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MIAMI -- Hark the unheralded running backs.Fifth-round picks, an undrafted rookie and a player who was out of the NFL for three seasons are among those bursting into the clear this year, leaving defenses and fans wondering the same thing: Where did they come from?The surprising success by such low-profile rushers as Jay Ajayi, Jordan Howard, Robert Kelley and Tim Hightower speaks to the challenge of evaluating running backs.Its not like it used to be, said Miami Dolphins offensive coordinator Clyde Christensen, an NFL assistant since 1996. When I first came in the league, youd watch a tailback in college, and they all had a fullback in front of them, and they all got their 25 carries a game, and you compared them to each other. Now theyre coming out of spread offenses, and there are a lot of good running backs out there who play for teams that dont run the ball as much. Its a lot harder comparing them now.Some of the most frantic scrambling this season has been by teams seeking someone to carry the ball, with the high injury rate at the position creating openings for under-the-radar runners.Ezekiel Elliott, DeMarco Murray and LeVeon Bell are having big seasons, as expected. But other Pro Bowl backs -- Todd Gurley, Doug Martin, Adrian Peterson , Chris Ivory -- have struggled or been hurt this year.Four-time Pro Bowl rusher Arian Foster retired from Miami in October, the day after Ajayis second consecutive 200-yard game for the Dolphins. Even coach Adam Gase was surprised by the way the job was seized by Ajayi, a fifth-round pick in 2015.When we were going into the season, we felt like we were going to get four guys involved in what we were doing, Gase said. So we didnt know if wed really have enough touches to say a guy was going to have a 1,000-yard season.Ajayi is 44 yards from the 1,000 mark, and one of 11 players on pace to reach the milestone. Six did it last year.Cowboys rookie Elliott leads the league with 1,392 yards.Weve all seen how the league has gone as far as trends with the running backs, Gase said. It seems like rushing is coming back a little bit. Youre seeing teams like Dallas, and obviously were feeling pretty good about what weve got going on. There are other teams that are leaning on the running back a little more now.As a result, players like Kelley are obscure no more. Nicknamed Fat Rob, he has rushed for 587 yards while making six starts for the Washington Redskins, and is averaging 4.6 yards per carry.In his best season at Tulane, he rushed for 420 yards -- one reason he went undrafted.As a free agent, we didnt see a whole lot, coach Jay Gruden said. He didnt get many carries at Tulane.Kelley, listed at 6-foot and 220 pounds, has a rugged running style and rarely goes down on the first hit.Im happy with how far I came, he said.Ditto Howard, a rookie fifth-round pick from Indiana. Hes one of the few bright spots this season for the Chicago Bears, rushing for 969 yards with a 5.0 average that ranks third in the league.NFL teams often find their best running back in unlikely places, and tend not to devote high draft picks to the position. Elliott was the lone rusher taken in the first 44 selections of this years draft.In 2015 the Arizona Cardinals found a gem from Northern Iowa in the third round, and now David Johnson leads the league with 15 touchdowns and 1,830 yards from scrimmage.Hes basically their team, Ajayi said.In Green Bay, Eddie Lacy has been out since Week 6, which left the Packers shopping for replacements during the season. Lately theyve been using James Starks, waivers acquisition Christine Michael and converted receiver Ty Montgomery, who has made three starts.Were a team that has gone through a lot of injuries, coach Mike McCarthy said. Its about creating opportunities for all of these guys.Hightower waited a long time for an opportunity after spending 2012-14 out of the NFL following a knee injury. He has become an effective backup to Mark Ingram with the New Orleans Saints, rushing for 453 yards and catching 18 passes for 178 yards.Hightower said the nature of his position sometimes allows low-profile players to break out of a depth chart scrum.Running back I think is an easier position -- just being honest -- to come in and play right away, he said. As long as you understand the blocking scheme and how to protect the quarterback, the schemes are similar to college and even high school. The learning curve isnt as great, so a guy can come in from off the streets, or from anywhere.---AP Pro Football Writer Howard Fendrich and Sports Writers Genaro C. Armas and Brett Martel contributed to this report.---For more NFL coverage: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Steven Wine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Steve-Wine. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/steven-wine Cheap Basketball Jerseys Free Shipping . He said Tuesday thats a big reason why he is now the new coach of the Tennessee Titans. Whisenhunt said he hit it off quickly with Ruston Webster when interviewing for the job Friday night. Wholesale NBA Stitched Jerseys . Lack made 20 saves for his third shutout of the season as the Canucks blanked the St. Louis Blues 1-0 in the first post-Olympic game for both teams night. http://www.cheapjerseysnbaoutlet.com/ .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Jerseys Basketball China . Clarke was injured while practicing on the Doha Golf Club range after the pro-am on Tuesday. The Northern Irishman arrived at the course on Wednesday hoping to start, but after hitting a few balls on the practice putting green Clarke advised officials he was not fit to play. Basketball Jerseys China . The 43-year-old closer, in his 19th and final big league season, has said hed like to play the outfield. Yankees manager Joe Girardi says hes thinking about allowing Rivera to do it this weekend, when the Yankees finish their season with a three-game series at the Houston Astros. The NHL is taking steps to avoid another John Scott situation at the All-Star Game.The league announced new fan voting rules Monday that disqualify players from being named All-Star captains if theyre injured or sent to the American Hockey League. Scott, a journeyman enforcer, was voted in by fans last year when he was with the Arizona Coyotes and still served as the Pacific Division captain despite being traded to the Montreal Canadiens and demoted to the AHL.Scott was the MVP of the 3-on-3 tournament that will be back for a second year, but the NHL didnt want a similar awkward situation to happen leading up to the 2017 All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles.Players who are injured or in the minors wont be on the active ballot until theyre back in the NHL. If someone is voted captain and is hurt or in the AHL, the player with the second-most votes gets in.Scott tolld Sportsnet that he approves of the rules change.ddddddddddddI expected something to come about. Its good. Something had to happen. I dont think they wanted a situation like me to happen again, he told Sportsnet. Guys in the AHL, guys that are hurt ... I dont think they should be included anymore. I think it was a one-time thing. Its a good rule.Fans will vote for a captain from each division -- the Metropolitan, Atlantic, Central and Pacific -- regardless of position. The 3-on-3 tournament of the two Eastern and two Western Conference divisions facing each other before meeting in the final will take place on Sunday, Jan. 29.The All-Star skills competition will be Saturday, Jan. 28.The Associated Press contributed to this report. cheap falcons jerseys cheap ravens jerseys cheap bills jerseys cheap bears jerseys cheap bengals jerseys cheap cowboys jerseys cheap lions jerseys cheap texans jerseys cheap colts jerseys cheap jaguars jerseys cheap chiefs jerseys cheap rams jerseys cheap dolphins jerseys cheap vikings jerseys cheap saints jerseys cheap giants jerseys cheap jets jerseys cheap eagles jerseys cheap steelers jerseys cheap 49ers jerseys ' ' '