Justin Forsett is quietly having an outstanding season, which is surprising.
Back in August, the expectation was that Ray Rice would be Baltimore’s leading rusher, and that Bernard Pierce would be the No. 2 guy there.
They also drafted Lorenzo Taliaferro, which had me wondering in August if Forsett would even make that team. Not that I spent too much time thinking about it. I didn’t think there was any chance of Forsett being a significant player this year.
But Rice is gone, Pierce has underachieved and Taliaferro looks more like a backup than a starter. Forsett is the starter there, and he keeps playing well week after week.
Entering Week 7, Forsett is averaging 6.4 yards per carry. That’s a yard more than any of the other 48 running backs with at least 40 carries.
| YARDS PER CARRY AVERAGES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Att | Yds | Avg |
| Justin Forsett, BAL | 64 | 408 | 6.38 |
| Isaiah Crowell, CLE | 44 | 237 | 5.39 |
| Colin Kaepernick, SF | 46 | 242 | 5.26 |
| Lamar Miller, MIA | 63 | 330 | 5.24 |
| LeVeon Bell, PIT | 105 | 542 | 5.16 |
| Shane Vereen, NE | 42 | 216 | 5.14 |
| Jerick McKinnon, MIN | 41 | 206 | 5.02 |
| Khiry Robinson, NO | 61 | 304 | 4.98 |
| DeMarco Murray, DAL | 159 | 785 | 4.94 |
| Lorenzo Taliaferro, BAL | 40 | 196 | 4.90 |
| Bobby Rainey, TB | 54 | 262 | 4.85 |
| Chris Ivory, NYJ | 67 | 325 | 4.85 |
| Arian Foster, HOU | 106 | 513 | 4.84 |
| Ahmad Bradshaw, IND | 60 | 284 | 4.73 |
| Marshawn Lynch, SEA | 79 | 367 | 4.65 |
| Jamaal Charles, KC | 42 | 195 | 4.64 |
| Ben Tate, CLE | 53 | 243 | 4.58 |
| Knile Davis, KC | 73 | 327 | 4.48 |
| Giovani Bernard, CIN | 86 | 384 | 4.47 |
| Branden Oliver, SD | 57 | 249 | 4.37 |
| Fred Jackson, BUF | 52 | 227 | 4.37 |
| Terrance West, CLE | 54 | 235 | 4.35 |
| Rashad Jennings, NYG | 91 | 396 | 4.35 |
| Frank Gore, SF | 93 | 403 | 4.33 |
| Shonn Greene, TEN | 44 | 190 | 4.32 |
| Bishop Sankey, TEN | 50 | 211 | 4.22 |
| Ronnie Hillman, DEN | 41 | 166 | 4.05 |
| Matt Forte, CHI | 99 | 399 | 4.03 |
| Alfred Morris, WAS | 97 | 386 | 3.98 |
| Zac Stacy, STL | 61 | 240 | 3.93 |
| Alfred Blue, HOU | 42 | 165 | 3.93 |
| Chris Johnson, NYJ | 51 | 200 | 3.92 |
| Darren McFadden, OAK | 59 | 231 | 3.92 |
| Eddie Lacy, GB | 80 | 306 | 3.83 |
| Steven Jackson, ATL | 69 | 263 | 3.81 |
| Andre Ellington, ARI | 81 | 305 | 3.77 |
| Bernard Pierce, BAL | 47 | 175 | 3.72 |
| LeSean McCoy, PHI | 116 | 422 | 3.64 |
| Stevan Ridley, NE | 94 | 340 | 3.62 |
| Reggie Bush, DET | 45 | 161 | 3.58 |
| Matt Asiata, MIN | 64 | 226 | 3.53 |
| C.J. Spiller, BUF | 68 | 234 | 3.44 |
| Joique Bell, DET | 66 | 226 | 3.42 |
| Carlos Hyde, SF | 45 | 146 | 3.24 |
| Trent Richardson, IND | 87 | 281 | 3.23 |
| Andre Williams, NYG | 71 | 229 | 3.23 |
| Montee Ball, DEN | 55 | 172 | 3.13 |
| Doug Martin, TB | 48 | 139 | 2.90 |
| Toby Gerhart, JAC | 48 | 123 | 2.56 |
| Donald Brown, SD | 59 | 126 | 2.14 |
—Ian Allan