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Bo Knows

Who's After Peterson?

Nov 17, 2008 at 3:18 PM

Whether you call him AD, AP, or Adrian Peterson, what most people are now calling the Vikings Pro Bowl running back is the best player in fantasy football.  That is, unless you play in a point-per-reception or touchdown-only league, in which case Peterson remains merely "one of the best." However, most leagues are not built around PPR rules and the basic TD-only league is fading quickly in popularity, meaning that in most cases the NFL's current leading rusher is numero uno.

Of course, for some of us who have been hailing Peterson as the best player in fantasy football since last season, this comes as no surprise.  I know there are still some people who don't buy into him as the No. 1 overall player (and I am also sure some of them will comment on this post) but my mind is made up as to who will sit atop my fantasy football rankings again next year.

The question for me is: who is AP? As in: who comes after Peterson in the rankings heading into next season?  For some of you in keeper leagues and dynasty leagues and others who are hopelessly behind in re-draft leagues, it is not too early to start looking ahead in this way. We had this discussion of who comes after Peterson during our Fantasy Football Weekly radio program this past Saturday and we did not come up with a clear-cut answer. Michael Turner, LaDainian Tomlinson, and Matt Forte were suggested. A compelling argument could be made for Brandon Jacobs as well. What about Clinton Portis? Joseph Addai?

Compelling arguments could be made against the aforementioned Tomlinson and Brian Westbrook. They were universally ranked with Peterson in the top three on most people's lists heading into the 2008 season; however, both have had injury issues this season and both turn 30 years old (the dreaded age for running backs) this upcoming offseason.

I would suggest with a great deal of certainty that the player who comes after Peterson on my list next summer will not be a quarterback or wide receiver. There is no clear-cut-far-and-away No. 1 player at either of those two positions and therefore no reason to reach for one at the top of the first round.

So, what say you, FFChamps users? Fast forward to the summer of 2009 and tell me who you think will be the consensus top two, or three, or four, or five players in fantasy drafts. I'd love to hear some opinions from our astute readers.
 


Comments (17)

Comments
On Nov 18, 2008 at 7:27 AM William said:
Bo, IMHO, the "next best" player can very well be MJD! Not only can the boy run North/South... he can burn you as a receiver out of the backfield. Forget the rest... MJD is "next best"! Coach Sniff out.
On Nov 18, 2008 at 8:48 AM tom said:
Alot depends on you league scoring i play in a TD league.. so far the #1 RB is Brandon Jacobs.. Case could be made for Gore..
On Nov 18, 2008 at 4:04 PM brian said:
its the barbarian
On Nov 18, 2008 at 5:23 PM David said:
1) AP 2) Barber 3) Turner 4) Gore
On Nov 18, 2008 at 9:40 PM David said:
MBIII or Gore
On Nov 18, 2008 at 9:58 PM Joshua said:
Gore, Barber, Turner no paticular order..... I am in a PPR / performance scoring league so I think the rook this year will need to be tossed into the spot light....FORTE
On Nov 18, 2008 at 10:44 PM Randy said:
I have a hard time seeing Forte there without an upgrade in his O-Line. I'd probably put Gore there, or maybe Turner with another year in that offense and upgraded OL
On Nov 19, 2008 at 2:34 AM Darrell said:
Gore, Portis, Barber then Turner.
On Nov 19, 2008 at 7:10 AM tom said:
What no Love for Brandon Jacobs.. think he leads the league in TD's
On Nov 19, 2008 at 9:36 AM Brian said:
I would have to go with Gore who is a dual threat out of the back field and is in a Mike Martz system. He can only get better. If Hill turns out to be legit than he will have a lot of running room. Forcing teams to not stack the box agaist Gore. Did i mention the best part of it all. He is the feature back and no RBBC.
On Nov 20, 2008 at 3:08 PM Jon said:
Certainly not #2, but Slaton may soon have to be mentioned as a top 5 RB.
On Nov 22, 2008 at 1:04 PM Louis said:
westbrook (possibly no Mcnabb next year), Bush and Gore
On Nov 22, 2008 at 4:32 PM Glen said:
I would go with FORTE since he is a true every down back and there aren't too many any more. I traded Westbrook for FORTE and BERRIAN a few weeks back and have not looked back since.
On Nov 24, 2008 at 9:01 AM Sheldon said:
You have to consider Portis at RB. And since we're talking players, not just RBs, can Fitzgerald get a little love? I usually don't like to consider WRs this high, but in that offense, he deserves a look.
On Nov 25, 2008 at 1:23 PM john said:
Turner by a mile. I would take him over Peterson
On Dec 02, 2008 at 4:55 PM James said:
In our 1pt/Rec league, top 5 are: Forte, T Jones, MBIII, AP, Gore and M Turner. I think I would go with M Turner as the top RB for next year. Slaton is now a top 10, but I could see him busting next year.
On Dec 03, 2008 at 8:07 PM Eric said:
Westbrook and LT need to be put out to pasture, My no doubter #2 is ever who the Giants keep as there offensive line is the best in football. Ward and Jacobs are both free agents and they can't afford to keep both... Either in a primary role would be my #2... Turner the Burner has the NFC East next year and the AFC East which will be littered with RB Land Minds...