The Fantasy Football Running Back Handcuff Hedge - Mastering The Art of RB Handcuffs (2025)

Raph's top 2025 fantasy football running back handcuffs, rankings tiers and draft sleepers. His innovative RB "handcuff hedge" theory will help you pick winning RBs.

It's been almost seven years since I last wrote this article, and my philosophy on the fantasy football running back "handcuff hedge" has only strengthened since then. We have learned over time that the running back position is, without question, the most volatile in fantasy football. This understanding is based on the percentage of injuries versus other skill positions, NFL teams increasingly using split back committees, creating opportunity share doubt, and also takes into account weekly fantasy scoring consistency.

Along with this natural order of chaos, the general fantasy football playing public often assumes that handcuffing workhorses with the next man up, on their primary backs' own team depth chart, is the only viable strategy on draft day.

While the traditional (and extremely antiquated) handcuffing strategy can work in some unique situations around the NFL (detailed below), it is highly unreliable in most due to various factors such as the inexperience or ineptitude of the same-team RB2 on most NFL teams' depth charts. Unfortunately, the traditional handcuffing strategy has become a lazy form of oversimplified analysis by too many drafters and analysts doling out fantasy advice to their unsuspecting patrons. We at RotoBaller are setting out to change that mindset and rebrand the definition of what a running back handcuff could truly be for your fantasy football team!

Redefining The Running Back "Handcuff"

By analyzing the current fantasy football preseason drafting trends via average ADP and comparing them to the RotoBaller staff rankings in an attempt to unearth dark horse running back production upside, we can make some compelling cases to dispel the traditional handcuff strategy in favor of the tried and true "handcuff hedge" theory.

You no longer should have to look for a backup to your stud running back from the same NFL team when there are so many better upside options elsewhere around the league, that will be arguably more productive in case of emergency, but will also have standalone value week to week on your fantasy football roster.

This article will once again break down the tiers of handcuff hedges based on the severity of player valuations and the need to employ the strategy in each unique NFL team's running back situation. The first block will only include the instances where we advocate the traditional handcuffing strategy, where, in some cases, the average ADP delta is less than 50 draft slots, while tiers 1-3 will highlight the best uses of handcuff hedging.

The main factor to take into account is that we are trying to achieve the best possible draft capital value for our handcuff hedges (defined as an average ADP delta of 50 or more slots), while only recommending "handcuff hedges" that have some level of stand-alone roles as projected secondary, or pass catching, backs in their team's offense.

This exercise is based on point per reception (PPR) scoring formats, and the theory is best applied to those league types. It is also important to mention that we are not taking potential future injuries into account; since we cannot predict the future, we project production and viability for a 16-game sample size.

Remember that all of the "ideal handcuff hedge" running backs below were chosen because they will have a projected stand-alone role in their team's offense, as a third down pass-catching back or goal-line specialist, at the very minimum. This also means they should have, at the very least, flex running back appeal every week, and will not be a rotting carcass waiting to be shipped back to the waiver wire after two weeks of action.

Tier 1-2 Running Back Handcuff Hedges

*Quinshon Judkins remains unsigned as of this article being written on 8/25/2025, but is expected to be a key contributor in the Browns backfield committee at some point during the 2025 season

Tier 3-5 Running Back Handcuff Hedges

*Jordan Mason did not qualify as a traditional handcuff for Aaron Jones because the average ADP delta was less than 50

Tier 6-8 Running Back Handcuff Hedges

Running Backs That Can Be Traditionally Handcuffed

*Denotes a last-round draft pick if you've drafted the primary running back on the same NFL team

Running Back Committees - Handcuff Caveats

Even though there are inherently many deeply rooted personal biases regarding the running backs I will personally target heavily, and those that I'll be avoiding at all costs during my own fantasy football drafts, it was still important to get just about every projected starter, with a few caveats:

1. The Jaguars' backfield is a crowded committee featuring three backs with varied skill sets that can all contribute during the 2025 season. There's also a lot of hype with the arrival of new head coach Liam Coen and varying training camp depth chart news and practice usage reports, especially for Bhayshul Tuten, who I like the best out of this group. With that said, for this article, I'm treating Travis Etienne Jr. as the starter to begin the season based on everything we know, and consensus ADP, even though he's not my cup of tea and was a huge bust for those who drafted him in 2024. I project Tuten to be the top Jags backfield fantasy scorer in 2025, but all three could have some value, even if one is traded before the season starts.

2. The Cowboys' backfield is an underwhelming committee, so even though Javonte Williams is technically considered the starter in Dallas, I'm not treating him as anything more than an RB4. His current Tier 9 ranking and ADP of 112 leave him in the mix with several other backup running backs from other teams. Miles Sanders seems washed and can be ignored in all formats, but don't be surprised if Jaydon Blue recovers from his injury and provides similar value to Williams by mid-season.

3. The Texans also have a big problem at running back, with incumbent veteran starter Joe Mixon set to start the season on the PUP list due to an ankle injury, Nick Chubb lacking explosiveness, Dameon Pierce sucking at football and being often-injured, and rookie Woody Marks having to overcome the depth chart. It wouldn't surprise me if Marks put his stamp on this offense at some point during the 2025 season, but the veteran backs should be prioritized in redraft leagues for early-season production upside.

It obviously goes without saying that some of these players may not pan out as viable fantasy football contributors this year, as it happens every season, but this entire article is based on the actual player valuations that the masses have assigned to these running backs based on current average ADP.

While it was tempting to reference dark horses with upward mobility, such as Brashard Smith, Jarquez Hunter, Roschon Johnson, Will Shipley, and Ollie Gordon II, the reality is that none of these backup running backs are close to having a guaranteed role in their team's offense to start the season (although I personally do love the upside of Shipley and Gordon if either Saquon Barkley or De'Von Achane gets injured).

Honorable Mention Handcuff Hedge

Keaton Mitchell, Baltimore Ravens

While Derrick Henry doesn't generally miss time due to injury, if he did, the bulk of the work would be split between Justice Hill (already mentioned as Henry's traditional handcuff) and the highly explosive Keaton Mitchell. Mitchell doesn't have workhorse appeal, but can be a poor man's Achane on a per-touch basis, as evidenced by his 8.4 yards per carry (47 attempts) over eight games played in his 2023 rookie season.

Every Keaton Mitchell touch - first preseason game (Year 3) pic.twitter.com/pDmsB8lmki

— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) August 10, 2025

More Late-Round Upside Handcuffs

Some of my favorites, in no specific order:

• Jaylen Wright - Miami Dolphins
• Will Shipley - Philadelphia Eagles
• Elijah Mitchell - Kansas City Chiefs
• Emanuel Wilson - Green Bay Packers
• Sean Tucker - Tampa Bay Buccaneers
• Kendre Miller - New Orleans Saints
• Ray Davis - Buffalo Bills
• Kenneth Gainwell - Pittsburgh Steelers
• Isaiah Davis - New York Jets
• Kyle Monangai - Chicago Bears

Fantasy Fool's Gold Handcuff

Blake Corum, Los Angeles Rams

Don't get caught in the trap of thinking that Blake Corum will usurp Kyren Williams, eat into his 2025 fantasy production, or save you as the traditional handcuff if Williams were to miss a lot of time due to a severe injury. Even if he were pressed into service, his underwhelming 3.6 yards per carry over 58 attempts during his 2024 rookie campaign proved inefficient and below league average. Couple that with the fact that I've never believed in him, and Jarquez Hunter profiles as a much more explosive running back, and you have the making of my top fantasy fool's gold handcuff for the 2025 season.

🐏 𝗝𝗮𝗿𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘇 𝗛𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 > 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝘂𝗺

Blake Corum is an underwhelming plodder who averaged 3.6 YPC in his rookie campaign. I've never subscribed to his alleged breakout-in-the-making.

Jarquez Hunter is an explosive dark horse who is guaranteed to shine in an… pic.twitter.com/3FSlvNESeN

— Raphstradamus 🎙 (@RealTalkRaph) August 24, 2025

If you have any further questions about the "handcuff hedge" theory after reading this article, or anything relating to fantasy football, feel free to hit me up on X @RealTalkRaph at any time. Our goal at RotoBaller.com is to help you get an edge on the competition and increase your opportunity to win playing fantasy football in 2025.

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