With so much on the line during the fantasy playoffs, I thought I’d take a closer look at the productive RBBCs around the league and try to read the tea leaves in order to figure out who will dominate the touches over the last few games.

Off we go…

New Orleans Saints
Pierre Thomas returned to action and saw 16 touches (for 58 yards). This was more than anticipated because Chris Ivory suffered/re-aggravated a hamstring injury at some point in the first half, finishing with just seven touches (47 yards), all carries. Ivory ran the ball better (6.7 ypc) than Thomas (3.3), but that’s to be expected as Pierre works his way back into game speed. Reggie Bush had 14 touches for 61 yards. If Ivory can’t play or is limited next week, Thomas will become a low-end RB2/flex play against a Ravens defense that has been pretty good against the run.

Detroit Lions
I watched this game and I thought Maurice Morris was getting more work, but Jahvid Best actually out-touched Morris 14 to 12. Morris gained 57 yards and ran the ball better. Best only managed 42 yards on two more touches. The reason I’m writing about the Lions is because they play the Bucs next week so there’s a chance for a Detroit RB to post nice numbers. If the team gives Morris 15+ carries, I think he’ll have a nice day, but it appears that they want to keep Best involved.

Washington Redskins
Mike Shanahan strikes again! All week he played coy about who his starter was leading fantasy owners to believe that he’d use some sort of committee. Yeah, well, that didn’t happen. Ryan Torain reclaimed the RB1 job with 172 yards on 24 carries and added two catches for 10 yards. Keiland Williams only had four carries (for 16 yards) but turned three catches into 60 yards. I wouldn’t expect that kind of production every week. Torain is clearly the Redskin RB to own for the final three weeks of the season.

Carolina Panthers
Only the Panthers can gash a team for 212 rushing yards and still lose by 21 points. Jonathan Stewart carried the ball 18 times for 133 yards while Mike Goodson chipped in with 10 touches (1 catch) for 76 yards and a TD. Goodson seems to be getting work inside the redzone. Stewart looked terrific on a long 48-yard scamper and with the Cardinals sketchy run defense coming to town next week, he’s a sold RB2 in W15.

San Francisco 49ers
Anthony Dixon turned 15 touches (including one reception) into 68 yards, averaging 4.3 yards per tote, which is just average against the Seahawks questionable run defense. Brian Westbrook only carried the ball nine times for 23 yards, but he went for 6-87-1 in the passing game. The 49ers learned from their mistakes against the Packers in W13 — Westy thrives in space and you have to throw him the ball, not expect him to run it between the tackles. I think we’ll see this thunder/lightning combination going forward, though the 49ers only have mediocre matchups in W15 and W16.

Arizona Cardinals
Tim Hightower made some hay against the Broncos, with 148 yards and two TDs on 18 carries. Beanie Wells was pretty much a non-factor (six carries, 16 yards). With the Panthers’ struggling rush defense up next, I’m sure to have Hightower ranked in the Top 20 in Week 15.

San Diego Chargers
Mike Tolbert (16 carries, 66 yards, TD) and Ryan Mathews (16 carries, 65 yards, TD) had virtually identical lines on Sunday. The Chargers aren’t going to be able to run the ball 43 times every game, so under normal circumstances, I doubt these two players find this much success against the 49ers and Bengals the next two weeks. Darren Sproles was also involved with 104 yards on 11 touches (including five catches).

Dallas Cowboys
After a nice W13 performance against the Colts (19 carries, 100 yards, TD), I thought Tashard Choice would have a bigger role against the Eagles last night. But early on he failed to score at the goal line, and only finished with eight touches for 33 yards. Felix Jones had a big game with 17 touches for 83 yards and score, including a great 35-yard catch-and-run late in the game. With Washington and Arizona coming up, I’m feeling a lot better about Jones (who had 91 total yards against Indy) than I am Choice, though the latter could surprise if the Cowboys run the ball 30+ times again.