Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson hasn’t played in a year. That’s not stopping oddsmakers from making him the favorite to win the rushing title this season.
Oddsshark recently released odds on who will lead the National Football League in rushing yards this season, and Peterson is in the top spot by a wide margin. Peterson’s odds are +350, meaning if you bet $100, you will earn $350 if the wager is correct.
The next-best odds are a log-jam with Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles, Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch and Philadelphia Eagles running back DeMarco Murray at +800.
Murray ran away with the rushing title last season for the Dallas Cowboys with 1,845 yards. However, he’s on a new team, and its running back last year, LeSean McCoy, finished third in rushing, but netted five less rushing attempts per game than Murray.
Last year’s runner-up in rushing yards, Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell, owns the eighth-best odds at +1400. His odds are low because he will miss the season’s first two games due to a suspension.
McCoy, now a Buffalo Bill, and Green Bay Packers running back Eddie Lacy, are the only other running backs with odds under 1000. McCoy is at +850, while Lacy is +900.
A possible dark horse that could surface as a challenger to the top spot is Baltimore Ravens running back Justin Forsett. Forsett finished last season with the fifth-most yards at 1,266. He did that on 235 carries, which was 157 less than Murray, who led the NFL in carries.
Forsett ranked 10th in carries last season in the NFL.
The longest odds for running backs are Chris Ivory, Rashad Jennings, Andre Ellington and Joique Bell at +10000.
