- Saquon Barkley
We all bore witness to the monster season Saquon Barkley had in his first year with the Philadelphia Eagles including Giants GM Joe Schoen who miraculously still holds his job. Clearly the gamble on Daniel Jones did not pay off and Barkley would go on to rush for 2005 yards and 13 touchdowns with a division rival capped off with a SuperBowl victory. It doesn’t get better than that. For fantasy, I expect a repeat performance for Barkley and company. This team is locked in for the next couple years after resigning key starters and maintaining the core of their dominant o-line. Critics may cry regression but with a great o-line and an offense poised to repeat its success, Barkley gets the edge over Bijan for me personally.
- Bijan Robinson
I’m on the record for not being the biggest fan of Bijan Robinson in his first year in the NFL. He was a premium pick that came into a team that just had a 1,000 yard rusher on the team in Tyler Allgeier. At the time. I just didn’t think he was going to live up to his ADP. While I was kind of right, it was also maybe that I’m a Panthers fan and deep down I wish no success for the Falcons. Could also have been their head coach at the time (cough cough Arthur Smith). However, last year was totally different and I’ve changed my tune. Raheem Morris finally got this team back on track and fully utilized the potential of Robinson. With 1422 rushing yards, 63 receptions and 14 total touchdowns, fantasy managers finally saw the return on ADP. I think this Falcons offense builds off a strong first year under Raheem Morris and Robinson should remain a focal point.
- Jahmyr Gibbs
What a season for Jahmyr Gibbs last year as he finished as the number 1 fantasy RB. It’s crazy to think that he’s only been in the league for 2 years but is already at the top of the game. With 1412 yards and 16 rushing touchdowns, Gibbs helped power the Lions to a 15-2 record. You can’t forget about his impact in the passing game as well as he went for 517 yards and 4 receiving touchdowns on 52 receptions. I’ve got him in the 3 spot because David Montgomery is still around and the coaching staff has been revamped but I love everything about this guy. No brainer of a draft pick.
- Derrick Henry
I’m a bit higher on Derrick Henry than what the consensus seems to be. The folks over at Fantasy Life and ESPN both have him ranked as their consensus RB 7. Sure he is getting older and you hear so much about the “RB age cliff” but I’m not sold. He is in a rush first offense and is one of the main focal points. In 2024 he tied Jahmyr Gibbs and James Cook for the most rushing touchdowns (16) and finished with the third most yards per carry (5.9) trailing only Jayden Daniels and Lamar Jackson. He also rushed for 1921 yards! Let this serve as a reminder that he is a dominating physical force even at the age of 31. The rushing potential alone is enough for him to be above some of the other players listed below but the offense he’s in is a nice touch. I’m riding with Henry until the wheels fall off.
- Christian McCaffrey
Man… where to start. Maybe by briefly mentioning the gross negligence by the 49ers who for some reason did not actively report the Achilles Tendinitis McCaffrey was dealing with prior to the season that would sideline him for the majority of the season. With that being said, 2025 is a new year and with that, a new outlook. When healthy, McCaffrey is one of the best, if not the best, running backs for PPR. He’s a target monster and gets a lot of volume in the run game. It’s easy to say he’s injury prone but it’s also hard to draft expecting injuries. I may be a bit too high on him after last year but I like his value and he should be a top priority in that 49ers offense that traded away Deebo Samuel and will be waiting on Brandon Aiyuk to return from a major knee injury. Not to mention Juan Jennings is also not a happy camper about his future with the franchise. Right now you can get McCaffrey in the second round which makes him even more appealing.
- Ashton Jeanty
What is there not to like about Ashton Jeanty? In his last year at Boise State, Jeanty ran for 2601 yards and 29 rushing touchdowns and helped push his team to the college football playoffs. From Boise State to an up-and-coming Raiders team, the rookie is looking to make his mark in fantasy football. I really like what the Raiders are cooking. New head coach Pete Carroll has shown an affinity for running the ball back in his Seattle days with a guy named Marshawn Lynch. You heard of him? Jeanty fits that same kind of physical bell cow kind of back.The Raiders o-line is a bit suspect but I think the addition of RG Alex Cappa and QB Geno Smith should help open up the offense a bit for Jeanty to run wild.
- De’Von Achane
Achane is such a weird player for me. Kinda like a Christian McCaffrey sort of player, Achane gets a decent amount of work in the run game but he really provides his value in the passing game. In 2024, he led all running backs with 78 receptions. I have some concerns about the Dolphins offense as a whole but Achane should still get plenty of work. It certainly helps Achane’s case that the Dolphins traded away Jonnu Smith and released veteran backup Raheem Mostert.
- Josh Jacobs
Josh Jacobs had an excellent first year in Green Bay. The 27 year old put up 1329 rushing yards and 16 total touchdowns on 301 carries which was good for an RB6 fantasy finish. According to PFF, in 2024, Jacobs ranked 6th in total carries, 6th in rushing yards and 4th in rushing touchdowns. Not much has changed for this offense outside of the team drafting Matthew Golden. I fully expect Jacobs to continue his role as the team’s rushing bell cow. The only downside is that he is not super involved in the passing game which slots him a little further down on my list.
- Kyren Williams
Kyren Williams is just one of those running backs you love to have on your team. A pound the rock kind of guy, Williams picks up yards when it counts and gets a lot of goal line work. In fact, in 2024, he led the league in red zone carries (70). The next closest? Derrick Henry with 53. What’s even better is that he handled 88.6% of his teams redzone rushing attempts. Critics will mention Blake Corum but the Rams just extended Williams to a three year deal worth $33 million signifying a strong commitment.
- Chase Brown
Chase Brown sneaks into my top 10 for a couple of reasons. The first is that there is virtually no competition in the Bengals backfield. Offseason additions Samaje Perine and rookie sixth rounder Tahj Brooks don’t leap off the page as major threats. Second, in this pass happy offense, Brown sees a lot of targets. In 2024 he was targeted 64 times which he was able to turn into 54 catches for 360 yards and 4 touchdowns. While that doesn’t scream receiving efficiency, when it comes to PPR the receptions matter. Brown also came just shy of rushing for 1000 yards behind a less than stellar o-line. For the PPR value alone, I like Brown here in the 10 spot.
Guys I like:
David Montgomery
This one feels like a no brainer. David Montgomery is one of those guys that just finds a way to produce even when there is another dominant force in the backfield with Jahmyr Gibbs. Averaging 16.5 fantasy points a game last year, Montgomery is a great RB 2 to have on your roster. This offense is in a bit of a flux with their offensive staff but Montgomery is part of arguably the best one two punch in the NFL.
Bucky Irving
My 2024 GOAT. On a whim I drafted Bucky Irving with my last pick in just about every one of my leagues. That paid dividends as the rookie eventually supplanted Rachaad White as the starter. I see no reason as to why he can’t continue that success this year. Sure there is a new offensive coordinator but White has been terribly efficient as a rusher while Irving was the complete opposite. Irving falls just outside of my top 10 but could easily finish the season a lot higher.
Zach Charbonet
I dare you to name me a better handcuff in all of football. When Kenneth Walker goes down, this guy steps in a big way. Per Stat Muse, Zach Charbonet has had 124 carries for 540 yards and has scored 7 touchdowns in 8 games without Kenneth Walker III in his career. In the 6 Walker missed last year Charbonet averaged 19.2 fantasy points a game. You may have to pay a bit more to get him but I’m grabbing all the shares of Charbonet that I can.
Najee Harris
Yeah, I get it… why would Najee Harris be one of the guys I like this year? Well that’s a good question. First, I think the drafting of Omarion Hampton is going to drive a lot of fantasy managers towards the rookie and decrease the ADP of Harris which could present a huge value later in drafts. In ESPN leagues, Hampton has an average ADP of 51 while Harris is going way later around pick 158. You may also be worried by the eye injury Harris sustained on the 4th of July. However, his agent called it a “superficial eye injury” and Harris is expected to be ready for the start of the season. In my mind, Harris presents value at his current ADP as the potential early season starter or even a nice handcuff option should Hampton get injured as the starter. We just saw last year where JK Dobbins ran wild behind big boy Joe Alt and the rest of the Chargers o-line so Harris could easily have that same sort of success given the opportunity.
*Point totals mentioned assume full point PPR scoring
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