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This is the final of three consecutive weeks where six teams have their bye week. Some notable running backs on bye are Minnesota's Adrian Peterson, St. Louis' Steven Jackson and New York's Thomas Jones.

That said, here are three running backs that may be a little under the radar that I expect to have a big week:

Jonathan Stewart, Panthers: It should be fairly obvious that Stewart's running mate, DeAngelo Williams, is a must-start every week. And I expect Williams to have a huge game this week. That said, Stewart should have a strong performance as well. In the past four games, Williams and Stewart have combined for a total of 700 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. During that span, Stewart has scored four times including twice last week against what was the league's top-ranked rush defense. This week, the Panthers face a Saints defense that has lost defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis for several weeks and has allowed six rushing touchdowns in the past three games. Only the Giants have allowed more (7) during that span. As the Panthers enter tomorrow's game in a hostile environment as a 13-point underdog against the unbeaten Saints, look for both Stewart and Williams to get a heavy dose of carries as the Panthers try to keep the Saints' high-powered offense off the field and take the crowd out of the game.

Jamaal Charles, Chiefs: As Larry Johnson finds himself in the team's doghouse again, Jamaal Charles will finally get his shot to be the offense's featured back. In 90 career rushing attempts, Charles is averaging 5.3 yards per carry. This week he faces the Jacksonville Jaguars, who allowed Tennessee's Chris Johnson to run for 228 yards last week. Charles, who was drafted in the third-round last year, should get more opportunities to start beyond this week even though LJ's suspension officially ends after this week. If so, Charles will have several favorable matchups in the weeks ahead including Oakland, San Diego, Buffalo and Cleveland to go along with a favorable matchup this week.

Pierre Thomas, Saints: The Saints can pass it and can run it. Quarterback Drew Brees is one of the league's top three quarterbacks and the Saints are tied for the most passing touchdowns (16) in the league. But what may not be as widely-known is the Saints rank fourth in the NFL in rushing yards per game (153.3). Of the three options in New Orleans, Thomas is the best bet (over Reggie Bush and Mike Bell). Thomas is averaging nearly six yards per carry. And running on Carolina is much easier than passing on them. The Panthers' pass defense ranks first in the NFL in yards allowed (160.6 ypg). Meanwhile the Panthers run defense ranks 24th in the league and they've allowed the eighth-most fantasy points to running backs. In addition, no other team has allowed running backs to catch touchdown passes (four) than the Panthers have.

See week 9 consensus rankings for running backs.