The 2010 season was a rough one for fantasy owners who drafted Knowshon Moreno. He never lived up to expectations and missed three games to injury. He struggled to reach his 779 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns.
In fact, it was struggle all season for the entire Broncos running game. Quarterback Tim Tebow was the second-leading rusher on the team with 227 yards. Lance Ball, Correll Buckhalter and Laurence Maroney were all options who failed to pick up the slack.
But 2011 should be different for Moreno and for his fantasy owners. After offseason speculation that Moreno would lose the starting gig, the running back worked hard during the offseason and is supposedly in the best shape he has ever been. He certainly seems poised to pick up the majority of yards on the ground. Just don't count on the touchdowns being there. The addition of Willis McGahee will lead to fewer touches in the red zone, which McGahee picked up in Baltimore. He vultured touchdowns from Ray Rice there and should do the same in Denver.
That's why SB Nation's/Fake Teams' running back rankings have Moreno as the No. 16 back for fantasy purposes. He is one spot behind former Broncos running back Peyton Hillis. That's a fair ranking unless he starts to overtake McGahee for carries in the red zone.
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