start if his no-show last week didn't knock you out of playoff contention).

WEEK 15 PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide Receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker

Going deeper, the Chargers' duo of Justin Jackson and Joshua Kelley (vs. Chiefs), and Houston's duo of Rex Burkhead/Royce Freeman and David Johnson (vs. Jaguars) are also in good spots, but it's always difficult to trust backs in those types of committees. The same goes for even top handcuffs in good matchups, like Tony Pollard (vs. Giants), Sony Michel (vs. Seahawks), Jeremy McNichols and Dontrell Hilliard (@ Steelers), and Darrel Williams (@ Chargers). If Pollard (foot) is out again, Corey Clement won't be worth using.

WEEK 15 FANTASY: Sleepers | Busts | Start 'em, sit 'em

Of course, guys like Michel and Williams could still be in play over some of the starters with poor matchups. There aren't many borderline guys who stand out this week, as some of the toughest matchups are reserved for bona fide studs like Jonathan Taylor (vs. Patriots), Najee Harris (vs. Titans), Leonard Fournette (vs. Saints), and Aaron Jones (@ Ravens), but backs like Rashaad Penny (@ Rams), Jamaal Williams (vs. Cardinals), Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson (@ Colts), and Sanders/Howard (vs. Washington) are very much on the start-sit bubble. Penny will be tough to sit after last week, and Harris (ankle) always has TD upside when healthy, but these backs have lower floors than you might think.

WEEK 15 DFS LINEUPS: DraftKings | FanDuel | Yahoo

We're at that point in the season where there are going to be some surprise breakouts, whether it's a third-stringer getting his first career start (see Craiga Reynolds) or a handcuff getting more playing than expected in a particular game (see Penny). You obviously can't plan for in-game surprises, but if you play matchups -- with a close eye on recent trends in addition to season-long trends -- and adjust for usage, you might just surprise yourself with some of your lineup decisions. But names don't matter now -- winning does -- and we'll be here to help you get those Ws.

MORE WEEK 15 DFS: Best stacks | Best values | Lineup builder

Note: We'll be updating these RB rankings throughout the week, so check back for analysis and the latest player movement.

Fantasy RB Rankings Week 15: Who to start at running back

Rankings are based on standard, non-PPR scoring

UPDATE: We're not ranking players on the reserve/COVID list.

Rank Player
1 Ezekiel Elliott, DAL @ NYG
2 Austin Ekeler, LAC vs. KC
3 Nick Chubb, CLE vs. LV
4 Jonathan Taylor, IND vs. NE
5 Dalvin Cook, MIN @ CHI
6 Joe Mixon, CIN @ DEN
7 David Montgomery, CHI vs. MIN
8 Clyde Edwards-Helaire, KC @ LAC
9 Myles Gaskin, MIA vs. NYJ
10 Cordarrelle Patterson, ATL @ SF
11 Najee Harris, PIT vs. TEN
12 Alvin Kamara, NO @ TB
13 James Robinson, JAX vs. HOU
14 Antonio Gibson, WAS @ PHI
15 James Conner, ARI @ DET
16 Aaron Jones, GB @ BAL
17 Darrell Henderson, LAR vs. SEA
18 Javonte Williams, DEN vs. CIN
19 Saquon Barkley, NYG vs. DAL
20 Josh Jacobs, LV @ CLE
21 Devonta Freeman, BAL vs. GB
22 Leonard Fournette, TB vs. NO
23 Jeff Wilson Jr., SF vs. ATL
24 D'Onta Foreman, TEN @ PIT
25 Chuba Hubbard, CAR @ BUF
26 Chase Edmonds, ARI @ DET
27 Melvin Gordon, DEN vs. CIN
28 Michael Carter, NYJ @ MIA
29 Rhamondre Stevenson, NE @ IND
30 Rashaad Penny, SEA @ LAR
31 Miles Sanders, PHI vs. WAS
32 David Johnson, HOU @ JAX
33 Jordan Howard, PHI vs. WAS
34 Tony Pollard, DAL @ NYG
35 Sony Michel, LAR vs. SEA
36 AJ Dillon, GB @ BAL
37 Mark Ingram, NO @ TB
38 Devin Singletary, BUF vs. CAR
39 Craig Reynolds, DET vs. ARI
40 Darrel Williams, KC @ LAC
41 Salvon Ahmed, MIA vs. NYJ
42 Justin Jackson, LAC vs. KC
43 Joshua Kelley, LAC vs. KC
44 Latavius Murray, BAL vs. GB
45 Matt Breida, BUF vs. CAR
46 Ty Johnson, NYJ @ MIA
47 Dontrell Hilliard, TEN @ PIT
48 Jeremy McNichols, TEN @ PIT
49 D'Ernest Johnson, CLE vs. LV
50 Tevin Coleman, NYJ @ MIA
51 Royce Freeman, HOU @ JAX
52 Boston Scott, PHI vs. WAS
53 Ameer Abdullah, CAR @ BUF
54 Devontae Booker, NYG vs. DAL
55 Godwin Igwebuike, DET vs. ARI
56 Jaret Patterson, WAS vs. PHI
57 Jermar Jefferson, DET vs. ARI
58 Peyton Barber, LV @ CLE
59 Samaje Perine, CIN @ DEN
60 Mike Davis, ATL @ SF
61 Nyheim Hines, IND vs. NE
62 Ronald Jones II, TB vs. NO
63 Brandon Bolden, NE @ IND
64 Khalil Herbert, CHI vs. MIN

Matt Lutovsky

Matt Lutovsky Photo

Matt Lutovsky has been a writer and editor for The Sporting News since 2007, primarily writing about fantasy sports, betting, and gaming.