When the Raiders selected Ashton Jeanty with the 6th overall pick of the draft, he was viewed as an instant impact difference maker – the kind of guy who could lift a losing team into the playoffs. Now it can fairly be debated whether Jeanty is even the best of the rookie running backs.
Quinshon Judkins arguably has been better so far, with a slightly better yards-per-carry average and 2 more rushing touchdowns. Judkins has run for over 80 yards 4 times, while Jeanty has hit that mark only once.
And Omarion Hampton (who’ll be returning soon from an injury) possibly will be better than both of them. He ran for 128 yards in a game against the Giants and caught 17 passes in his last three games.
Hampton is averaging 4.8 yards per carry – almost a yard more – though he’s finished under 4 in all but one of his five games. (Jeanty has finished under 4 in five of his seven games.) Hampton plays for the best team, and with a coaching staff that will emphasize the run.
In a dynasty draft, I would think all three would be among the first 10 running backs drafted, given that in such a format, you’re looking not only at the current year, but what they’ll be doing in 2026, 2027 and beyond.
I turn my attention to dynasty leagues every Saturday during the regular season, rotating between the four notable positions. Unlike our in-season rankings, which are tied to stat projections, these are created off gut feel. (The process involves taking the running back list from a month ago and moving guys up and down until it feels right.)
For these rankings, I’m thinking of a 12-team league using PPR scoring, with teams holding the rights to players indefinitely. Each team would probably have to start two or three running backs, and perhaps roster six or eight. Rookies are tagged with black dots.
To see rankings from previous weeks, use the “past issues” navigation box.
Last week: Quarterbacks
Next week: Tight ends.
| DYNASTY RUNNING BACKS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rk | Tm | Player | Age |
| 1. | ATL | Bijan Robinson | 23.8 |
| 2. | DET | Jahmyr Gibbs | 23.6 |
| 3. | IND | Jonathan Taylor | 26.8 |
| 4. | LV | • Ashton Jeanty | 21.9 |
| 5. | BUF | James Cook | 26.1 |
| 6. | CLE | • Quinshon Judkins | 22.0 |
| 7. | LAC | • Omarion Hampton | 22.6 |
| 8. | LAR | Kyren Williams | 25.2 |
| 9. | MIA | DeVon Achane | 24.1 |
| 10. | GB | Josh Jacobs | 27.7 |
| 11. | DAL | Javonte Williams | 25.5 |
| 12. | PHI | Saquon Barkley | 28.7 |
| 13. | TB | Bucky Irving | 23.2 |
| 14. | NYJ | Breece Hall | 24.4 |
| 15. | SF | Christian McCaffrey | 29.4 |
| 16. | CIN | Chase Brown | 25.6 |
| 17. | JAC | Travis Etienne | 26.8 |
| 18. | CHI | D'Andre Swift | 26.8 |
| 19. | NE | • TreVeyon Henderson | 23.0 |
| 20. | PIT | Jaylen Warren | 27.0 |
| 21. | DEN | • RJ Harvey | 24.7 |
| 22. | ARI | Trey Benson | 23.3 |
| 23. | BAL | Derrick Henry | 31.8 |
| 24. | CAR | Rico Dowdle | 27.4 |
| 25. | NYG | • Cam Skattebo | 23.7 |
| 26. | DET | David Montgomery | 28.4 |
| 27. | HOU | • Woody Marks | 24.8 |
| 28. | SEA | Kenneth Walker | 25.0 |
| 29. | MIN | Jordan Mason | 26.4 |
| 30. | DEN | J.K. Dobbins | 26.9 |
| 31. | JAC | • Bhayshul Tuten | 23.7 |
| 32. | TEN | Tony Pollard | 28.5 |
| 33. | SEA | Zach Charbonnet | 24.8 |
| 34. | CAR | Chuba Hubbard | 26.4 |
| 35. | WAS | • Jacory Croskey-Merritt | 24.6 |
| 36. | SF | Brian Robinson | 26.6 |
| 37. | KC | Kareem Hunt | 30.2 |
| 38. | MIA | • Ollie Gordon | 21.8 |
| 39. | NO | Alvin Kamara | 30.3 |
| 40. | CHI | • Kyle Monangai | 23.4 |
| 41. | MIN | Aaron Jones | 30.9 |
| 42. | NE | Rhamondre Stevenson | 27.7 |
| 43. | ATL | Tyler Allgeier | 25.5 |
| 44. | LAR | Blake Corum | 24.9 |
| 45. | PIT | • Kaleb Johnson | 22.2 |
| 46. | NYG | Tyrone Tracy | 25.9 |
| 47. | LAC | Kimani Vidal | 24.2 |
| 48. | GB | Emanuel Wilson | 26.5 |
| 49. | KC | Isiah Pacheco | 26.7 |
| 50. | TB | Rachaad White | 26.8 |
| 51. | TEN | Tyjae Spears | 24.4 |
| 52. | PHI | Tank Bigsby | 24.2 |
| 53. | PIT | Kenneth Gainwell | 26.6 |
| 54. | HOU | Joe Mixon | 29.3 |
| 55. | BUF | Ray Davis | 26.0 |
| 56. | NO | • Devin Neal | 22.2 |
| 57. | CLE | • Dylan Sampson | 21.1 |
| 58. | BUF | Ty Johnson | 28.1 |
| 59. | DAL | • Jaydon Blue | 24.8 |
| 60. | WAS | Jeremy McNichols | 29.9 |
| 61. | BAL | Keaton Mitchell | 23.8 |
| 62. | NYJ | Isaiah Davis | 23.7 |
| 63. | TB | Sean Tucker | 24.0 |
| 64. | NYJ | Braelon Allen | 21.8 |
| 65. | HOU | Nick Chubb | 29.8 |
| 66. | PHI | Will Shipley | 23.2 |
| 67. | JAC | • LeQuint Allen | 21.2 |
| 68. | CAR | Jonathon Brooks | 22.3 |
| 69. | BAL | Justice Hill | 28.0 |
| 70. | IND | Ameer Abdullah | 32.4 |
| 71. | KC | • Brashard Smith | 22.6 |
| 72. | CLE | Jerome Ford | 26.1 |
| 73. | LAC | Najee Harris | 27.6 |
| 74. | CIN | • Tahj Brooks | 23.5 |
| 75. | ARI | James Conner | 30.5 |
| 76. | LAR | • Jarquez Hunter | 22.8 |
| 77. | NYG | Devin Singletary | 28.2 |
| 78. | WAS | Chris Rodriguez | 25.1 |
| 79. | SF | • Jordan James | 21.6 |
| 80. | IND | • DJ Giddens | 22.2 |
—Ian Allan