Dynasty Fantasy Football Rookie Running Back Draft Sleepers: Must-Target RBs in 2025

This is a deep, deep running back class. Consensus rookie rankings have five of them as 1st-rounders: Ashton Jeanty, Omarion Hampton, Kaleb Johnson, Treveyon Henderson, and Quinshon Judkins. But every class has underrated prospects. That's especially important in classes that are stacked at one position.  The deeper they are, the more likely they are to be sleepers.

And the more the talent at the "top" is viewed in higher regard, the better the "lower tier" of backs can be without attracting as much attention. When you consider, additionally, that scouting routinely undervalues great players (like Brian Thomas Jr.) and whiffs hard on others (like Bucky Irving), it's absolutely worth it to try to develop methods to identify those that have the talent to win fantasy football leagues outside the first round of rookie drafts.

I've been doing that since last season, when I insisted everyone buy Irving and Thomas ahead of Week 4, after thoroughly analyzing their tape and play to that point. Over the past few months, I've spent hundreds of hours pouring over the tape of every running back prospect ranked in the top 20, and I have identified three that are huge talents, yet hugely underrated in rankings. So, let's dive in.

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Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Virginia Tech

Usually, when talking about sleepers, you expect to see some big perceived weaknesses in their game and try to see if their strengths can help them succeed in spite of them. In the case of Irving, his small size and lack of speed were issues. Turns out that didn't matter because he was so elusive that he was incredibly difficult to bring down in the NFL.

That isn't the case with Tuten on either front. He stands 5-foot-11 and weighs 209 pounds. He's also ridiculously fast and will be able to outrun defensive backs at the next level. His highest clocked speed in college was over 22 miles per hour. Most notably, when scouting him, I struggled to find any glaring weaknesses in his game. Instead, what I saw was an elite prospect.

Virginia Tech RB Bhayshul Tuten has easy speed: rare acceleration ability and a top gear that even NFL DBs will have difficulty matching.

Zone-centric teams looking for a change of pace back that can change the game with one touch should be all over him on day three. pic.twitter.com/Gzb8ckoGgT

— Derrick (@Steelers_DB) February 18, 2025

He's also highly elusive and forced missed tackles at one of the highest rates of any running back in college football in 2024, aside from Jeanty, of course. Some have speculated that his pass-protection is poor, but that doesn't show up on tape, and that can be something backs aren't asked to do much, depending on the offense they play in.

Bhayshul Tuten pass pro pic.twitter.com/SyJBQHvUNE

— Billy M (@BillyM_91) January 31, 2025

Tuten is an absolute monster of an athlete. He has elite strength and lateral agility. And he accelerates to full speed very quickly. He's part track-star-in-a-football-uniform. There also isn't another back in the class, save for Jeanty, who can take a head-on smack from a linebacker, shrug it off like it's nothing, and re-accelerate quickly enough to beat a defensive back to house the play.

Bhayshul Tuten

✅Analytic Gem
✅Two years with 1,000+ yards

- Posted a 91+ PFF rush grade
- Three seasons with 60+ MTF
- Three years with 4.00+ YCO/Att

Missed tackles forced machine (0.39) in 2023.

Explosive runner with good receiving chops and hard to tackle. pic.twitter.com/lNivHBZFEw

— Snoog's Fantasy HQ (@FFSnoog) February 21, 2025

Tuten has a significant speed and acceleration edge over Jeanty as well. He's projected to run in the 4.3s at the combine, and he'll probably rise up draft boards as he does. Just like the rest of the players on this list, who should test well at the combine.

Tuten went to Virginia Tech instead of a school like Ohio State University or Alabama, so he simply didn't get the attention he deserved after running 183 times for 1,159 yards (6.3 yards per carry) and scoring 15 rushing touchdowns. If he gets the volume for it, he can be an immediate fantasy star, must-start player, and league winner in 2025.

VT RB Bhayshul Tuten is a home run threat whenever the ball is in his hands. He might run a sub-4.3 at 211 pounds. pic.twitter.com/LVoI9Dyiiv

— William Herman (@_williamherman) February 24, 2025

He has rookie-season Breece Hall level of curvilinear acceleration, and has enough athleticism to stymie defenses on horizontal runs. Often, he's quick enough to win on multiple gaps or just getting to the edge. On the above play, he explodes vertically, forcing the linebacker to overcommit and run right into a blocker. Then he just outruns DBs who are 20 pounds lighter than he is.

He's my "Most Likely Running Back To Be A League-Winner" next season. He has rocket boosters strapped on his back when he plays, and he will hit home run plays in his first year in the league because he's just faster than a lot of cornerbacks and safeties. Tuten is elite and is one of the best running backs in this class. He's in my top-3 RBs of the 2025 class.

EDIT: Tuten ran a 4.32-second 40-Yard-Dash and logged a 40.5" vertical. Like I said, he's elite! Hope you picked him up in rookie drafts, his stock is about to shoot up. 

Brashard Smith, RB, SMU

You should be gunning to take Smith in 100 percent of your PPR leagues that have running back slots. New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. taught us as much, and he wasn't even used to his full potential as a receiver. Like Tracy, Smith is a converted WR who can run routes (and win) out of traditional WR spots on the field.

This already gives him plenty of upside in PPR leagues, but he's a legitimately great RB. He's extremely explosive and has great short-area quickness. He has lightning-fast feet, so he can stop on a dime, re-adjust his body position, and quickly re-accelerate to attack bad angles from defenders. And he has excellent top-end speed, enough to compete with the league's defensive backs.

Best run of the day.

Brashard Smith.

Vision… change of direction… speed pic.twitter.com/mO78krYXXU

— (Foots The King) (@FootsDaKing) January 28, 2025

It's extremely important for running backs to re-accelerate after making defenders miss so they can reach the next level without getting caught quickly. Trying to run over defenders isn't sustainable and doesn't help backs speed to the end zone, and if they can't quickly burst out of their move, they're not outrunning the next set of defenders.

SMU RB Brashard Smith is dangerous with the ball. He is the perfect complementary RB to draft on day 2. pic.twitter.com/jmlUPsH2YZ

— Full-Time Dame 💰 (@DP_NFL) February 22, 2025

Smith is extremely dangerous with any kind of space. He's an underrated athlete who can plant one foot in the ground and take off before defenders have enough time to react and get in a position to make a tackle. He regularly sets up defenders to fail, putting him in a position to take two angles forward and still beat guys trying to chase him down.

If he lands on a team that has any idea what they're doing, he'll get immediate usage as a pass-catching back. He's highly elusive with the ball in his hands. Backs with a combination of shiftiness, great acceleration, and ~22 MPH top speed can torch linebackers with ease.

Brashard Smith will be a choice route nightmare at the next level! He's one to watch over the coming days https://t.co/PCB9QfpSwb pic.twitter.com/jcSnCxCqwh

— Daniel Harms (@InHarmsWay19) January 29, 2025

He's ridiculously smooth running routes out of the backfield and a massive headache for linebackers. He should immediately be a mismatch weapon in the passing game. But he won't be limited to just being a pass-catcher. He's the closest player in this class to Miami Dolphins running back De'Von Achane, though he's not quite as quick.

It's probably unreasonable to expect him to be an immediate workhorse, but he's the perfect safety valve and a highly explosive and capable runner. Landing spot will be very important -- a good offensive coordinator will need to recognize his value and get him targets early and often.

But he's the RB18 currently in FantasyPros rookie rankings, which is absurd. He's a slightly less explosive but more shifty Achane, so his best-case scenario presents a sky-high ceiling.

EDIT: Smith ran a 4.39-second 40-Yard-Dash. His stock will rise. 

RJ Harvey, RB, UCF

Harvey is another complete running back who's being overlooked. Guys from smaller schools with weaker supporting casts tend to be underrated, while the ones who went to bigger schools and had better teams around them are given boosts simply due to the situation. After hundreds of hours of film review, I've ranked Harvey, Smith, and Tuten over Judkins, Henderson, and Johnson.

My 2025 NFL Draft rookie RB rankings (for fantasy football):

1. Ashton Jeanty
2. RJ Harvey
3. Bhayshul Tuten
4. Dylan Sampson
5. Brashard Smith
6. TreVeyon Henderson
7. Quinshon Judkins
8. Kaleb Johnson

I'll post individual player breakdowns at a later date.

— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) February 27, 2025

I'll be lambasted for my Johnson ranking, but you can find some of my analysis of him here. Harvey put up elite production with elite efficiency two years in a row- in 2023, he logged 226 rushes for 1,416 yards and 16 touchdowns (6.3 yards per carry) and improved those numbers with 232 rush attempts, 1,577 yards, and 22 touchdowns (6.8 YPC) in 2024. The tape shows zero holes in his game.

His exploits were even more remarkable considering the run-blocking and quarterback play were mediocre. He quietly carried the offense on his back, accounting for over half of UFC's offensive touchdowns in 2024.

RJ Harvey has elite lateral quickness in tight spaces.

Forced 69 missed tackles placing him 8th in all of college football.

His 22 rushing touchdowns was 3rd most in 2024 pic.twitter.com/qGdc2v84GN

— PeteNova (@SuperrNova38) January 27, 2025

Harvey's lateral agility is elite. He can overcome subpar blocking and rapidly move to another gap when a defender gets through one, as you see in the above clip. And he had to do that quite often.

Career Explosive Run rates from 2025 RBs

RJ Harvey: 21%
Jarquez Hunter: 18.9%
Cam Skattebo/Bhayshul Tuten: 18%
Marcus Yarns: 17.9%
Damien Martinez: 17.8% pic.twitter.com/oHfAbvtUlI

— Football Insights 📊 (@fball_insights) February 20, 2025

Despite the bad blocking, he was still first in his class in explosive run rate. His elusiveness contributes to this. He has great vision and easily identifies and takes the best paths to juke and slip away from defenders. He has sufficient long speed to outrun linebackers and hit long runs before defensive backs can chase him down. He also has excellent strength, can break hard tackle attempts, and is a great goal-line back.

UCF RB RJ Harvey may be as quick as RB in the class, but what makes him special to me is his physicality. The dude knows how to finish a run 🚜

Has some shades of Bucky Irving from his time at Oregon. pic.twitter.com/4FuRhPHflw

— Field Yates (@FieldYates) February 13, 2025

And he's a fantastic pass-catcher, though that aspect of his game was underutilized in college. He often beat linebackers running routes out of the backfield and made them miss after the catch with the ball in his hands. His elusiveness evokes shades of Bucky Irving, though he's around 13 pounds heavier.

KJ Jefferson’s First Completion as a UCF Knight. A check down to RJ Harvey for 8 yards on the catch and run. #UCF pic.twitter.com/s2NMCkmIvO

— Andrew Cherico (@Andrew_Cherico) August 29, 2024

I have no doubt he would have shredded in the SEC, so "Went to UCF" is, I believe, a big reason why he's not higher in the RB rankings.  You should capitalize on that by drafting him wherever you can because he can be a three-down back the moment he steps on the field and has the skill set to be highly productive. If he gets enough volume, he'll probably be a league winner.

EDIT: Harvey ran a 4.40-second 40-Yard-Dash. His stock will rise. 

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