Transcript
Speaker: Running back is the most loaded has been in years at the top and the most dangerous has been in years in the middle rounds. Today we're putting them in five tiers, who you build around, who you start with confidence and who the market has completely wrong.
Speaker: Welcome back. Welcome back. Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen, to another episode of the Bush League Huddle Fantasy Football Podcast. How we doing? How's it going? I'm Fab, and I'm joined, as always, with Roger and Nak. we got off We got another fire episode, ladies and gentlemen.
Speaker: We got another fire episode, another tier episode. This time we're working on the money that is the the the draft. It's where everyone puts buts their dollars. there Everyone is business you know the most important. the the The meats and potatoes of the world. The guys that you need. The running backs. The running back tiers.
Speaker: Those big body boys are just like bum right through the offensive lines and score them touchdowns. That's who we're going to be profiling today. This is a position that separates great drafters from everybody else.
Speaker: And the one where the most money is lost in the middle rounds every single year. There's always that dead zone situation. that dead zone RB period. That's like so so hard to figure out who am I drafting this guy? Well, we're going be talking about those guys, but before we do quick plug, if you miss our tight end and QB tears episodes from the last two weeks, both are in the description. So please follow us on YouTube, Spotify, Apple podcast, TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter.
Speaker: We are like we mentioned before, we're, we're in full swing on pre-draft previews and we have waivers and sits to our content every single week. Now, once the season begins, So that's what we have for you guys this week. We have running back tiers. We got five tiers. We got one liner per player.
Speaker: We're going to have plenty of disagreement. And we start off with everybody's favorite knack. Tier one, it's yours. Go for it.
Speaker: Thank you, Fab. um Yes, tier one. These are the ah slam dunks. Build your roster around these guys. You're definitely going to pay the price.
Speaker: At number one, we have Mr. Jameer Gibbs. 1,200 rushing yards and 13 TDs, 77 catches in 2025. So the most complete back in the NFL and consensus, League huddle number one.
Speaker: Dijon Robinson, almost 1,500 yards last year, 79 catches in 2025. Algier is now gone. Stefanski arriving and all-time rushing and receiving ah records are within reach. Big season upcoming. And fun fact, he got paid today, three years, $75 million. dollars highest paid running back at the moment.
Speaker: Number three, we've got Christian McCaffrey finished overall RB1 in 2025 and had 102 catches. The talent is definitely uneniable, but he has missed 20 plus games over the past three seasons.
Speaker: The floor is the only question and maybe the substation. yeah At number four, we've got Jonathan Taylor. So led the NFL in rush attempts and TDs in 2025. RB1 from weeks one to 10.
Speaker: Jones is returning from Achilles and we saw what Kirk Cousins looked like post-injury. So kind of keep an eye out there. Next, we've got James Cook III. 1,600 rushing yards in the Bills' elite ecosystem.
Speaker: Fab actually keeps him in tier one and me and Raj have him drop down to tier two. And last but not least, we've got Devon Chan. 1,350 rushing yards, 67 catches in 2025.
Speaker: Now there's McDaniels gone. Willis is at QB. The offensive line ranked 31st per PFF. And Rods has been dropped all the way down to 8th, the lowest out of everyone.
Speaker: So, Raj, this has been a debate all season long. We have this in the group chat, but I want you to tell the listeners why we have Gibbs over Bijan as a consensus RB1 this year.
Speaker: I had a hard time with this. This was probably the hardest ranking that I went back and forth and I ended up changing. I started with Bijan as the RB1 this off season and I reverted back to Jameer Gibbs because of the numbers. One of the things we looked at early on in our shows was the DraftSharks fantasy environment.
Speaker: They have Detroit as the fourth best environment in fantasy and also have Atlanta as the 22nd best environment. So we know Detroit is kind of a plug and play environment. Everything flows with... You know Jared Goff, Amon Rossane Brown and Jameer Gibbs. They are always, always in the red zone, always there to attack. And Atlanta, you know, obviously, step Kevin Stefanski going to should, in theory, look better. And, you know, we like some of the talent there, but it's still with Tua and still with Kirk Cousins and still a bit a little bit unsettled. And I think overall, Gibbs has just been the better touchdown scorer throughout his career. Last year, last year he scored 18 touchdowns with 46 fewer touchdowns. And over his career, he has almost double the touchdown rate that Bijan Robinson has. He has a touchdown rate of 6% versus Bijan, who's 3%.
Speaker: And I think the deciding fact for me is David Montgomery is gone. So in six games without David Montgomery, Bijan had 23 carry average 23 carries and 138 scrimmage yards and 1.3 touchdowns per game.
Speaker: Obviously this is a projection and a pace, but that paces out to 2,300 scrimmage yards and 23 touchdowns in the season. So I am all in on Jameer Gibbs and he is the bonafide number one running back in fantasy this year.
Speaker: Yeah, honestly, it's really hard to argue with that logic. I have had him last year, picked him with pick number seven. That's obviously not going to happen this year. um But yeah, with with Montgomery gone, i don't see Pacheco carving in that much of a role either with his running style. So I do tend to agree with that um assessment.
Speaker: and Fab, actually you kept you kept Taylor, Cook and Achan all in Tier 1 and Raj and I had um all dropped down in Tier 2. so Are you i don't know want to ask you're being too aggressive on all three or there one you feel strongest about defending?
Speaker: Honestly, I'll defend all six of them. Like to me, these are the, these these are the six running backs that have a potential to finish as RB1 at the end of the season. And once upon a time have been very close to RB1 during the course of the season. Like obviously McCaffrey, Bijan, Jameer Gibbs, Jonathan Taylor last year, we mentioned it from weeks one to 10, like was just on fire.
Speaker: James Cook showed us last year that it doesn't matter if he has a touchdown regression because he's lead league in rushing yards. And then Devon Achan is just that guy. It doesn't matter what type of offense they're running. He is that guy. and oddly enough, all through those all six of those guys finished as RB1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 last year.
Speaker: So just to say, I think that if... Yeah, well, i just... If anyone is drafting one of these guys, and and like if you have a chance to draft one these guys as your RB1, as your anchor RB, your hero RB and all that, I think you'll be very satisfied. I think you'll be very happy. And I think...
Speaker: they deserve to be in tier one because you can argue with any single one of them that they'll finish as rb1 at the end of the year and it wouldn't be a crazy conversation
Speaker: yeah look yeah all honestly all good points um i just thought i mean my reasoning i'll just give it quickly i just thought gibbs bijon and cmc were just in ah in a class of their of their own but um yeah for sure i mean but just the other ones are a bit They would be a bit murky for me in terms of the actual offense besides, I guess, James Cook. But um no, I definitely tend to um and to agree.
Speaker: That was my reasoning as well, just quickly. like yeah To me, those three had questions. Taylor, Cook, HN, I felt they all had question marks. and i i've Even McCaffrey, at the injury aside from the injury, there's no question mark. And Bijan and Gibbs, like those guys are bona fide.
Speaker: They're going to finish top three. I'll push back on that. I don't think there's any question marks for Cook and Achan. Taylor, I'll give you question marks because of the offense, because of Daniel Jones coming back. Achan's probably the worst offense in the league. Yeah, but he's going to get the ball all the time. You want volume? you want He's going to be catching, passing the flats. he's goingnna be So much volume is going to be there with this guy. so much He's the only offensive piece, if you think about it.
Speaker: What's the question mark? Too much volume? That's problematic. Yeah, but volume doesn't necessarily equate to um production, right? like There's going to be but a lack of volume. going to be A lack of volume does equate to no production.
Speaker: No. i was that That's just my argument. like you know and the same like how How much worse is is the Miami Dolphins offense this year than last year? They don't have a scrambling quarterback. Miles. miles They didn't have a sc score scrambling quarterback last year. They have a score scrambling quarterback this year who scrambling quarterbacks tend to run with the ball themselves instead of go to the check down.
Speaker: Okay. Their offense is miles worse this year. Miles worse? That's an exaggeration. Listen, what are we arguing about over here? Having but this guy in tier one over tier two? Like, seriously. Well, I mean, it's still miles worse. Like, they lost their number one wide receiver, right?
Speaker: They lost Tua. Their O-line is 31st in the league. like it's it sits I would say miles worse than last year. That's just so much more volume for Devon Achan. I don't know. He even said to himself, he's looking for personal and statistical accolades. Look, if he's there... He's going to Christian McCaffrey this year,
Speaker: he's gonna get cushion mccaffy this year i think like how Christian McCaffrey was kind of pushed down to almost like the second round. I think that's what's going to happen to Dave Devon H. And I think we all would be very happy to have him. Yeah.
Speaker: That's a good call. He's going to be a value play for somebody. Yeah. Sure. Sure.
Speaker: Hodge, we'll keep it going with Tier 2. Absolutely. So Tier 2 is the set it and forget it high confidence starters draft and deploy. So we start off with Amarian Hampton, finished as RB35 last year in just nine games. But we're all very high on him with the fact that Mike McDaniel is a new AOC, fully healthy. He's ranked and he was ranked sixth in targets per route run among all running backs as a rookie. He had 32 catches last year in those nine games. So on pace for a decent amount of yardage. Next up, we have Ashton Janty, 975 rushing yards in a three and four Raiders offense. Obviously, the old line improved the tire Lindenbaum. The Kubiak effect is in full play and Cousins will be bridging at quarterback. Knack has him at seventh overall highest of anyone.
Speaker: And then we have Saquon Barkley. Just a shy over twelve hundred under 1200 yards in 2025. I have him sixth overall. I'm still very high on Saquon. Eagles elite O-line, but Hertz owns the goal line. Biggest knock on his ceiling is obviously the tush-push factor, but a lot of changes on that ah offense this year.
Speaker: Then we have Chase chase Brown, 1,000 rushing yards and 69 catches in 2025. He finished as the RB7 very sneakily. his health The health of Burrow changes a lot. When Burrow is healthy, Chase Brown is basically a 19, 20 point per game player. Fab has him eighth overall highest of anyone because of that factor, I think. And then we round this tier off with Derrick Henry, all reliable, almost 1600 rushing yards, 16 TDs in 2025, finished as the RB eighth, even as age 25. Knack drops him to tier three.
Speaker: Fab and I still keep him in tier tier two. we We still believe in Derrick Henry no regardless of age. We need to see it before we believe the the dip. So We just mentioned Henry put up those amazing stats. Nak, you have my tier three fab. What is the case against Henry at 32? you buy it?
Speaker: the The case against Henry at 32, it's the fact that he's 32. I think that's the only case, to be honest with you, because there's no other reason why you could be fading this guy. There's no other reason why you could be fading Derek Henry, who's been putting up like 1,500 yards consistently every single year or every other year and and double-digit touchdowns like with his eyes closed.
Speaker: ah In the Baltimore, Baltimore this year, have a new offensive coordinator, that Declan Doyle. who was a former offensive coordinator for the Bears last year and led the Bears in third most rushing offense in the NFL in 2025.
Speaker: And now, you know he gets he gets Derek Henry. So that's exciting if you're going to be drafting Derek Henry, I think. So yeah, I don't really have a case for this at all, to be honest with you. It's one of those things where like, you know what, I'm i'm willing to keep on drafting Derek Henry until he falls off. i think I think he's earned that right on it, to honest with you. And if he is your RB2, like, okay.
Speaker: when do you go pick up your championship? I don't know. I don't have an argument against this. i really don't. I think he sneaks into the third round this year, oddly enough. I just find that people are waiting for his drop-off or his demise, you know?
Speaker: It'll be a sneaky pick in the third. Fab, you are someone who, I think you rightly said it, if you owned Derek Henry last year, you probably didn't make the playoffs. Yes.
Speaker: Do you still, is that something that worries you? Yeah, of course. I mean, I'll be honest. Like, I think four touchdowns and 500 yards came in the last like three games. The big game against Green Bay, I think 200 yards, three touchdowns. So like if you if you got to the playoffs, you probably got to the playoffs with Derrick Henry despite having him.
Speaker: But at the same time, he probably helped you win a championship because like you you know he balled out when i counted. You know what i mean? So there's that to consider too. At the same time, he' he's being drafted as an RB2, right? and And there's still a lot to like as an RB2 when you have Derek Henry. He's a high-end, high-end RB2.
Speaker: And you're going to really be enjoying those games where he goes off. it's It's... Again, like there's so many guys that I'd rather... I would rather take Derek Henry over so many guys that have so many more question marks and we're complaining about a guy who's literally like old faithful. I just wouldn't be excited about as my and just wouldn't be excited about him as my r b one
Speaker: That I agree with. I would have some trepidations on that too. and But if he is my RB1, the rest of my team and is most likely stacked. Guys, in what league is... It's going to hard-pressed to see Derrick Henry as your RB2 in any lineup. But I think i think it's it's similar to Achan. He might get pushed down. i like what I'm hearing out of Ravens camp with regards to Declan Doyle. It sounds like there's a big shift from what...
Speaker: Not great for us Giants fans, Fab, but like from what some of the the players were saying about john John Harbaugh and that regime, sounds like there's some new ideas. Obviously, last year, Lamar Jackson was out a lot of games as well, which I think also impacts Derrick Henry's rushing style. So yes um i I tend to agree with you on that front.
Speaker: We're going to move on to someone else that we talked about in this tier. So I have Saquon Barkley as the sixth running back, higher than mcca not higher than McCaffrey, but have him pretty, pretty high. um Hurts taking the goal line work.
Speaker: We talked about that being the real knock on Barkley. Obviously, there was some issues last year with the play calling with Kevin Petulo. Nak, am i completely unhinged or does Barkley deserve to go that high?
Speaker: i don't I don't think you're crazy. i think Barkley absolutely belongs in the Tier 2 group. I just can't get him all the way up to 6 for me. like It comes down to ceiling versus floor, really. like the The floor is phenomenal, but that's for sure.
Speaker: he's been behind He's still behind an elite offensive line and he's in one of the league's best offenses. so You know he's going to get his touches, but that's why I still have him as my RB9, right? He's still a top 10 back. And the reason I have him behind a few other guys is, how you just mentioned, is Jalen Hurst. Those are goal line carries that are incredibly valuable in fantasy, and Hurst really takes most of them. And i he takes more than any quarterback in the league, maybe not named Josh Allen. And it's hard for Barkley to truly separate himself
Speaker: when some of the best touchdown opportunities are going somewhere else. you know yeah I feel like he would need to go back to 2024 explosive play Barkley in order to live up to that RB6 or better standard. So i look, I don't think you're unhinged, but if someone drafts Barkley at six, I get it. I just think that there are a few players at high overall ceiling, which is why I have them, like I said, nine instead of six. Very fair point. My counter would be offensive line was banged up last year. Lane Johnson missed eight games. Cam Juergens and Landon Dickerson were were injured in some of those games as well. i think his efficiency also took a dive. So in 2024, yards before contact, he was 3.8. That was one of the highest in the league. He fell down to 2.3 in which is a clear impact from from the And now they're getting obviously no Kevin Petulo. Sean Mannion is coming from the Green Bay Packers more under center.
Speaker: think a lot of, a lot of analysts talked about it last year. They were probably the most predictable rushing attack there is. I think there's going to be way more unpredictability with that Shanahan like offense. And I could see a return back to kind of that high explosiveness, high run running ability and running at rushing attack when,
Speaker: The tush push was a big factor anyways, and he still had an elite year. So I could see where people are bit trepidatious about that, but I'm all in on Barkley 2026. Fab, move to tier three.
Speaker: fab let's move on to tier three Oh yeah, tier three. this is This is honestly tier three is where you're going either make or break some fantasy championships. I think this this is the startable tier, viable weekly starters with real question mark attack attached to them, but still could be very interesting. So just some quick hitters right now from some ranking perspective. So Josh Jacobs there. So I have him as the ranking 12. Knack has him drop down to tier four as ranking 18. It's the biggest gap on the board over here. ah Travis Achan, I had him drop down to tier four.
Speaker: Knack and Roger kept him in tier three. Jeremiah Love, Knack had him at overall ranking 13. Roger had him at ranking 19. So there is a bit of a discrepancy here. We're going to go each through each one one by one quickly. So Kenneth Walker III finishes RB22 last season in Seattle's committee.
Speaker: Now he's in Kansas City with Mahomes, Andy Reid, bunch of hooligans and felons over there. All right. The market has him as RB11. We have him as Bush League Huddle12, RB12. Karen Williams, my boy Karen Williams, finished his RB9 last season. 2025 Rams gave him a $33 million dollars extension that immediately installed him in a 640 split with Blake Corum.
Speaker: Touches dropped from 21 to 17 per game, and Corum continues to loom as an elite handcuff. Javante Williams, redemption tour is continuing for Mr. Javante Williams. Finishes RB12 last season. Dallas is number one fantasy environment.
Speaker: Market has him as RB17. We have him as RB14. Josh Jacobs finishes RB13 last season. This is Roger's favorite player, by the way. I have I bump him up to a ranking 12 in tier two.
Speaker: Knack drops him down to 18 in tier four at age 28. Four yards per carry now 100 yard game illegal situation un resolve. It's the biggest gap on the entire board.
Speaker: And you got Jeremiah Love, the rookie in Arizona with a four and a half win total offense. Knack has him aggressively high at 13. Raj drops him down to 19.
Speaker: We have the quarterback. The quarterback room that everyone expected to have the quarterback battle between Jacoby Brissett and Carson Beck, the 28th overall ranked O-line as per PFF. And you got Brees Hall, 1,400 yards from scrimmage in 2025. Quietly, 1,400 yards from scrimmage. three yard Three-year, $45 million dollar extension locks him in.
Speaker: Frank Reich historically splits his backfield between a rushing down and a passing down back, which directly caps Hall's ceiling in both phases. And again, the aforementioned Travis HN Jr. Finishes RB 10 last season in a career high 13 TDs. He signed a four year, $52 million dollar deal with the New Orleans Saints.
Speaker: Camara is still on the roster. Saints projected with a 20 or projected 26 and offensive TDs. I dropped them all way down to tier four. Knack and Raj keep them in tier three.
Speaker: So. Jacobs, Josh Jacobs, polarizing name, if you will. He finished his RB13 last season. I have him as tier two. I still think there's a lot of consistency there, if you will, albeit maybe not very high, but I think there's ah there's a decent floor.
Speaker: Knack has him at tier four. At age 28, OK O-line. Obviously, that legal situation exists. So, Knack, defend dropping Jacobs to tier four when myself and Raj have him a little bit higher.
Speaker: Yeah, and look, this is definitely the, or one of the biggest disagreements on the board. And it's not that I think Josh Jacobs is bad. I just don't see his ceiling anymore. but Like we said, we look back at last season. He did finish RB13, but it wasn't because he was dominant. He averaged just four yards per carry and didn't have a single 100-yard game, as you mentioned. And a lot of his fantasy volume came value excuse me came from volume.
Speaker: like That's a dangerous profile to bet on as a bat gets older, right? ah So you add his uncertainty. He's 28. Offensive line is good, but not really elite. And there's still some off-field legal issues hanging over him.
Speaker: Maybe it ends up being nothing, but it's another risk that I'm definitely factoring in. So for me, when I'm drafting in this rage, I'd rather take a swing on younger backs with more upside, like ah Travis Etienne, Javante Williams, a Kenneth Walker, and then bet on Jacobs ah repeating last year's workload.
Speaker: like i said Look, he's still startable every week, and that's why he's not all the way down my board. But I don't see him outperforming enough to to justify a Tier 3 ranking or a two Tier 2 ranking and in some cases. So I get why you guys have him a little higher. I just think you're paying for what jo Jacobs used to be. And whereas where I'm ranking him based on where i think he's headed.
Speaker: i don't know if I'm paying for where he used to be. I think he is very much a mid-tier RB2. i Maybe I have him a little bit ranked a little bit higher than that, but and know figure RB12, 13, 14, like in that range, right? That's where I kind of see him, to be honest with you.
Speaker: And that's more or less where he finished last year too. And the thing why I have him maybe ranked little bit higher is because he's still RB1 over there. He's still volume guy. He's still a goal lineback. He's still going to get...
Speaker: first, second down work and all that stuff. And he did miss a few games last year. He didn't have less attempts than the year before. And he still finished with four yards of carry, 13 touchdowns, a decent amount of targets, decent amount of receptions for to sustain that value. So, I mean, I get what you're saying. I do.
Speaker: I, I kind of see Josh Jacobs a little bit safer than some of the other guys over here. And I say some of them, not all of them. I say some of the other guys over here from that respect, but, It's a very good point. One guy that I don't see safe at all anymore is Travis Achan, even though finished his last season with a career high of 13 touchdowns.
Speaker: And Kamara is still on the roster. New Orleans projects with a twenty sixth ah projected for 26 offensive TDs. Raj, am I right to fade him, or is Achan being undervalued by the market RB18?
Speaker: Yeah, I know you have him at 22 and I have him at 17, but I think the market is remembering the touchdowns and forgetting everything else. Like, yes, he scored 13 touchdowns last year, but he went scoreless in eight of 17 games, which is about 47%. Most backs are closer to 25 to 30% of games that don't have a touchdown. where Yeah, they don't have a touchdown. And...
Speaker: David Neil still there. Alvin Kamara still there. It's gonna be a pass for his offense. We talked about a lot of explosiveness with this offense, with the color more offense with Tyler sch Shuck and Jordan Tyson and Chris Alave. And one of the things with HN that I've always talked about is he's never been a great short yardage back. I could see Devin Neal taking over some of that role. Audrey Estime is still there too. And from a passing pass catching efficiency standpoint, I believe he had 31 catches and about 200 less, a little bit less, a little bit more than 200 yards or so. i think he had five or six TDs, but he had a three touchdown game. So there's a lot of aberrations I find with Etienne. He's, he's hard to rely upon. And for me,
Speaker: I priced him at 17. i would much rather have, you know, a lot of the guys I had, even Josh Jacobs, who were poo-pooing a little bit on lower upside. I think I'd still rather go with Josh Jacobs because, as you said, he's RB1 there, not much competition. And it's still an offense I trust a little bit more. And even i think I even had Brees Hall even just above that, considering the talent. So.
Speaker: Yeah, I agree with all those points, especially Brees Hall over Travis H. And to your point about the aberration, so that game where he had three receiving touchdowns was against the Jets.
Speaker: He had four targets for three receptions for three receiving touchdowns. So, you know, those are asterisks, like our friend Lucas knows all too well. So you can't really count on all those things all that much.
Speaker: But yeah, and I agree. I mean, Travis H. And to me, it really, really worries me. He really scares me. It's not really somebody that I'm um I'm targeting at all and in an offense or from RB perspective.
Speaker: But anyways, um unlike Travis H and Roger, I will hand it off to you now. I'm sorry, excuse me, Knack. It's up to you right now. I think with tier four. Is that right? Yeah, it is. It's me. Tier four guys. It's the solid flex play. You've got to know the situation with these guys. So Up first, we've got Cam Skadabo, who is on pace actually for a um top 10 running back finish before his gruesome ankle injury ended his season in week eight. And the Giants office is in improving um with jack Jackson Dart maybe coming up in in year two.
Speaker: Then you've got DeAndre Swift finished at RB15 last season. um Now in Chicago's ah elite Ben Johnson offense and up into, now it's year two, excuse me, with that offense behind.
Speaker: Probably one of the better offensive lines in the league. First as per PFF and Market has him as RB24, but we have him as RB20. Then you've got my boy Bucky Irving finished as running back 34 last season.
Speaker: Heavily hampered by injury. And in Tampa, where Cainwell could share or take over passing down work, Raj actually drops him down to running back 24. Then we've got Bichel Tootin, finished RB53 last season and obviously very limited action with now Etienne gone. 197 rush attempts are projected.
Speaker: Raj drops him down to 26, but Fab and I both have him at RB20. And we've got Quinson Judkins, finished RB26 last year.
Speaker: Raj actually moves him up to tier three with new head coach Todd Munkin. Brown's dead last actually in fantasy environment for DraftSharks at negative 3.82. Yeah, it yeah yeah it is pretty funny. We could take a second to laugh.
Speaker: um Up next, we've got David Montgomery. Finished RB27 last year behind Gibbs. Now has Houston's rebuilt O-line. yeah ESPN run block. Win rate was 32nd last year. So with Elite Weapons, if the line holds.
Speaker: Trevion Hedgeson obviously flashed a little bit last year. Finished as RB21. Patriots with AJ Brown arriving. Fab dropped him down to Tier 5. me and Raj keep him here in Tier 4.
Speaker: four Then you've got Chuba Hubbard, finished RB38 last season. Zero guaranteed money in 2027, so he's playing for his next contract. And Fab actually drops him down to Tier 5.
Speaker: Then you've got my boy Jalen Warren, finished RB17 last year. Roger actually actually keeps him in Tier 4. Fab and I drop him down to Tier 5, competing now with Rico Dottle, who looks to be the early season RB1 in Pittsburgh under Mike McCarthy.
Speaker: Next up, we've got Tony Pallard finished RB23 last year. Raj keeps him in tier four. Fab and myself drop him down to tier five. And the Titans ecosystem ranks 31st per DraftSharks.
Speaker: Then you've got the aforementioned Rico Dattel finished RB18 last year. i kept them in tier four. Whereas Fab has him in Tier 5, competing with Warren, obviously, in Pittsburgh. Then you've got Jadarian Price to round out the group. Unproven rookie, obviously, but now Walker's gone and Charbonnet is going to miss some time recovering from his ACL.
Speaker: I actually have him as 24, and Raj actually drops him all the way down to running back 39. Biggest gap in this tier. So just to keep it going with Jadarian Price...
Speaker: um He does have Walker gone and Charbonnet coming off an ACL. Like I said, I have him as 24th. Raj drops him down to 39. Raj, why are you so low when the opportunity is right there?
Speaker: Yeah, Kenneth Walker is gone, but it's still a committee. I think everyone's just handing this role to Jadarian Price just because he's a rookie and he was drafted pretty decently high for inning back. But I still see a committee. Actually, weeks ago, ESPN Seahawks beat reporter Brady Henderson said Seattle didn't draft Price expecting him to be a high volume starter right away. That was a word for word quote that came from him.
Speaker: That is Seattle literally saying that they don't see him as a viable starter right away. There's still George, George Halani, who he was a camp darling and preseason darling last year.
Speaker: Zach Charbonnet is on the PUP physically unable to perform list, but he should be back. And he was a big goal line vulture last year. And, you know, one of the pathways for a lot of rookie running backs is either, you know, getting 10 carries a game, or at least getting some touchdowns or catching passes.
Speaker: Price in three years as Jermyra loves backup, he only caught 15 passes in three college seasons. So if he's not getting passing down work, he's not getting full of workload, what's the ceiling for him?
Speaker: So I'd rather just drop him down.
Speaker: Pretty interesting perspective, actually. I know Holani, everyone liked kind of him last year, and he's he's looking good in camp. I think Charbonnet, that's just the biggest question mark, because he's probably going to start the season on the pup.
Speaker: yeah And then like there's going to be a ramp-up period for the running back. So I think Charbonnet could miss or be ramped up for at least half the season, if not longer. So that's where my kind of eyes go, even if Price gets the early down work with Holani getting the pass-catching role.
Speaker: Quinone Junkins is going market RB21, but the Browns, like we mentioned, are dead last in fantasy environment per DraftSharks. Fabs, is Rog seeing something we're not, or is the ecosystem too broken to trust anyone on that roster?
Speaker: I think it's too broken to trust anyone on the roster, right? like just So Quichon Judkins, I think he held out or had some issues in week one last year. He he started of week two. um and he It was police-related.
Speaker: Right. So i I want to give the guy benefit though. Yeah, so it was police-related. And then he got injured towards the end of this season. But he's a full goal at camp. He's a quintessential, in my opinion, low-end RB2, just judging by the fact of that offense that he plays in. and like listen Todd Munkin, as our new head coach, give give him a bit of a bump from ah from a rushing perspective, and we all know what Todd Munkin did with Baltimore and that rushing offense and an aforementioned Derrick Henry for a few years and all that stuff.
Speaker: and No, I'm not comparing Derrick Henry to Quinshawn Judkins, but give him a little bit of bump from that perspective. I just don't see it as being viable, to be honest with you, as far as fantasy success is concerned.
Speaker: You're looking at his stats from last year. he had one, two, three, four weeks where he finished as either RB11 or better, and everything else was in the RB40s and 20s and 50s and all that. You know what i mean? It's a bad offensive line. It's a bad offense.
Speaker: It's not a great quarterback situation, whether it starts Shadir Sanders or Deshaun Watson. um There's also Dylan Sampson there, which I know won't necessarily take away too many carries from Judkins, but still, you know, like they did draft or another rookie running back. So there is there's that in the room.
Speaker: So, yeah, I mean, draft at your own peril, to be honest with you. if we're talking about guys in this tier, Quichon Judkins is one of, if not the last one that I want to be drafting.
Speaker: even more than Chubba Hubbard, like Chubba Hubbard, you know, he'll have a role and it's a it's, I can't believe I'm saying this. It's a much more effective offense, much more effective offense. It is an effective, more effective offense than the Cleveland Browns.
Speaker: Yeah. And Chubba Hubbard, like there is the Jonathan Brooks scenario is very real. This, this is obviously probably going to be the last year that you can draft Trevor Hubbard this high for the Panthers offense. I think.
Speaker: and then if you want to round out every single other guy over here real quick just to see which one makes more sense i mean even even tony pollard i'd rather have him even judarian price you know what at least i might get four decent games out of him i don't know like i have no interest i don't know yeah i don't know it's he's i feel like judkins is just very weird it's a very weird player like you you have to take him when the time is right and you can't overpay because yeah for sure And if I'm wrong, hey, I'll be the first one to eat crow, but I'm not putting anything on Quinshan Jutson being better than RB2, a low on RB2 this year.
Speaker: And I think i think nothing it's a talent. It's all against the idea the environment. I go, you guys are saying, I think I still like the upside. I still like the talent. I think I'm, I fell in love with some of those games where the efficiency isn't great, but there's some 18 94, one TD games against green Bay 21 for 82, one TD against Detroit. Again, not great efficiency. And even 23 for 110 against Minnesota. Those are really tough defenses.
Speaker: I think the offense line is going to be better. It will be better because they made some signings. Spencer Fano. So I think I'm optimistic on that front. I totally get what you guys are saying. But I like the upside because the talent to me, I think he's, ah he might be the most talented back in pure talent in this, in this tier, maybe along with Trivion Henderson.
Speaker: Oh, that I agree with 100%. You're totally right about that. He's definitely the most talented back in this, in this tier. Yeah, I don't know. I think there's more sure. I think there's other players in here that have a higher ceiling and a higher floor that I'd be much more interested in. All right, Raj, why don't you take us home with tier five?
Speaker: Yes, tier five. These are the bi-week fill-ins. Some names down here. We'll go quickly. Kenny Gainwell, RJ Harvey, Jonathan Brooks, Zach Charbonnet, who we talked about earlier, Ramondre Stevenson, who he's still going to be a thorn in Travion Henderson's side, I believe. Jalen, yeah, Kyle Monongai and a few others there. Aaron Jones Sr., Rashad White, Alvin Kamara. Bill Kroski Merritt. So for me, three guys that I really like in this tier. So RJ Harvey, Bush League Huddles. We had him as RB35. The market has him as RB30. Finished RB20 last season. 12 touchdowns as a rookie. He tore his labrum in the AFC Championship game, which obviously scared everyone off. Looks like he's fully ready and healthy for camp.
Speaker: I think he's a solid bet here as a pass catching back. I know they got Jonah Coleman. I know J.K. Dobbins is supposed to be a thing again, league winner. Ha ha ha ha. But as as we know, J.K. Dobbins constantly gets injured. And I still like the the talent that R.J. Harvey has, again, more so as a pass catching back. Jonathan Brooks, we've talked about him a ton in this podcast in our offseason. We have him as the RB34. The market has him at RB37. We know about the two ACL tears in the same knee in the last 13 months.
Speaker: They let Dowdle walk. I think the fact that they let Dowdle walk and the amount of impact he had last year replacing or spelling Trouba Hubbard, I think that's very telling. I think Jonathan Brooks is bound to have a very, very solid season. And he's the type of guy to take if you have him available in the later rounds, swing for the fences for him over some of those more known commodities. And there's Kenny Gainwell. We have him as RB31. The market has him as RB36. He finished as the RB16 last year. I believe he had 70 some odd catches.
Speaker: Knack, wasn't he the Steelers MVP last year as well? Aaron Rodgers absolutely loved him. i think he's going to make a huge impact with Tampa Bay. Obviously, Bucky herving is brookie Irving is still there, but he's been in hampered with injury history over the past few years. I think Gainwell is a bona fide great play as your flex option. so Those are just a few of the guys here at to tier five. Again, this is more bi-week fill-ins. But if you have an opportunity to get someone with upside who could maybe eventually be an RB2, definitely look for those upside swings or some of those PPR guys. So now let's talk about who the market has completely wrong in our last closing segment or where we're going to talk about some of the running backs who may or may not have been mispriced.
Speaker: Yes. Thank you very much, Roger. So yeah, so very simple, very simple exercise here. Each one of us is going to pick one player, buyer fade, the market we think has completely wrong. Name, gap, conviction. That's it.
Speaker: That's it. So I want to kick it off just because you know what? The guy that I'm about to choose is very near and dear to my heart. Mr. Kyron Williams. We have him as ranked collectively RB 13. The market has him as RB 15.
Speaker: RB nine last season. He's finished RB 10, RB 10 or better. RB nine or better. Basically as a top 10 RB in last like three years. So, Why am I buying? I don't think Blake Corham is really going to be a thing necessarily. And even if he is a thing, I still think there's going to be more than enough volume for Karen Williams to carve out a low and RB one role.
Speaker: ah Williams will reassert himself as a workhorse, a workhorse as he always has. The extension signals the Rams believe in him, and I think he finishes an RB1 range. Again, low end, albeit. I'm not going to sit here and bump my chest and going to finish as top five guy.
Speaker: But is RB10, RB9, RB11 very much in sight? I think so for a guy that should be drafting as an RB2. And I'll go one step further. Ever since the LA Rams week eight bye last year,
Speaker: Karen Williams out carried out targeted and out snap Blake Horn. And specifically when it comes to a target perspective, he out target him 33 to 11. And in a PPR league, you like that a lot.
Speaker: I think Kyron Williams is the guy. I think he got torched from a goal line perspective because Matthew Stafford was just spamming those one-yard touchdowns to Devante Adams, but or else that would have gone to Karen Williams too. He has a goal linebacker.
Speaker: So that's what I think. That's my two cents. I'm sticking through it. If Karen Williams is there for me as an RB2, I'm drafting him. You heard it here first. Ten toes down. How are you? Roger, you can go ahead. Yeah, I'm going to be fading Jeremiah Love. We have him as RB16. Market has him RB13. Obviously, the market has learned from the Ashton-Gente experience last year, but I don't think they learned enough. Obviously, for me, the fade reasons, bad QB or at least limited QB, bad O-line, very bad ecosystem. And we talked about it last year, the last few weeks, the worst schedule in the NFL by far.
Speaker: finishes outside that i think he Finishes outside the top 25 as a rookie. I think the market is pricing him way, way too high. And I think the thing that concerns me the most, Nathaniel Hackett somehow is their offensive coordinator. He was terrible as an offensive as a head coach with Denver.
Speaker: There was a quote where they were asking about Jeremiah Love, and Nathaniel Hackett was basically saying, yeah, he's a rookie. And he was saying how he's more excited about James Conner and Tyler Algier. Imagine that.
Speaker: the running back the The rookie electrifying running back that you took third overall and all your offensive corner has to say is, yeah, he's a rookie and you're more excited for James Conner and Tyler Algier.
Speaker: That's all I have to hear. And I ah do not want anything to do with the Jarmilev experience personally. Nak, who do you have? Wow. Yeah, that's wild. hey Oh, my God. yeah He's going to be one of those guys that someone's going to grab really early and then really regret it early on in the year, I think. I'm i'm curious to see where where he goes in our in our draft. ah For me, i have Javante Williams, actually. um The market has him as RB17. We have him as RB14.
Speaker: And last year, finished as RB12. Guys, I think we've been broken broken radios on this pod with this Dallas offense. Like, if Dak stays healthy, Dallas has the number one fantasy football environment per DraftSharks. I think we've said that 17 times.
Speaker: And i think he came in and he really asserted himself in in that offense. And i like, there's something to be said that each player in that offense could potentially finish top five at their position.
Speaker: Like, it's not out of the realm of possibility. Like, I feel like this team, and this is me coming from the biggest Dallas Cowboy hater on the planet. From a fantasy perspective, they are fantasy gold. Like, if Javante Williams finishes top five, I wouldn't be shocked. If Lamb or Pickens finishes top five, I wouldn't be shocked.
Speaker: Dak as well. Dak could finish as QB1 almost. Like, it it it really depends. Like, and you're not going to be shocked. You want a piece of this offense any way you can. And I think the disrespect on him going all the way down to running back 17, I'm buying hard on Javante Williams here.
Speaker: That's a wrap, boys, on the 2026 running back tiers, the position that makes or breaks fantasy seasons. So know your tier, ladies and gentlemen. Know your price and do not let the draft day panic push you into a situation where you do not trust.
Speaker: Do not miss next week. We've got the wide receivers, the pièce de l'estence, saving the best for last. That one should be spicy. 18 tiers, guys. Spicy with the wide receivers next week.
Speaker: But don't forget to follow us, guys, on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter. Send us your questions. We answer everything. See you next Tuesday. and Peace out, everyone.
