Tampa Bay Buccaneers: NFC South running back rankings

Final Verdict

Just like the quarterbacks last week, New Orleans comes away on top of the running back rankings. Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram were a force for the majority of last season, and even with Ingram set to miss the first four games of this season the Saints should once again boast a dangerous running game. The sky is the limit for Alvin Kamara.

Again like last week, the Falcons come in at second. Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman are electrifying runners who each sport scary levels of acceleration and burst. Both backs are young with low mileage, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see them continue to increase productivity in future seasons.

Continuing to mirror the final divisional rankings, the Panthers come in at third with their new duo of C.J. Anderson and Christian McCaffrey. We haven’t seen Anderson play in a game for Carolina yet, but in my estimation this pair has a lot of promise if Carolina’s offensive line holds up. McCaffrey enters his season as one of the deadliest pass-catching backs in the NFL, and Anderson is coming off his first thousand yard season of his career. It wouldn’t be wise to sleep on Carolina’s backfield.

There will be editions of these position rankings in which the Buccaneers come out on top, but running back is not one of them. They were very clearly the worst running team in the South last season, and in the entire league as well. Ranking them last here was a no-brainer. With Ronald Jones there’s hope they can spark a fire in 2018, but it still wouldn’t surprise me to see Tampa once again finish last in next year’s running back rankings.

Next: Millions on the line for Vernon Hargreaves

So, Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans, what are your thoughts on the running back ranks? Is the last place finish warranted? Do you prefer the Falcons pair of backs to the Saints? Sound off in the comments and be sure to check back next week for the tight ends!