The fantasy football season is winding down and with the playoffs coming up for owners, people will be looking for the top free agents, sleepers and waiver wire pickups from their leagues and at the running back position, : Andre Ellington, Maurice Jones-Drew, Donald Brown, Chris Ivory and Rashad Jennings are solid pickups for the back stretch of the season.
Ellington is a solid option after being out for Week 13, as he could make a return after dealing with a knee injury and to be safe, owners should check out Rashard Mendenhall as well. If Ellington can get back on the field, he has a solid matchup against the Rams and they are giving up one of the top totals to RBs in fantasy. Jones-Drew has been playing well over the past few weeks and with the Jags winning three of the past four, this forgotten back could be valuable going down in the playoffs. Donald Brown has taken over for Trent Richardson as the starting back on the Colts, while Chris Ivory could get a big performance against the Oakland Raiders, who are dealing with their own injury problems with Darren McFadden and Rashad Jennings.
Ellington was out last week, but he has been very solid for the Cardinals and one reason has been his work in the passing game, as he has 28 catches for 247 yards this season and he has at least two catches in the past five games. Mendenhall and Ellington have been sharing carries all season and heading into next week against the Rams, Ellington could get back into the mix after rushing for 50 yards and averaging five yards per carry in his last game against the Colts. A few weeks ago the rookie rushed for a career high 154 yards and a touchdown on just 15 carries and that's the type of game that the Cards hope they can get once he returns to the lineup. Ellington has been consistent over the past few weeks, going over 50 yards in two of the past three games and he has over 440 yards this season.
Brown has finally come into his own this season and he has been the leading back for the team over the ineffective Trent Richardson and he is coming off of a solid game that saw him get 16 touches and 54 yards against the Titans and now he will be starting against the Bengals, who have a tough defense. Even with Cincy playing well against the run, the Colts have shown they can get Brown into good situations and going forward for the rest of the season he is a solid option and he is available in less than 50 percent of ESPN leagues. He has had at least 50 yards in two of his last three games and he has scored three touchdowns in that span and he also is good for fantasy owners in PPR leagues, as he has nine catches in the past four games and he has nearly 400 yards total on the ground this season.
Jones-Drew and Ivory are solid picks as well, with Ivory looking to be the main back no Sunday against the Raiders and that could mean big numbers, as they gave up over 140 to the Cowboys on Thursday. Jones-Drew threw for a TD on Sunday and has had a touchdown in three of the past four games on the ground and he has also been rushing the ball more consistently, putting up 77 and 84 yards in his past two games.