Niner Noise
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Top 10 fantasy football running back sleepers for 2017

By Jay Marsdale

SAN DIEGO, CA - DECEMBER 04: Doug Martin #22 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers carries the ball while being pursued by Denzel Perryman #52 of the San Diego Chargers in the third quarter at Qualcomm Stadium on December 4, 2016 in San Diego, California. The Buccaneers defeated the Chargers 28-21. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CA - DECEMBER 04: Doug Martin #22 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers carries the ball while being pursued by Denzel Perryman #52 of the San Diego Chargers in the third quarter at Qualcomm Stadium on December 4, 2016 in San Diego, California. The Buccaneers defeated the Chargers 28-21. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images) /
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SEATTLE, WA – JANUARY 07: Thomas Rawls #34 of the Seattle Seahawks scores a 4-yard touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Detroit Lions in the NFC Wild Card game at CenturyLink Field on January 7, 2017 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA – JANUARY 07: Thomas Rawls #34 of the Seattle Seahawks scores a 4-yard touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Detroit Lions in the NFC Wild Card game at CenturyLink Field on January 7, 2017 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) /

3. Thomas Rawls (SEA)

We’ve made it to the top three on the fantasy football running back sleepers list, and that leads us to Seattle running back Thomas Rawls.

Rawls got more love in fantasy drafts last season than he is this year, and I still can’t figure out why. The injuries are not lingering and the other offensive additions shouldn’t affect him much at all.

Rawls wasn’t healthy during any multi-game stretch in 2016, but with him already taking the field this preseason with the first team offense, those issues seem to be behind him. Fantasy football owners who were smart enough to ad Rawls at the end of 2015 remember what he can do. He can carry a team, and he can carry your team this year with a clean bill of health.

The addition of Eddie Lacy this offseason has scared many people off of the Rawls bandwagon. The Seahawks have already shown that Rawls will start when healthy by running him with the first team. Also, Eddie Lacy hasn’t been a productive running back in the NFL in over two years. Why does that change in Seattle? Even if it miraculously does change that doesn’t eliminate all the touches for Rawls in a run-heavy Pete Carroll offense.

Rawls will be a steal wherever you can grab him in fantasy drafts. In just seven starts his rookie year, he ran for over 800 yards. Eddie Lacy was added as an insurance plan, not a starter.

Draft Rawls with confidence, and remember the type of player that everyone is forgetting he can be.