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RotoBaller's running back fantasy football rankings for Week 1 (2025). Set winning fantasy lineups with our Week 1 RB rankings for fantasy football leagues.
Getting off to a slow start in fantasy football can leave you chasing wins late in the year, so make sure to lock up a Week 1 victory with the help of our 2025 fantasy football running back rankings for Week 1. The anticipation is building as fantasy football managers are set to begin drafting, so let's take an early look at the Week 1 pecking order at RB.
In the rankings below, check out where key ball carriers and chain-movers like Saquon Barkley, Chase Brown, Ashton Jeanty, Omarion Hampton, RJ Harvey, Kaleb Johnson, Nick Chubb, and more stand for the opening slate of the NFL season.
Our RB fantasy football rankings for Week 1 are assembled by Nick Mariano. In addition to our rankings, below you will find a summary of this week's important fantasy football injury news. There are always critical injuries to track, so check back until kickoff.
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Fantasy Football News and Injuries
- Kenneth Walker III "Looks Great," Not Limited at Training Camp
- James Cook Practicing in Full at Training Camp
- Joe Mixon Expected to Miss Extended Time With Foot Injury
- Jerome Ford Getting Closer to a Return
- Tank Bigsby Standing Out in Jaguars Camp
- Texans Will Be Judicious With Nick Chubb in Training Camp
- Kaleb Johnson Seeing Some Work With First-Team Offense
- Tahj Brooks Impressing With his Pass-Catching Prowess
- Bengals Coaches Very High on Chase Brown
- Miles Sanders Looking Good in Practice
- Quinshon Judkins Might Not Report to Training Camp for a While
- D'Andre Swift Calls Kyle Monangai a "Great Addition"
- Multiple Chiefs Running Backs Getting First-Team Reps
- AJ Dillon Gets First Reps Over Will Shipley
- Dameon Pierce Placed on PUP List
- Braelon Allen Expected to be Regular Contributor in Committee
- Javonte Williams Sees a Lot of Work With Starters
- Kenny McIntosh Believed to Have Suffered a Torn ACL
Week 1 Fantasy Football Running Back Rankings
Rankings are updated until kick-off. Be sure to bookmark our weekly PPR rankings, Half-PPR rankings, and Standard rankings.
| Tier | Rank | Player Name | Pos |
| 1 | 1 | Bijan Robinson | RB |
| 1 | 2 | Saquon Barkley | RB |
| 1 | 3 | Jahmyr Gibbs | RB |
| 1 | 4 | Derrick Henry | RB |
| 1 | 5 | Christian McCaffrey | RB |
| 1 | 6 | De'Von Achane | RB |
| 1 | 7 | Ashton Jeanty | RB |
| 2 | 8 | Jonathan Taylor | RB |
| 2 | 9 | Chase Brown | RB |
| 2 | 10 | Bucky Irving | RB |
| 2 | 11 | Josh Jacobs | RB |
| 2 | 12 | Kyren Williams | RB |
| 3 | 13 | James Conner | RB |
| 3 | 14 | James Cook | RB |
| 3 | 15 | Breece Hall | RB |
| 3 | 16 | Kenneth Walker III | RB |
| 3 | 17 | Chuba Hubbard | RB |
| 3 | 18 | Alvin Kamara | RB |
| 3 | 19 | D'Andre Swift | RB |
| 4 | 20 | Aaron Jones | RB |
| 4 | 21 | David Montgomery | RB |
| 4 | 22 | Omarion Hampton | RB |
| 5 | 23 | Tony Pollard | RB |
| 5 | 24 | Isiah Pacheco | RB |
| 5 | 25 | TreVeyon Henderson | RB |
| 5 | 26 | Brian Robinson Jr. | RB |
| 5 | 27 | Kaleb Johnson | RB |
| 5 | 28 | Joe Mixon | RB |
| 5 | 29 | Javonte Williams | RB |
| 5 | 30 | Tyrone Tracy Jr. | RB |
| 6 | 31 | J.K. Dobbins | RB |
| 6 | 32 | Travis Etienne Jr. | RB |
| 7 | 33 | RJ Harvey | RB |
| 7 | 34 | Quinshon Judkins | RB |
| 7 | 35 | Jaylen Warren | RB |
| 7 | 36 | Najee Harris | RB |
| 7 | 37 | Tyjae Spears | RB |
| 7 | 38 | Jerome Ford | RB |
| 8 | 39 | Rhamondre Stevenson | RB |
| 8 | 40 | Jordan Mason | RB |
| 8 | 41 | Rachaad White | RB |
| 8 | 42 | Tank Bigsby | RB |
| 8 | 43 | Cam Skattebo | RB |
| 8 | 44 | Austin Ekeler | RB |
| 9 | 45 | Tyler Allgeier | RB |
| 9 | 46 | Braelon Allen | RB |
| 10 | 47 | Zach Charbonnet | RB |
| 10 | 48 | Trey Benson | RB |
| 10 | 49 | Bhayshul Tuten | RB |
| 10 | 50 | Jaylen Wright | RB |
| 10 | 51 | Will Shipley | RB |
| 10 | 52 | MarShawn Lloyd | RB |
| 10 | 53 | Isaac Guerendo | RB |
| 11 | 54 | Jaydon Blue | RB |
| 11 | 55 | Dylan Sampson | RB |
| 11 | 56 | Nick Chubb | RB |
| 11 | 57 | Woody Marks | RB |
| 11 | 58 | Samaje Perine | RB |
| 11 | 59 | Rico Dowdle | RB |
| 11 | 60 | Roschon Johnson | RB |
| 11 | 61 | Ray Davis | RB |
| 11 | 62 | Blake Corum | RB |
| 12 | 63 | Kareem Hunt | RB |
| 12 | 64 | Miles Sanders | RB |
| 12 | 65 | Raheem Mostert | RB |
| 12 | 66 | Keaton Mitchell | RB |
| 12 | 67 | Ty Johnson | RB |
| 12 | 68 | Jaleel McLaughlin | RB |
| 13 | 69 | Kenneth Gainwell | RB |
| 13 | 70 | Kendre Miller | RB |
| 13 | 71 | Audric Estime | RB |
| 14 | 72 | Jarquez Hunter | RB |
| 14 | 73 | Justice Hill | RB |
| 15 | 74 | Brashard Smith | RB |
| 15 | 75 | DJ Giddens | RB |
| 15 | 76 | Isaiah Davis | RB |
| 15 | 77 | Trevor Etienne | RB |
| 15 | 78 | Elijah Mitchell | RB |
| 15 | 79 | Kyle Monangai | RB |
| 15 | 80 | Jordan James | RB |
| 15 | 81 | Devin Neal | RB |
| 15 | 82 | Sean Tucker | RB |
| 16 | 83 | Tyler Goodson | RB |
| 16 | 84 | AJ Dillon | RB |
| 16 | 85 | Devin Singletary | RB |
| 16 | 86 | Antonio Gibson | RB |
| 16 | 87 | Michael Carter | RB |
| 16 | 88 | Tahj Brooks | RB |
| 16 | 89 | Cordarrelle Patterson | RB |
| 16 | 90 | Ollie Gordon II | RB |
| 16 | 91 | Khalil Herbert | RB |
| 16 | 92 | Jacory Croskey-Merritt | RB |
| 16 | 93 | Cam Akers | RB |
| 16 | 94 | Alexander Mattison | RB |
| 16 | 95 | Zack Moss | RB |
| 16 | 96 | Kimani Vidal | RB |
| 16 | 97 | Sincere McCormick | RB |
| 16 | 98 | Dameon Pierce | RB |
| 16 | 99 | Craig Reynolds | RB |
| 16 | 100 | Phil Mafah | RB |
| 16 | 101 | Damien Martinez | RB |
| 16 | 102 | Tyler Badie | RB |
| 17 | 103 | Jeremy McNichols | RB |
| 17 | 104 | Raheim Sanders | RB |
| 17 | 105 | Chris Rodriguez Jr. | RB |
| 17 | 106 | Emanuel Wilson | RB |
| 17 | 107 | LeQuint Allen Jr. | RB |
Fantasy Football Running Back Draft Outlooks
Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson just ran roughshod over the NFL, totaling 1,456 yards and 14 touchdowns on 304 carries. The versatile back also brought in 61 of his 72 targets for another 431 yards and a score, making him the RB4 in half-PPR and RB3 in PPR scoring. After flashing plenty of promise with 16 touches per game as a rookie, he performed even better while averaging 21.5 touches as a sophomore. His success rate jumped from 43.5% to 60%, per Pro Football Reference.
The phenom also cut four rookie fumbles down to just one on his 365 touches. Still only 23 years old, Robinson should enjoy plenty of work in the next-generation Atlanta attack alongside Michael Penix Jr. and Drake London. With his ADP and fantasy rank holding around the first three picks, the bar is set high to match the trending potential.
- Nick Mariano
Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley is coming off a historically great year in which he topped 2,000 rushing yards in only 16 games. The reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year totaled 345 rushes in the regular season, adding another 91 through four postseason games. One can't blame the Eagles for riding the hot hand, as he averaged 5.8 yards per carry behind a talented offensive line. He tacked on 33 catches for 278 yards and a pair of TDs as well. Now 28 years old, Barkley has averaged 369 touches over the last three seasons when you include the '24 playoff run.
We're drafting him near the top of the first round with the hopes that endurance holds and the same unstoppable formula plays out. But it would be irresponsible to overlook the workload concerns, even if the team is largely returning the same roster. Alas, most players have a downside to be aware of, so don't overthink yourself into knots given Barkley's elite, proven blueprint for success.
- Nick Mariano
RJ Harvey, Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos selected R.J. Harvey in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft. It was a bit of a surprise as he was seen as an underrated prospect entering the NFL Draft and was not expected to get second-round draft capital. However, Broncos head coach Sean Payton clearly saw something he liked. Harvey now joins Reggie Bush, Mark Ingram II, and Alvin Kamara as the only backs Payton has selected in the first three rounds of the NFL Draft. This list certainly puts Harvey in good company.
Ultimately, it doesn't guarantee anything as Harvey will need to produce with the touches he's given. Still, Denver has one of the best run-blocking offensive lines in the league and has been looking for a running back upgrade this offseason.
The team has seemingly pegged Harvey as their man. He has good burst, vision, and hardly goes down on first contact. Harvey has everything needed to be the next great fantasy running back in Payton's offense. Despite the team's addition of veteran J.K. Dobbins, gamers should feel comfortable using a mid-round pick to select Harvey in their drafts.
- Dave Ventresca
Tajh Brooks, Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals selected running back Tahj Brooks in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. Brooks enjoyed a fine career at Texas Tech, which was highlighted by his final two seasons. He ran for over 1,500 yards and scored double-digit touchdowns in each of his last two years.
While he fell in the NFL Draft, Brooks is a solid rusher who can produce if the right circumstances arise. He will now battle veterans Samaje Perine and Zack Moss for the Bengals' RB2 job. Moss is now reportedly healthy following a neck injury last year, but he has a long injury history. Perine is now 29 years old and has never been particularly effective.
The team is reportedly quite bullish on Brooks' outlook, and if he plays well enough, he may win the RB2 job outright. Either way, this is a battle that fantasy gamers should closely monitor as Cincinnati has hinted at slightly scaling back Chase Brown's workload this year. Brooks is not a priority late-round pick right now, but that will change if we start hearing reports he's leapfrogged the veterans on the depth chart.
- Dave Ventresca
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