RosterWatch Week 10 Waiver Wire: RBs
Byron Lambert, Rosterwatch.com

Folks, we have a strong crop of waiver wire running backs this week. All players listed are less than 50% owned across standard leagues. Happy choosing.

Mike James, RB Tampa Bay Buccaneers – 48% owned
The man is legitimate and should already be owned in all leagues. Tampa employs a run-heavy offense, no matter who is in the backfield. James was an underrated rookie prospect coming out of Miami, after playing behind Lamar Miller. He has a fantastic matchup against Miami this week.

Shonn Greene, RB Tennessee Titans – 16% owned
As we told you last week, the only time we like Shonn Greene is when he’s healthy and he has a good mactchup. That time is now. Just like it was last week when he scored 12.60 points on a modest amount of touches. Those touches figure to increase and we like his chances at the goal line. Green gets a phenomenal matchup at home this week against Jacksonville.

James Starks, RB Green Bay Packers- 21% owned
We liked his chances against Chicago in Week 9 and he delivered. If it wasn’t official before, it is now- Starks looks like the big athletic runner we scouted when he came out of the University of Buffalo. The other thing that’s certain is the Packers are committed to the run this year. Even more so now that Aaron Rodgers is on ice. Starks has been good on the season, and he’s been good lately. He should be owned in almost all leagues. The matchup this week against Philly isn’t the greatest, but the Pack will have no choice in the matter. Starks is set for another good game. Double digit points are a very real possibility.

Mike Tolbert, Carolina Panthers- 37% owned
The sun rises in the East and sets in the West. Mike Tolbert scores touchdowns. He’s basically scored double digit points four weeks in a row, and has been a solid flex on the season. He is touchdown dependent, but as we told you last week- even with Jonathan Stewart back in the picture- we don’t think Tolbert’s role will change. The matchups this week at San Francisco sounds much scarier than it actually is. As for Stewart, he’s worth a look in deep leagues.

Rashard Mendenhall, RB Arizona Cardinals- 44% owned
We agree he’s hard to get excited about. Yes, we love Andre Ellington and look forward to the day Stepfan Taylor replaces Mendenhall to form a dynamic young duo. For now, the truth is Mendenhall has been flex worthy on the season. Coming off of a bye week he’s healthy and head coach Bruce Arians is speaking highly of him. He’s the starting running back of an NFL team, he should be owned. Arizona plays Houston this week, a team that is trending easier against fantasy running backs.

Rashad Jennings, Oakland Raiders- 6% owned
If Darren McFadden misses any time, which he almost surely will, Jennings is the lead dog in the Raiders backfield. He had a really nice game in relief of McFadden on Sunday. Overall, Jennings has been decent when given the chance. He wasn’t overly impressive when filling in for McFadden in Week 5 scoring only 4 points, earlier this season. We caution that the Raiders play the Giants this week, who are a really tough matchup for fantasy running backs. Teammates Marcel Reece and Jeremy Stewart are also worth a look in deep leagues. Reece has a history of success with Mcfadden on the shelf, especially in PPR leagues.

Donald Brown, Indianapolis Colts- 12% owned
He’s not a great option, but every indication we have right now is that he is outperforming Trent Richardson over a growing sample of snaps. He’s been a virtual lock for five points over the last five weeks. He’s also flashed double digit upside over that period. Brown has a very good matchup this week against St. Louis. You could do much worse.

Montee Ball, Denver Broncos- 36% owned
A move Knowhon Moreno owners should strongly consider as a handcuff- or a move any owner search for running back value should be considering strongly. The Broncos have soured on injury prone, contact deficient, Ronnie Hillman. More carries for Ball, a high round draft pick, is destiny. The Broncos also appear to like him around the goal line. Ball had a nice week before the bye. He goes to San Diego this week who are trending towards one of the better matchups in the league for fantasy running backs.

Daniel Thomas, Miami Dolphins- 16% owned
It’s taken forever, but Lamar Miller is starting to separate. Thomas still maintains fringe value for desperate owners. He had 13 touches in Week 9. The matchup against Tampa this week, is a very good one.

Dennis Johnson, Houston Texans- 0% owned
The backup to Arian Foster’s backup. Johnson could have fringe value with the injuries in Houston. Arizona in Week 10 is a very tough matchup, though.

New York Giants Running Backs
Right now, there appears to be a logjam between Brandon Jacobs, Peyton Hillis, and Andre Brown. Hillis had the most recent success, but like Jacobs his production was based on shear volume. Teams facing must-wins should avoid this situation unless completely and totally desperate. If that’s, the case we would monitor this situation closely throughout the week. The Raiders are a pretty fair matchup in Week 10.

Bye-Week Players to Keep on the Radar:
Chris Ivory – 45% owned
Shane Vereen – 46% owned
Brandon Bolden – 17% owned
LeGarrette Blount – 9% owned
Chris Ogbonnaya – 6% owned