Top 10 Running Back Studs - Best Fantasy Football RB Performances Including Saquon Barkley, Breece Hall, David Montgomery, And More

Alex breaks down the top ten running back performances of Week 11 and offers an analysis of their outlooks moving forward. Which RB helped you win your matchup this weekend?

Week 11 is nearly in the books, and it might have just been the best weekend of football yet. The Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers again played a slobberknocker -- as is usually the case when these two AFC North foes square off -- as every matchup between the long-time rivals seems to come down to the smallest of margins. The Lions keep steamrolling teams, and the Jaguars were their latest victims. Detroit has scored at least 42 points four times this season and 52 in two of their last four outings. Their margin in those victories is an astounding  193-58.

The reigning Super Bowl champ Kansas City Chiefs were finally dethroned from their undefeated run by the Buffalo Bills, meaning the '72 Dolphins can once again pop champagne as their undefeated record will stand alone for at least one more season. While KC/BUF was a thriller, I'd argue that the Chargers' victory over the Bengals on Sunday Night Football was the more entertaining matchup. Yet, perhaps the most impressive storyline from Week 11 is Broncos rookie QB Bo Nix, who continues to prove he belongs on an NFL field. Nix had the game of his life against a hapless Falcons defense, as he went off for 307 yards and four passing scores and completed 85% of his passes. Yes, it was a weekend for the ages, and the running backs got in on the fun.

With four more teams on bye this weekend, RB scoring felt light. Notably exempt from this feature are the Carolina Panthers' Chuba Hubbard, the Arizona Cardinals' James Conner, the New York Giants' rookie running back Tyrone Tracy Jr., and Tampa Bay's backfield duo of Rachaad White and Bucky Irving. Additionally, Joe Mixon and Rico Dowdle won't qualify as the Houston Texans, and the Dallas Cowboys are set to close out the week on Monday Night Football. Let's get into the weekend's top running back performances.

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Top 10 Running Backs of the Week (Including SNF)

Here are the top-10 running backs from Week 11 of the 2024 NFL season in PPR scoring:

1. Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles

Saquon Barkley was electric in Philly's 26-18 win over the Washington Commanders and continues to be one of the most lucrative picks in fantasy. The 27-year-old totaled 198 yards and two touchdowns in the outing and was again dominant against one of the league's worst rush defenses.

The Penn State product ripped off 146 yards on his 26 carries, with his touchdowns coming from 23 and 39 yards out. He also chipped in 52 yards on 2-of-3 receiving, including another long gain of 43. To the Commanders' credit, they held the fantasy superstar in check for nearly the entire game, as most of his production came mid-way through the third quarter or later. Still, they could only contain him for so long.

This is a scheduled Saquon Barkley TD tweet actually @saquon | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/zDRIu7hXsv

— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) November 15, 2024

This was the fourth time this season that the seventh-year veteran had rushed for over 140 yards and the fourth time he had scored multiple touchdowns. Barkley will again get a juicy matchup next weekend on Sunday Night Football when the Philadelphia Eagles travel to SoFi Stadium to square off against the Los Angeles Rams. Continue to rely on him as an elite RB1.

2. Breece Hall, New York Jets

Fantasy managers must be pleased with Breece Hall's output in the Jets' 28-27 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. The former Iowa State Cyclone was heavily involved in both facets of the team's game plan, racking up 78 yards and a score on his 16 carries while adding another touchdown and 43 yards through the air on 7-of-7 receiving. It was his first multi-touchdown effort of the year.

Hall's receiving output, reception, and target total were good enough for the second-highest figures on his team, and it was the first time since Week 7 that the 23-year-old had cracked the top ten at his position. It was nice to see New York feature him in their attack. It didn't amount to a win, but the fantasy points are what we're here for, right?

There was some early-season concern that backfield mate Braelon Allen would eat into Hall's workload as the season wore on, but that has not been the case. In fact, Allen recorded just two touches in the loss -- matching his fewest in an outing since Week 1.

Hall and the Jets will get their bye in Week 12.

3. David Montgomery, Detroit Lions

The Lions absolutely dismantled the Jaguars this Sunday, 52-6, in Jacksonville's largest deficit in a loss in team history. Jared Goff was again near-perfect -- stealing the show with an absurd 412 yards and four passing touchdowns on 24-of-29 passing. However, David Montgomery still scored his fair share of fantasy points.

The sixth-year back was effective on his 15 carries, churning out 75 yards (5.0 YPC) and two touchdowns in the victory, collecting all three of his targets for another 20 yards receiving. The rushing scores were from two and six yards out, and it was his second outing this season with two TDs, as he's now up to ten in 2024 -- three away from tying his career-best mark set just a season ago. The move to Detroit was the best thing he could have done for his career.

Montgomery's counterpart Jahmyr Gibbs was effective in his own right (11/69/1), but the 27-year-old continues to be a critical piece of the Lions' offense and is in no danger of losing his role. He'll again be a strong RB2 play in Week 12 against an Indianapolis Colts defense that entered Week 11 allowing the fourth-most rush yards per game (148.3).

4. Josh Jacobs, Green Bay Packers

Josh Jacobs has now been a top-four performer at the RB position in two of his last three outings. He ran well Sunday afternoon as Green Bay barely eked out their division-rival Chicago Bears 20-19. It was the second week in a row that an NFL game came down to the wire and was decided on a last-second blocked field goal.

Josh Jacobs’ 50th career rushing touchdown!#GBvsCHI pic.twitter.com/vxsYWWwI6r

— Green Bay Packers (@packers) November 17, 2024

Jacobs toted the rock 18 times, amassing 76 yards and a touchdown -- his fifth of the season -- and was also heavily utilized in the passing game, adding another 58 yards on 4-of-5 receiving. The 58 yards were a season-high and second behind wide receiver Christian Watson (150), while his five targets were the most by any Packer on the day.

Jacobs has been solid in 2024, but he'll get a much stiffer test in Week 12 when Green Bay hosts the visiting San Francisco 49ers. Fantasy managers will want to temper expectations for that one, as San Fran came into Week 11 allowing the eighth-fewest rushing yards per game (106.2). Still, the 26-year-old will be a mid-low-end RB2.

5. De'Von Achane, Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins eclipsed the 30-point mark for the first time all season in Sunday's 34-19 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders. It was another standout performance from De'Von Achane, who continues to be a fantasy force with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa back in action.

The second-year speedster has yet to break a signature long gain this season but has otherwise been a strong start on a weekly basis with his QB1 in the fold. Sunday was no different, as he rushed for 73 yards and scored on his 17 carries (4.29 YPC) while remaining active in the passing game, recording another 32 yards through the air on 4-of-4 receiving.

Achane has yet to surpass 97 yards on the ground in any game this season. However, in the six games Tagovailoa has been active, he has averaged 6.17 receptions per contest. Extrapolating that pace over an entire season's worth of work would give him just under 105 receptions (104.84) in a 17-game sample. Incredible.

He'll have another excellent shot at fantasy greatness in Week 12 in a home tilt against the New England Patriots next Sunday. The Pats are affording opposing rushing attacks the tenth-most yards per game on the ground (130.5) and had allowed the fifth-most fantasy points per contest to running backs (19.4) leading up to Week 11.

6. James Cook, Buffalo Bills

The Bills are one of the hottest teams in football, and they proved it in spades on Sunday afternoon, knocking off the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs 30-21. It was Buffalo's sixth straight win and fifth game in a row, scoring at least 30 points. James Cook was abysmal on a per-touch basis against one of the league's best defenses, but his two rushing scores helped propel him to a productive day.

The former Georgia Bulldog's TDs were from six and three yards out, but he gained just 11 more yards on seven more carries. He was stymied through the air, too, notching seven yards on 5-of-6 receiving. Fortunately for fantasy managers, he fell into the end zone; otherwise, he'd have scored a paltry 7.7 fantasy points in PPR formats. Woof.

Still, Cook has been excellent this season, totaling eleven touchdowns and 77.8 scrimmage yards per game in 2024. The TD output is far and away a new career high, while he has yet to put a ball on the turf across 162 touches.

The former second-round pick will get a bye in Week 12.

T-7. Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions

Jahmyr Gibbs was his usual uber-efficient self in Detroit's 52-6 obliteration of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Even with quarterback Jared Goff going off, the 22-year-old found a way to make his mark on the game.

Gibbs was actually bottled up on many of his runs but ripped off chunk gains of seven, eight, 16, and 23 yards en route to 69 yards on his 11 carries (6.27 YPC). His touchdown was of the one-yard plunge variety, and he chipped in 54 yards on his lone target. If he were ever to garner a workhorse role, it'd be tough to prefer any other back over him.

gotta go fast pic.twitter.com/zWTyxdBcY5

— Detroit Lions (@Lions) November 18, 2024

Surprisingly, Week 11 marked just the second time all season that both Gibbs and Montgomery were featured in this column simultaneously. However, they'll get a fantastic opportunity to make it a third time next weekend when they square off against a sieve-like Indianapolis Colts defense in Week 12. Indy allowed a dysfunctional NYJ offense to put up 27 points on them, so the Lions could reach 50 for the second week in a row and third time in five contests.

T-7. Chase Brown, Cincinnati Bengals

Despite Joe Burrow's best efforts -- yet again -- the Bengals could not complete the comeback on Sunday Night Football -- falling to the Los Angeles Chargers 34-27. Burrow again put forth a heroic performance, and while he and wide receivers Tee Higgins and Ja'Marr Chase headlined Cincinnati's side of the ball, it was running back Chase Brown consistently picking up tough yards and moving the chains for the Bengals' offense.

Brown was again a workhorse and remained a feature of Cincinnati's pass attack, even with Higgins' return after his five-game absence. The former Illinois Fighting Illini back handled 22 carries, churning out 86 yards against a stout Chargers D, and hauled in 5-of-7 targets for 57 yards. The only thing missing from his performance was a TD. Still, fantasy managers have to appreciate his involvement.

It was the second-year back's third straight outing with at least five receptions, and he's now gone over 100 yards from scrimmage in two of his last three -- something he had not done through the season's first eight weeks.

Brown and the Bengals will have a week off in Week 12. If his involvement in the passing game continues after the team's bye, he could be a critical piece to a fantasy playoff run.

9. J.K. Dobbins, Los Angeles Chargers

On the other side of the matchup listed above, J.K. Dobbins was the hero for the Los Angeles Chargers. Dobbins wasn't even the leading rusher on his team -- as quarterback Justin Herbert held those honors on Sunday night -- but his late 29-yard touchdown with under 30 seconds left in regulation would ice the win for LA.

J.K. Dobbins puts the Chargers back in front with 18 seconds to go! pic.twitter.com/JxKctWCG5j

— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) November 18, 2024

The 25-year-old scored twice, actually (his second such performance in his last three appearances) and racked up 56 yards on his 11 carries, adding another three yards in the passing game on his only target. Backfield mate Gus Edwards was involved again (6/27), but for the second-straight week, earned five fewer carries than Dobbins.

LA's offense has been ascending for the last few weeks, and they'll need all the help they can get next weekend against a Baltimore Ravens squad that's sure to be out for blood after scoring a season-low 16 points in their loss to the Steelers in Week 11. LA and Baltimore will line up on Monday Night Football, and fantasy managers will want to temper expectations with a Ravens defense on tap that allowed the fewest yards per carry to their opponents heading into this weekend (3.4).

10. Javonte Williams, Denver Broncos

Just one week after seemingly being left for dead and combining for three touches in a heartbreaking loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, Javonte Williams was back to leading his team's backfield in Denver's 38-6 rout of the Atlanta Falcons. The 24-year-old handled nine carries in the victory but made them count -- gashing the Falcons' defense for 59 yards and a score.

Williams was also pleasantly involved in the passing game, racking up four receptions and 28 yards on five targets. It was the fifth time this season that he's registered at least four receptions, and the touchdown was his first since Week 7 -- giving him three on the year. It's worth noting that running backs Jaleel McLaughlin (4/19) and Audric Estime (6/16) were still involved on the ground, but the former did not receive a target while the latter caught all three of his for nine yards.

It's an interesting backfield split and a stark contrast to how the touches were divvied up a week ago when Estime received 14-of-17 backfield carries. How it pans out moving forward is anyone's guess, but you'd have to think Williams made a decent case to retain the lead of this committee when Denver lines up against the Las Vegas Raiders in a divisional clash.

Thanks for reading, and best of luck in all your matchups in Week 12!

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