NFL Player News

Browns offensive coordinator Norv Turner predicted 300 carries for Trent Richardson and said the second-year back stacks up to the greats he’s coached, namely Emmitt Smith and LaDainian Tomlinson.

"Just watching him and seeing him against us when I came here in October and then watching the tape, yeah, he’s that type of runner,'' Turner said Tuesday, via the Plain Dealer. "Obviously he’s the third pick in the draft. I think he has a lot of great days ahead of him. I always have a problem comparing players because each guy has his own unique style, but I think he’s capable of doing great things.”

Richardson carried 267 times for 950 yards and 11 touchdowns in 15 games as a rookie. Turner said he thinks Richardson will hit 300 carries this season.

"Obviously, the trend in the league is to not do that, but I think it depends on your team and everyone around it,'' Turner said. "If that player is your best player, then I think it’s probably a good thing to have him in the game and give him the ball. So I would hope Trent would have that many carries. That means he’s playing healthy and playing at a pretty high level.''

Lamar Miller should not be assumed to be the starting running back for the Dolphins, the Miami Herald reports. Though Miller has taken a huge portion of the first-team reps throughout the spring and early days of training camp, the team still thinks Daniel Thomas can put together a big season if he can stay healthy.

Miller is one of Jamey Eisenberg's breakout candidates for 2013 and has set a not-unrealistic goal of 1,500 yards this season. This could be a smoke screen by the Dolphins hoping to flip Thomas for something via trade before the end of the preseason or just a way to keep Miller grounded since he technically hasn't earned the top role -- yet.

Anyone looking for a stud running back in the first round between picks four and 10 overall should be elated that Trent Richardson has already been back at practice. As promised from the coaching staff, Browns executives and Richardson himself back in the spring, the burly do-it-all back is fine and ready for a big campaign.

I'm aiming for Richardson in that four-to-10 range and even have no problem taking him at fourth overall. The track record of his two primary offensive coaches (Rob Chudzinski, Norv Turner) combined with Richardson's own natural abilities and the expectation that he'll get fed the ball a lot makes him a valuable Fantasy property. You might call him an injury risk but the reality is that he's missed no more than three games in any of his last six years of playing football. I'm not scared to draft him at all.

Broncos second-year running back Ronnie Hillman will open camp as the starter, ahead of rookie Montee Ball and veteran Knowshon Moreno, reports The Denver Post.

Hillman played in 14 games as a rookie but wasn’t overly impressive, averaging 3.9 yards a carry. He scored one touchdown and lost one fumble on 94 touches.

The paper says Ball, who scored an FBS-record 83 touchdowns at Wisconsin, “will get a look as a third-down option and a rotation runner on early downs.”

This is a competition to watch closely as Denver opens camp Thursday.

Browns coach Rob Chudzinski said Monday starting running back Trent Richardson (shin) has been practicing for a few days with the rookies and is cleared for training camp. Richardson sat out the mandatory June minicamp and the final week of organized team activities with a muscle strain in his right shin.

Patriots running back Shane Vereen has the chance to be a breakout player this season. He should be considered a solid No. 3 running back in standard leagues and a potential No. 2 running back in PPR formats.

His Average Draft Position on CBSSports.com is No. 65 overall, which is about right for his expected role.

Vereen will replace Danny Woodhead, who left New England for San Diego. He should be in line for a big boost in production. Last year, Woodhead played on most passing downs in New England. He had 76 carries for 301 yards and four touchdowns and 40 catches for 446 yards and three touchdowns, and he finished as the No. 24 Fantasy running back in standard leagues.

Vereen is an upgrade over Woodhead in terms of talent, and hopefully he will earn Tom Brady and Bill Belichick's trust like Woodhead did. Keep in mind that the Patriots need help in their passing game with Rob Gronkowski (back) hurt and Aaron Hernandez, Wes Welker and Brandon Lloyd gone. And Vereen caught seven passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns in the postseason last year.

He will also get his share of carries in tandem with Stevan Ridley, and he's a great running back to target in Round 6 in standard leagues and Round 5 in PPR formats.

The Raiders will go into training camp with a potential position battle at No. 2 running back behind Darren McFadden, which is an important role given McFadden's injury history.

The main participants will be rookie Latavius Murray and Rashad Jennings, but fullback Marcel Reece is also in the mix.

According to Comcast Sports Net, Murray might have the lead going into training camp because at 223 pounds, Murray fits the Raiders scheme the best. Murray missed part of the offseason program with a foot injury, so he must make the most of training camp and his preseason carries to earn the No. 2 spot.

Jennings came to Oakland via free agency from Jacksonville, where he averaged 2.8 yards per carry and struggled filling in for Maurice Jones-Drew (foot) last season.

Reece filled in for McFadden last year, but the Raiders seem intent on keeping him at fullback. Still, if McFadden gets hurt this season, Reece could still play a prominent role.

The Titans want to see more consistency from running back Chris Johnson this season, reports The Tennessean.

The report says that last season Johnson had 29 carries of better than 10 yards, but he was also stuffed -- held to zero or negative yards -- 38 times. The latter figure was third highest in the league.

Johnson also caught only 36 passes for 232 yards last season, both career-lows for the five-year veteran. He caught at least 50 passes in two of his first four seasons, and the Titans want to get him more involved in the passing game again.

Browns running back Trent Richardson expects to be ready for the start of training camp next week, reports the Cleveland Plain-Dealer. Richardson sat out the mandatory June minicamp and the final week of organized team activities with a muscle strain in his right shin.

"I have no pain at all in the leg," he said. "I'll be ready for camp and I'll be ready to go for the season. ... I'll be full-go right from the get-go and y'all out there will see me flying around. I can't wait to get out there and I can't wait for the first game. I've been waiting forever for this season and I know it's going to be a good one for us."

Daryl Richardson was listed as the "projected starter" at running back for the Rams heading into training camp on the team's official website.

Under the heading "key contributors," the Rams also listed Isaiah Pead and rookie Zac Stacy.

Richardson likely has the edge as the starter based on experience. He outplayed Pead in their rookie season in 2012, and this will be Stacy's first season in the NFL.

Richardson had 98 carries for 475 yards as Steven Jackson's backup last year. Pead, meanwhile, had just 10 carries for 54 yards. He is also suspended for Week 1 for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy.