Table of Contents
(Exit interviews: Attack player | running backwards | Wide receiver | tight end)
Derrick Henry just finished a season in which he achieved the following:
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He rushed for 1,921 yards, the 11th most in NFL history;
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He averaged 5.9 yards per carry;
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He gained 2,114 yards from scrimmage;
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Scored 18 touchdowns
And yet, somehow Henry didn’t lead the league in any of those categories. So yeah, it was a pretty solid year for professional runners. Henry was one of several correct answers at the clutch position in fantasy football.
In 2023, Christian McCaffrey was the only running back to clear 1,200 rushing yards during the season. This year, seven different players surpassed 1,200 yards and another (Chuba Hubbard) finished just five yards shy. Twelve running backs gained at least 1,400 yards from scrimmage and 13 finished with double-digit touchdowns. Saquon Barkley almost certainly would have surpassed Eric Dickerson’s single-season NFL rushing record had Philadelphia not rested key starters in Week 18.
All things considered, it was simply a stellar season for running backs, from rookies to veterans. It was a throwback to the early 2000s in terms of the production we received from this place. Even the RB dead zone was full of success stories.
Let’s review the notable rises and falls of the position…
(Mostly) The RB hits
Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles
All he managed to do in his first year with the Eagles was produce a historic rushing season while also reimagining the limits of human locomotion:
A ridiculous player, a near-perfect defender in a top-level offense. He reached triple-digit yards in 13 of his 16 games, topping 150 yards seven times.
Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons
If we come from a typical season, one in which a 1,400-yard, 12-touchdown running back was actually a rare commodity, we’d probably all agree that Robinson is the consensus RB1 for 2025. He’s as rare as Barkley as a running back and no less gifted as a receiver. Robinson’s 1,887 yards from scrimmage ranked fourth in the league.
Derrick Henry, Baltimore Ravens
In his age 31 season, Henry produced the most efficient year of his Hall of Fame career. He set new career highs in yards per carry (5.9) and yards per touch (6.1). If you want to fade it in 2025 because of age or mileage or something… well, okay, okay. But no evidence of decline can be found in the tapes or the numbers. He led all running backs in missed tackles this season (80) with an average of 3.5 yards after contact per attempt.
Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions
After a supernova performance in the season finale against the Vikings, Gibbs ultimately led the NFL in rushing touchdowns (16) and total TDs (20). He deserved to lead the league in something significant, because otherwise his season might have been overlooked, given the outrageous productivity of Saquon, King Henry and several others.
This is probably the offseason where the Lions finally lose OC Ben Johnson, which is a slight concern for 2025 and beyond. However, it is evident that Gibbs will continue to be a fundamental piece of an unfair offense. He won’t turn 23 until March.
Josh Jacobs, Green Bay Packers
Every year, we look at the depth chart behind Jacobs for players who could steal his job. And every year, Jacobs reminds us that he is, in fact, one of the most effective and elusive running backs in the league. He played every game for the Packers in 2024, finishing the season with 1,671 yards from scrimmage and an eight-week touchdown streak. As usual, Jacobs finished among the position leaders in missed tackles (67) and yards after contact (1,039).
De’Von Achane, Miami Dolphins
A lot of things went wrong for Miami in 2024, but Achane wasn’t among them. He was incredible, appearing in every game and posting 907 yards rushing, plus another 592 yards as a receiver. Achane led all running backs in routes run per PFF (408), playing the most snaps at his position by a mile (120). Not surprisingly, he also led all running backs in receptions (78).
Kyren Williams, Los Angeles Rams
Williams may have seemed like a quiet season, but that’s just a testament to the extraordinary number of monster fantasy seasons at this position. Williams held off Blake Corum’s challenge all year, finishing with new career highs in carries (316), rushing yards (1,299) and touchdowns (16). he didn’t do it quite He repeated last season’s fantasy playoff binge, but has averaged 102.6 total yards per game in his last four, reaching the end zone four times.
Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts
This gentleman gave us a legendary fantasy performance in the playoffs, posting 354 yards from scrimmage and five touchdowns in Weeks 16 and 17. Taylor punted 100 yards from scrimmage in each of his last five games, in en route to 1,567 total yards for the year.
James Cook, Buffalo Bills
Even in a season in which his quarterback had six 1-yard rushing touchdowns, Cook managed to tie for the NFL lead in rushing touchdowns (16) and finished second in total touchdowns (18). He also punted for 1,000 rushing yards for the second consecutive season.
Bucky Irving, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
It is not enough to simply refer to Irving as “elusive” or to give him the data to support his claim. you need look This man runs with the ball to really understand how uniquely unfair it can be:
That’s some truly cartoonish racing right there. Irving was a revelation as a rookie, posting over 1,500 yards from scrimmage, averaging 5.4 YPC and catching over 90% of his targets. He led all running backs in yards after contact per attempt, with an absurd 4.03 average. He was also at his best when you needed him most, producing 479 total yards and two touchdowns in the final four weeks of the season.
Chase Brown, Cincinnati Bengals
After taking over the featured role in Cincinnati’s backfield, Brown was basically an every-week RB1. In his last eight games, he averaged 116.3 total yards and 4.8 receptions per week, crossing the goal line six times. If we spread that level of production over a full season, we’ll see nearly 2,000 yards from scrimmage with over 80 receptions.
All the 49ers who weren’t Christian McCaffrey
Jordan Mason was an unstoppable force during the first month of the season and Isaac Guerendo was a key player for the victory in the final weeks. Patrick Taylor Jr. even managed to make some noise in the season finale, rushing for 109 yards. The only player in this team’s backfield who never moved the needle in fantasy happened to be the game’s consensus No. 1 overall pick in 2024.
Shrug.
The (surprisingly few) RBs fail
Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers
Just a disgusting and unpleasant season. Let’s agree to never discuss it again. It started with a suspected minor injury that resulted in an eight-week absence (and a trip to Germany for exotic treatments), then ended with a different injury, which wiped out McCaffrey’s final five games.
Breece Hall, New York Jets
To be fair, Hall’s year-end numbers don’t actually look terrible. He gained 1,359 total yards, caught 57 passes and scored eight touchdowns for a terrible team. However, Hall misses out because we drafted him as the overall RB2, ahead of Robinson, Barkley, Gibbs, Henry and all the other running backs who feasted in 2024. In his ADP, we needed significant year-over-year improvement and simply It didn’t happen.
Travis Etienne Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars
An absolutely disgusting season for your second round pick. Etienne appeared in 15 games and gained just 812 total yards, visited the end zone twice and averaged just 3.7 yards per carry. Tank Bigsby outrushed him by 208 yards on just 18 more carries.
Isiah Pacheco (Kansas City Chiefs) and Kenneth Walker III (Seattle Seahawks)
These two share a blurb because they both saw their seasons derailed by injuries while their backups thrived. Oh. If you selected either (or both), you simply stumbled upon bad luck, not a bad player. Neither of them is outside the circle of trust in 2025.
Rhamondre Stevenson, New England Patriots
He was inefficient and clumsy, unable to overcome a poor offensive environment. Ultimately, he fell behind Antonio Gibson in the team’s backfield pecking order. Not great. The change of head coach is a big victory for Stevenson, because he had lost the support of Jerod Mayo.
Zamir White, Las Vegas Raiders
Whenever the best argument for drafting a player involves his perceived lack of competence, then we should probably stay away from that guy. It’s a lesson we relearn every year. White’s reign as top running back did not last beyond September.
Runners ranking too early for 2025
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Saquon Barkley
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Bijan Robinson
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Jahmyr Gibbs
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Henry Derrick
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Christian McCaffrey
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jose jacobs
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jonathan taylor
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De’Von Achane
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Ashton Jeanty
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Bucky Irving
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Kyren Williams
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James Cook