If you listen closely enough, you can almost hear it all.The clashing of pads. The whistles. The quiet tapping of a pencil from a fantasy football owner who's on the clock. The groans when another owners beloved sleeper gets picked.Football is coming. That means its fantasy season.Wide receivers seem to be on everyones mind, but it's unwise to forget about the foundation of fantasy footballrunning backs.Lets talk RBs below.Standard RankingsSleepersDeMarco MurrayLast season, the world turned on DeMarco Murray.The former Dallas Cowboys bell cow, who racked up 392 carries, 1,845 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns in 2014, plummeted from the No. 1 running back to 18th in his first season with the Philadelphia Eagles, per ESPN.com rankings.Murray wasnt consistently bad by any means; he had his games. Thanks to the 28-year-olds prowess as a receiver, he put up seven outings with double-digit fantasy points.But he also laid quite a few eggs.Eagles' ex-coach Chip Kelly insisted on using his backs in East-West situations. Murray is the definition of a North-South runner, so its not surprising that the fit was much more frustrating than fruitful.On March 7, though, the Eagles traded Murray to the Tennessee Titans.With your league likely still soured on Murray from last season, dont be afraid to take him earlier than his Average Draft Position as the 18th running backand 49th playeroff the board, according to FantasyPros.According to ESPN.com, Tennessee ranked 28th in rushing last year because the team was devoid of a respectable back. Now, it has two in Murray and rookie Derrick Henry. Together, they could form a thunder/more thunder punch capable of wearing opponents down.Murray seems to be the clear lead dog, even with Henry in the picture.On June 14, Titans running backs coach Sylvester Croom raved about the former Cowboy and Eagle, per Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline.com:Let me tell you something. This guy is a good football player, but he is a better human being than he is a football player. His professionalism, and his work ethic. I feel really fortunate to be able to work with him.Im telling you, hes a coachs dream.It sounds like Murray has the support he craved in Philly. Dont be scared away by last season. Take Murray if hes there in the late third/early fourth round.Paul PerkinsPaul Perkins is a much deeper sleeper than Murray.Last year, the New York Giants were desperate for a running back to step up.Rashad Jennings was inconsistent. Shane Vereen had a tendency to disappear for long stretches. Andre Williams has the shiftiness of a tree. Orleans Darkwa wasnt badEd Valentine of Big Blue Review said the rookie at times [looked] like the best running back on the roster"but Christopher Schwarz of GMen HQ isnt sure hell even make the 2016 roster. Bobby Rainey is in the picture now, as well.Enter Perkins.New York stole the UCLA Bruins junior in the fifth round of the 2016 draft, and hes got a real shot to add clarity to a muddled backfield picture.NFL Networks Mark Dulgerian agrees.The Giants' backfield was a turnstile of mediocre RB play last season, he said. The elusive Perkins may not be a bell cow, and they may be okay with that, but his slashing style should provide a spark.In February, Pro Football Focus ranked Perkins as the No. 5 running back in the draft. His ability as a receiver played a major factor.At 510 and 196 pounds, Perkins is more rabbit than rhino. Take a look at some of the ankles he claimed during his UCLA career:"Poor man's Jamaal Charles, was on NFC general managers pre-draft take, per NFL.com. The tape tells you everything on him. He's not big, he's not fast, he has great feet and he competes.Make no mistakethat's high praise.With Odell Beckham Jr., Victor Cruz and rookie Sterling Shepard holding down the wide receiving corpsand, of course, Eli Manning under centerthe Giants are going to throw.If hes impressive, Perkins could slowly but surely cut into Vereens receiving downs and Jennings rushes.Perkins isnt likely to be one of those red-hot waiver wire guys after Week 1 or Week 2. But keep an eye on him. His role is likely to grow throughout the year.Grab him sooner than lateryou never know when he could break out.
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