1. Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings

Projected Stats: 23 attempts, 145 yards and two touchdowns

With 100-plus rushing yards in four of his past five games, Peterson remains the hottest fantasy running back out there. It also shouldn't be much of a surprise that he's quickly closing in on Devonta Freeman as the top fantasy player at his position on the season. Through 11 games, Peterson has put up a league-leading 1,164 yards with eight touchdowns. 

While Minnesota is taking on a Seattle Seahawks defense that ranks in the top three of the NFL against fantasy running backs, the expectation here has to be that he will put up a strong performance at home come Sunday. 

2. LeSean McCoy, Buffalo Bills

Projected Stats: 20 attempts, 100 yards, four receptions, 40 yards and one touchdown

With 100-plus total yards in each of the past five games and 90-plus yards in seven of his past eight outings, McCoy is firmly in place as one of the most-consistent fantasy options out there. Coming off a 22-touch, 101-yards performance against a strong Kansas City Chiefs defense, McCoy has hit his stride big time in Buffalo. 

It should be an easier task this week against a Houston Texans defense that has yielded the 12th-most fantasy points to running backs on the year. That's only magnified with the increased workload McCoy should see with Karlos Williams out of action due to a shoulder injury. 

3. Doug Martin Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Projected Stats: 21 attempts, 95 yards, four receptions, 35 yards and one touchdown

Despite putting up the fourth-best fantasy performance among running backs this season, Martin has pretty much been hit and miss. A total of 52 percent of his fantasy points have come in three games. The idea, especially in DFS, is to really look at his opponent when determining whether Martin is a fantasy play. 

Taking on an Atlanta Falcons defense that ranks dead last against fantasy running backs and is yielding an average of 151.1 total yards to that position on the season, Martin has himself a prime matchup here. 

4. Matt Forte, Chicago Bears

Projected Stats: 15 attempts, 60 yards, six receptions, 55 yards and one touchdown

This past week saw Forte put up 44 yards on just 15 attempts in his first action since early November. It wasn't a tremendous performance by any stretch of the imagination, but it came a full 10 days before Forte's next outing — an indication that he will be rested come Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers. 

San Francisco is a much different team on the road than it is at home. In addition to losing by an average of three touchdowns away from Levi's Stadium, the 49ers have given up 452 rushing yards in their past two road outings. This makes Forte a stellar fantasy play come Sunday.

5. Jonathan Stewart, Carolina Panthers

Projected Stats: 24 attempts, 115 yards and one touchdown

Averaging 90.7 rushing yards per game over his past five outings, Stewart has picked it up after failing to make much of a fantasy impact earlier in the year. While Stewart only has two 100-yards games under his belt, he has put up 20-plus attempts in each of the past seven games. That's a representation of him being one of the most consistent running backs in the NFL as it relates to accumulating touches. 

Like in pretty much every category this season, the New Orleans Saints defense has been absolutely disastrous against running backs. It has yielded the fourth-most fantasy points and an average of 174.9 total yards to that position on the season. You can take it from here, guys/gals. 

6. Devonta Freeman, Atlanta Falcons

Projected States: 16 attempts, 70 yards, four receptions, 25 yards and one touchdown

Based on where Freeman is being valued in DFS contests, I am not too sure he's prepared to live up to expectations this week. You are going to start him in year-long contests regardless, but it might be smart to go running back at the FLEX position to make up for what could be a substandard (by his standards) performance. 

After missing last week's game with a concussion, Freeman will be good to go against a Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense that has yielded the seventh-fewest fantasy points to running backs on the season. The matchup just doesn't seem to be here for sustained success fom Freeman on Sunday. 

7. Mark Ingram, New Orleans Saints

Projected Stats: 14 attempts, 45 yards, five receptions, 50 yards and one touchdown

Ingram has been one of the few bright spots in an otherwise disastrous season for the Saints. He has tallied nearly 1,100 total yards in 11 games and is currently on pace for the best year of his career. In fact, Ingram has put up 100-plus total yards in four of his past five games and heads into Week 13 as the third-best fantasy running back. 

The only issue I see hee is the Saints' inability to keep their game against the Carolina Panthers close. If Cam Newton and Co. jump out to a big lead, it will force Drew Brees to put the ball up a lot, further limiting the production we see from Ingram here. Even then, he becomes a solid PPR option with 46 receptions on the season. 

8. Todd Gurley, St. Louis Rams

Projected Stats: 20 attempts, 78 yards and one touchdown

This is not a favorable matchup for a rookie running back that has come crashing back to Earth after blowing the league up early in the year. Gurley will line up against an Arizona Cardinals defense that has yielded the ninth-fewest fantasy points to running backs on the season. He will be doing so with the Cardinals boasting some extra incentive after he put up 161 total yards in the teams first meeting of the season. 

In addition to this, Gurley is averaging 3.0 yards per rush over the past thee games, after putting up an average of more than double that in his first five NFL games. 

Without much of a threat as it relates to a passing game and following multiple injuries along the Rams offensive line, it makes sense that Gurley would struggle. Expect that to continue on Sunday. 

9. Chris Ivory, New York Jets

Projected Stats: 22 attempts, 105 yards 

With 100-plus yards in two of his past three games, Ivory has ovecome what were mid-season struggles. He's also taking on a New York Giants defense that has yielded the ninth-most fantasy points to running backs on the season. 

However, Ivory's ceiling just isn't there. After putting up 27.1 points against the Washington Redskins back in Week 6, Ivory has tallied 15-plus points just twice. That's why he finds himself a bit lower than his No. 6 overall ranking on the season. 

10. Thomas Rawls, Seattle Seahawks

Projected Stats: 20 attempts, 105 yards

Here's something to look at. Rawls is averaging over 20 attempts and 131.8 yards in the five games that he's been Seattle's primary ball carrier. Interstingly, two of those games came against defenses that are among the six worst in points allowed to running backs on the season. 

Taking on a Minnesota vikings defense that has yielded the fifth-fewest points to this position, Rawls is in for a difficult matchup.