PPR Fantasy Football RB Rankings for Drafts - James Cook, Kaleb Johnson, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Brian Robinson, RJ Harvey, Dylan Sampson, Jordan Mason

August 22, 2025

RotoBaller's PPR running back (RB) fantasy football rankings for drafts in 2025. Use our updated fantasy football RB rankings, tiers from August to crush drafts.

Whether you play in PPR, Half-PPR, or standard leagues, we've got you covered -- we've been releasing updated fantasy football rankings articles for all different types of league formats. And today we focus on running backs in PPR formats with our updated PPR running back draft (RB) fantasy football rankings -- freshly updated for August 2025 and upcoming drafts. Below you will find where key backs such as James Cook, Kaleb Johnson, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Brian Robinson, RJ Harvey, Dylan Sampson and Jordan Mason are listed in our latest PPR RB draft rankings.

Running back is an exciting position, especially this year with so many viable rookie RBs entering the league. Some will surely be viable, others not, and others will probably emerge as league-winners. Which should you pick? As you get deeper into drafts, there will surely be values to be had at the RB position -- but who should you focus on? RotoBaller's lead fantasy football rankings analyst Nick Mariano has been updating these running back rankings all off-season, so you can easily see which middle-round and later-round RBs are worth targeting in drafts and get a great value.

Be sure to also follow all of the fantasy football injury news and bookmark our main fantasy football rankings portal with 14 different types of rankings for various league types and scoring settings. Win more in 2025!

Running Back Fantasy Football Recent News

• Brian Robinson Jr. Traded to the 49ers
• Isaac Guerendo Still the RB2 in San Francisco?
• Kyle Monangai Emerging as Bears No. 2 Running Back
• Dylan Sampson to Earn Carries Early in Browns Backfield
• Jaguars Backfield Becoming a Split with the Rise of Tank Bigsby
• Jahmyr Gibbs Stands Out in Thursday's Practice
• Cam Skattebo Makes Pro Debut in Preseason Game
• Christian McCaffrey Looking Like Peak Self in Eyes of Teammates
• DJ Giddens Emerging as Colts RB2

PPR Running Back Fantasy Football Rankings

Bookmark our PPR rankings, Half-PPR rankings, and standard (non-PPR) rankings 

Fantasy Football Running Back Player Outlooks

Jaylen Wright, Miami Dolphins

Miami Dolphins running back Jaylen Wright (undisclosed) walked off the practice field on Thursday slowly with an apparent injury and was flanked by a trainer before heading into the team's facilities for further evaluation, according to Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network.

With De'Von Achane (calf) not practicing at all this week with a calf injury, Wright's injury status becomes even more important heading into Week 1 of the regular season in early September. Rookie Ollie Gordon II took most of the team's RB reps in practice on Thursday.

We'll bring you more information on Wright's status when we have it. Assuming Miami's backfield options are all fully healthy, the 22-year-old Wright figures to be the RB2 behind Achane. The former fourth-rounder has plenty of home run ability himself and had 249 rushing yards on 68 attempts in Year 1 in 2024.

Chris Rodriguez Jr., Washington Commanders

Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. will likely be used in short-yardage situations and at the goal line this season, according to Commanders head coach Dan Quinn. With Brian Robinson Jr. almost certainly on his way out in Washington, the team appears to be comfortable with a committee of Austin Ekeler, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Rodriguez Jr., and Jeremy McNichols at the running back position. In 22 career NFL games over the last two seasons, Rodriguez Jr. has 86 carries for 420 yards and four touchdowns. He could be worth a late-round dart throw in deep leagues given his presumed role and the opportunity to earn more touches in Washington.

Kenneth Walker III, Seattle Seahawks

Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (foot) is in full pads at practice on Thursday for the third straight day, according to Gregg Bell of The Tacoma News Tribune. Walker suffered a minor foot injury earlier this month and had been alternating practice days as a precaution given his lengthy history with lower-body ailments.

The 24-year-old appears to be moving past the foot issue in the final week of the preseason, but he'll probably be held out of the finale this weekend against the Green Bay Packers. Walker has been very productive for Seattle and fantasy managers when he's healthy, but he's almost guaranteed to miss some time again in 2025 due to injury. It's why the Seahawks have hinted that they will involve Zach Charbonnet more in order to try and keep Walker available. He has become a risk/reward RB2 for fantasy purposes.

Jaydon Blue, Dallas Cowboys

Dallas Cowboys fifth-round rookie running back Jaydon Blue (ankle, heel) is expected to make his preseason debut on Friday against the Atlanta Falcons. The Cowboys running back depth chart has been one to monitor heading into the season, as ambiguous backfields almost always return fantasy value. Free-agent acquisition Javonte Williams has been running with the ones through most of camp, but the buzz around him has been muted, at best.

Williams is almost three years removed from the devastating knee injury that derailed his promising young career. Without his signature contact balance or burst, his past two seasons have been marred by a complete lack of efficiency, a trait that also applies to the play of new teammate Miles Sanders. Fantasy managers should take caution in gleaning anything from a third preseason game. Still, if Blue can showcase any of the explosiveness or pass-catching ability that he put on display at Texas, he should be viewed as a priority target in the late rounds of drafts.

Jarquez Hunter, Los Angeles Rams

Los Angeles Rams rookie running back Jarquez Hunter has an important fan in offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur. "The more opportunities he gets, the better it's going to be," LaFleur said of the fourth-round pick from Auburn on Wednesday. LaFleur got Hunter heavily involved over the Rams' first two preseason games, as the 5-foot-9, 204-pounder combined for 96 yards on 26 carries in those contests.

The Rams have an established No. 1 running back in Kyren Williams, who signed a three-year, $33 million contract extension earlier this month, and Blake Corum is listed ahead of Hunter for the backup job on the team's unofficial depth chart. However, Corum didn't do much during a touchdown-less rookie campaign (207 yards on 58 carries, seven catches for 58 yards), so Hunter could overtake him for the No. 2 job this year if he continues to impress.

Brian Robinson Jr., San Francisco 49ers

The Washington Commanders traded running back Brian Robinson Jr. to the San Francisco 49ers on Friday, for a future sixth-round pick in return. With Austin Ekeler and Jacory Croskey-Merritt emerging as Washington's top options, Robinson became expendable and now lands as Christian McCaffrey's backup. While McCaffrey is fully healthy and drawing rave reviews in camp, his injury history makes Robinson a valuable insurance policy for San Francisco.

For fantasy managers, Robinson's value takes a major hit unless McCaffrey misses time, leaving him as more of a handcuff than standalone option. Still, the move secures the 49ers much-needed depth after a rash of preseason RB injuries.

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