Chase Brown, Breece Hall, James Cook - Who Should I Draft in 2025 Fantasy Football?

John Johnson's fantasy football draft analysis for Chase Brown, Breece Hall, and James Cook. His fantasy football outlooks for top fantasy running backs.

The running back position is great, isn't it? It can be extremely difficult to predict the seasons that many backs will have. It's a mercurial position, with a lot of players breaking out early in their careers and without much forewarning, only for them to lose their jobs quickly.

It's also a brutal position to play, so injuries play a large part in player production. Even those who might seem like world-beaters for certain stretches often fall off massively and become irrelevant just a few years later. So it's a struggle to find consistent good production.

In redraft leagues, though, you really only need one good year out of them. But it's hard to even predict that with certainty. Luckily, RotoBaller is here with plenty of coverage on player comparisons, analysis, and recommendations on who you should draft. So let's dive in for three running backs today!

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Should You Draft Chase Brown?

Brown earned the RB1 job for the Cincinnati Bengals in 2024, without question. He clearly outplayed the team's other RB, Zack Moss, early in the season, and a Moss season-ending injury thrust Brown into a workhorse role in which he dominated nearly all the team's backfield touches.

From Week 9 on, Chase Brown saw 96.1% of the backfield touches, averaging 18.3 fantasy ppg (RB5).

If that workload gets cut to 60-70%, his outlook is very different.

70% - 13.3 ppg (RB19)
60% - 11.4 ppg (RB23)

Only 12 RBs last year hit a 70% opportunity share.

— Dave Kluge (@DaveKluge) May 28, 2025

It's essential to note that this was probably never Cincinnati's plan. Even when Moss was clearly being outplayed, he still siphoned an annoying (to Brown's fantasy managers) amount of touches away from No. 30. Still, Brown's performance is a big positive sign.

The team recently signed RB Samaje Perine and drafted Tahj Brooks in the 2025 NFL Draft. There isn't much threat to Brown's RB1 role -- the question is just how much of a committee he'll be in. Part of Cincinnati's split backfield philosophy is focused on keeping their backs healthy. Brown injured his ankle in Week 17.

Tough for Chase Brown, to get that injury, with how he’s risen as a star for the Bengals at RB.

Tough to see. #DENvsCIN pic.twitter.com/edsnG44gBi

— The Whole Delivery (@TWDTV1) December 29, 2024

Brown's ADP luckily doesn't reflect what his value was when he was virtually the only RB on the team getting meaningful touches. So, at his current ADP of RB12, around pick No. 29, he's not a bad player to draft. It's nice that he's such an elite athlete, too -- he's a nice dump-off target for quarterback Joe Burrow.

So I'm fine with taking Brown in the third round. There's not much meaningful competition in that backfield, and he's clearly the best RB on the roster. The PPR upside is the icing on the cake!

Should You Draft Breece Hall?

I'm scared of taking Hall right now. Let's start with my first concern -- his injury. He tore his ACL during his rookie season in 2022 and came back pretty nicely in 2023. Despite playing on a horrible offense with one of the league's worst offensive lines, largely due to injuries, Hall looked explosive.

He did not look explosive at all in 2024. At just 22 years old last season, I absolutely don't believe that he suffered an age-related athleticism decline. Instead, I'm pretty sure he had some kind of setback before the season, or there's some other issue with his knee that worsened.

I've been suspicious that Breece Hall's surgically repaired knee was bothering him all season.

1. Unspecified Lower body injury before season
2. Incredibly sluggish on tape
3. 21.87 MPH top speed in 2022. 21.5 in 2023. 20.43 max in 2024.
4. Missed time late in 2024. pic.twitter.com/0Uf7wlElPO

— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) May 28, 2025

The fact that his issues persisted throughout the season and worsened over time is deeply concerning. I don't have a lot of faith that the issue will correct itself. Jets head coach Aaron Glenn's comments about a potential three-way committee are also a bit concerning.

I don't think that they'd try to force a stupid committee like that if Hall were to return to his old form. But the fact that the coaching staff hasn't clearly and emphatically indicated that Hall is easily the most explosive and highest-upside back in the room, and will get most of the volume, worries me.

#Jets HC Aaron Glenn on Breece Hall and the RB room:

• “I would say that we have three running backs on this team that we’re gonna utilize as much as possible”

• It could be a 1-2-3 punch with the guys we have

• If we can get them all on the field at one time, we’ll do that pic.twitter.com/2d3EvvEjed

— The Coachspeak Index (@CoachspeakIndex) March 31, 2025

I really wish we could know the exact details of Hall's knee situation, but unfortunately, that specific information is confidential. Still, given the unknowns in this situation, I'll pass. There's also a huge chance that the Jets' offense could be putrid this year. Their offensive line could be pretty bad as well.

You can blame whoever you want if that happens, but the fact is that it would be pretty bad for Hall. At least Jets QB Justin Fields is happy to check the ball down often, which will help Hall's value. His value isn't bad at RB13 and around 38th overall, but I'd rather take James Conner or the next guy on our list.

Should You Draft James Cook?

Cook's inability to block, really at all, keeps him off the field a lot and is the biggest barrier between him and getting a lot more fantasy points. But the Buffalo Bills have one of the league's best offensive lines, and he's an excellent athlete.

It's a bit scary drafting an RB with such a low snap share so high in fantasy drafts, but betting on good players on good offenses routinely pays off. Cook scored 16 touchdowns on the ground and one through the air, amounting to 102 of his 266.7 PPR fantasy points.

James Cook has been running really hard lately. pic.twitter.com/qbAxZScsy3

— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) October 29, 2024

What's interesting is that he actually had significantly less yardage (300 less) in 2024 than 2023, though. He also logged 12 fewer receptions. He more than made up for that with his touchdowns, but he was scoring at an unsustainable rate compared to his snap share and overall touches.

I don't imagine he scores 17 more times in 2025. Somewhere closer to 12 would be more commensurate with his overall usage. And backup RB Ray Davis could eat a bit more into his workload. I doubt Cook loses his job, but there could also be some hiccups with his early-season production, as he appears to be holding out.

#Bills coach Sean McDermott tells reporters that newly signed edge Joey Bosa pulled his calf and will more than likely be sidelined until training camp. RB James Cook, seeking a new deal, is not present.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 27, 2025

It doesn't appear that Cook has any leverage right now, and that's the problem. Without that, there's not much he can do. It'll just come down to how stubborn he is. Closer to draft time in fantasy leagues, though, I think we'll have a lot more clarity on this situation.

We'll assume that he returns and plays for a full season. Sometimes you just have to suck it up and take players on good offenses. It allows players to have more stable production and higher ceilings when they're not hampered by poor offensive line play, bad coaching, and the like.

Cook is ranked as the RB15, and that's not a bad spot to draft him.

Verdict

Drafting Hall seems like a big risk that I'm not willing to take right now. There are too many unknowns and numerous factors working against him. A new coaching staff, a different (and probably worse) offensive line, a bad quarterback, and his potential long-term knee issues dissuade me from him.

However, at their current ADPs, Brown and Cook are both mostly fine. Both are excellent athletes with what seem to be stable roles in their offenses. While Brown doesn't have the best offensive line, he has a bigger role than Cook. Cook benefits from a better OL, but doesn't get the snaps Brown does.

Both have more things going their way and, in my opinion, more upside than Hall does in all of their best-case scenarios.

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