Top RB Fantasy Football Breakouts: 2026 Must-Draft Running Backs

February 8, 2026

Last season’s top running back fantasy football breakouts. These running backs dominated and should be draft targets for 2026: RJ Harvey, TreVeyon Henderson, Cam Skattebo, and more.

The state of the running back position remains far from settled, with the 2025 season seeing even the most established superstars produce letdowns while others soared into prominence. Fantasy managers had another strong group of rookie rushers to speculate about, but we know that anything can happen once the whistle blows.

We're here to discuss some fun breakouts seen during the past year, which will include three rookies, a strong comeback effort, and a true "out of nowhere" surge. That's not to say there were only five "breakouts," as you'll find many pieces this offseason on how others like Ashton Jeanty, Quinshon Judkins, Omarion Hampton, and the like could find another gear next year. But we'll focus on these five.

So, which running backs broke out during the 2025-26 fantasy season? Let's break it down and find out what the results and context might mean for these players next year. Remember, there's no offseason here at RotoBaller!

RJ Harvey, RB, Denver Broncos   

The Broncos selected Harvey with the 60th overall pick in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft and got thrust into the starting role after a couple of months. Denver lost J.K. Dobbins to a season-ending foot injury after Week 10, just after Harvey gained confidence with a three-TD outburst in Week 8’s win over Dallas.

He did so on only eight touches, so most of us were still skeptical. But the man still finished as a top-10 PPR RB from that game on, carrying several teams through the fantasy playoffs. Narrow the lens to Weeks 13-17, and he becomes a top-5 PPR RB!

There’s room for him to improve as a rusher (3.7 YPC, 45.2% success rate per Pro Football Reference), but catching 47-of-58 targets for 356 yards and five touchdowns is a great foundation to build on. He also had red-zone trust, including a Wildcat TD. Several veterans don't get this variety of packages, but Harvey did so for a top contender.

RJ Harvey lines up behind center and takes it in for his second TD of the game!

DALvsDEN on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/WueYT2jv9m

— NFL (@NFL) October 26, 2025

This Sean Payton “joker” role allows Harvey to beat mismatched coverage, and the offensive line will still be stout in 2026. Mix in a great defense that tends to keep games close for the ground game to stay involved, plus the fact that Dobbins, Jaleel McLaughlin, and Tyler Badie are all impending free agents, and Harvey could thrive.

Cam Skattebo, RB, New York Giants

Yes, he suffered that horrific ankle injury in Week 8, and it’s no sure thing that he’ll recover his form, but we can still celebrate his breakout. The rookie stepped up after Tyrone Tracy Jr. dislocated his right shoulder in Week 3, and then the offense found another gear with fellow “Bash Brother” Jaxson Dart starting the following week.

Between Weeks 3-7, Skattebo was the No. 7 RB on a per-game basis (half-PPR) and No. 4 RB on total volume. The other four were Jonathan Taylor, Christian McCaffrey, Jahmyr Gibbs, and Bijan Robinson. Hubba hubba!

Anyone who had the pleasure of watching his bruising style of play won’t be surprised by the fact that he was a missed tackles machine. In that Week 3-7 window, his 23 missed tackles forced were five more than any other RB in that window. He’s elusive as well, but the power fuels the bottom line, and that was clear from the jump.

Skattebo with his first touch just destroys 3 people. pic.twitter.com/1hjeAcOtXU

— Jordan Simone (@JordanSimone38) September 7, 2025

The offseason reports regarding his health will define the 2026 outlook, but he’s got youth on his side. Another year of Dart and Malik Nabers’ eventual return in Year 1 of John Harbaugh’s Giants tenure should provide a strong ceiling. How high can he fly?

Javonte Williams, RB, Dallas Cowboys 

Many had written Williams off after his major 2022 knee injury yielded seasons with 3.6 and 3.7 yards per carry for Denver in 2023 and 2024, respectively. The Cowboys brought him in on a one-year contract, which offered a high-scoring environment, but many figured that fifth-round pick Jaydon Blue would overtake Williams.

Williams and Blue would end up separated by a couple of rounds, per August ADPs, with late fliers taken on Phil Mafah as well. But the young bucks weren’t factors as Williams stormed to 1,201 yards and 11 touchdowns on 252 carries, with another 137 yards and two scores on 35 catches. Gambling on himself with the one-year deal paid off.

He quickly gained the trust of Dak Prescott and the coaching staff, scoring twice in Week 1’s loss to Philadelphia. He’d amass nine TDs in the first eight games before a brief midseason scoring drought, but the volume remained steady. He had a minor shoulder issue down the stretch, but nothing that should linger.

Following this strong season, we’d love to see Williams return to Dallas, but he’s proved his health and ability to handle nearly 300 touches again. If he winds up signing with a team like the Jets, then his fantasy stock will take a hit.

That said, we have him settling around pick 60-70 in early 2026 ranks, even with that in mind. He could move up depending on the landing spot, but he’ll be a sturdy pick at 26 years old now that we can trust the legs. I love a good re-breakout!

TreVeyon Henderson, RB, New England Patriots

The Patriots have Rhamondre Stevenson for another two years on his contract, and his late-season usage is a bad sign for Henderson’s future. But the rookie earned his place in this piece as the PPR RB21 in Weeks 1-17. The overall 911 yards on 180 carries were largely amassed remarkably.

A date with Tampa Bay’s generous defense opened the floodgates in Week 10, with the speedster scampering to 147 yards and two scores on 14 carries. He followed that up with a three-touchdown game against the Jets only four days later.

The stats steadily flowed in over the next six games, which included a near-identical explosion with a 14-148-2 rush line against the Bills before his role tapered off in January. Few can match his big-play potential (he was one of eight to average over 5.0 YPC with over 100 carries), so if he beefs up the pass protection this offseason, then we could be flying in 2026.

Fantasy managers now face the tough task of weighing his electric upside with the lukewarm reception from his coaches, especially through the playoffs. But when we see prolonged flashes of league-winning talent burdened by short-term opportunity, then we should perk up.

Kenneth Gainwell, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers

Unless you had Gainwell under a spotlight down the stretch, you’d have a tough time guessing that the versatile back was the sixth-best PPR RB from Week 11 on. Jaylen Warren was 13th, so don’t go thinking that Kenny G. only crushed it due to Warren’s availability.

Averaging 17.8 PPR points there helped many fantasy teams and put an emphatic exclamation point on his first season away from the Eagles. He made most of his highlights as a receiver, which was beautiful, but he also posted a career-best 4.7 YPC. This was a multidimensional success story.

Of course, we have to underscore his 73 receptions with sure hands that registered only two drops. And that role could be cemented if the Steelers, who just brought in Mike McCarthy to be head coach, indeed run it back with Aaron Rodgers.

Many could underthink this and overlook him ahead of 2026 fantasy drafts! Getting Rodgers back would be a strong signal that the offense will look similar enough, at least in terms of the circle of trust. Gainwell hauling in the TD on an audible go route firmly entrenched him in that!

.@AaronRodgers12 told @KENNETHGAINWEL to run a go route in the backfield...

and then he made one of the best plays of the year.@insidetheNFL Week 16 Mic'd Up on X pic.twitter.com/EWC0Pmg3js

— NFL (@NFL) December 23, 2025

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