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Which running backs should you buy ahead of the 2026 NFL season? Aidin Ebrahimi breaks down five RBs that are worth making moves for in 2026 Dynasty fantasy football.
The running back position has experienced a revival in recent seasons. The ratio of run to pass plays per game has risen from 0.76 in 2020 to 0.83 in 2025, and with the continued rise of zone defenses, the NFL is slowly becoming a run-first league again.
It's an exciting time to start buying running backs in dynasty fantasy football leagues. These guys can be the backbone of your team and finally help get your squad over the hump.
Without further ado, let's look at five running backs to buy in dynasty fantasy football leagues ahead of the 2026 season.
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Sean Tucker - Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tucker has made the most out of his limited opportunities. The Syracuse product was a virtual unknown before Week 6 of the 2024 season, with just 17 career rushing attempts for 30 yards before that fateful night in New Orleans.
RUN, TUCKER, RUN ‼️
📺: #TBvsBUF on CBS pic.twitter.com/0Q7uIBygOQ
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) November 16, 2025
He racked up 192 yards and two touchdowns from scrimmage, finishing the week as the PPR RB1 with 34.2 points. There was not a single person on this planet who could have predicted that outcome, and insane breakout games like this are why we love football.
The presence of rookie sensation Bucky Irving and 2023's overall PPR RB4 Rachaad White made it extremely difficult for Tucker to build upon his breakout performance, as he amassed just 205 yards and one touchdown from scrimmage in his next 16 games.
But an injury to Irving in the 2025 season opened the door for him to prove himself once again. From Week 6 to Week 16, Tucker scored eight total touchdowns and had a monstrous three-touchdown game against the Bills' shoddy run defense.
Out of his 45 career games so far, Tucker has never had a game with an offensive snap percentage over 50, and has only had five games with a snap percentage over 30.
His stats in those five games read: 84.5 PPR points, 379 rushing yards, 92 receiving yards, four rushing touchdowns, and two receiving touchdowns.
So, in games where he plays even a decent number of snaps, he averages 16.9 PPR points, 94.2 yards, and 1.2 touchdowns from scrimmage per game.
Tucker will be a restricted free agent this year, and with White all but confirming that he'll join the Washington Commanders, the Buccaneers will try hard to keep him and promote him as their full-time RB2.
Even if he leaves, teams will certainly offer him a promotion from his current RB3 role.
Ashton Jeanty - Las Vegas Raiders
It was a difficult rookie year for Jeanty, as the former Boise State superstar had his work cut out for him behind the league's worst offensive line.
Kolton Miller, the lone bright spot on the Raiders' OL, got hurt in Week 4, and things became incredibly difficult for Jeanty after that point.
He had to fight through contact on almost every single run and lost 82 yards due to his line collapsing, which prevented him from finishing the year with over 1,000 rushing yards.
Despite all of that, Jeanty persevered and had a good first season. He finished 2025 as the overall PPR RB11, racked up 1,321 yards and ten touchdowns from scrimmage, and only lost one fumble.
1,021 of his 1,321 total yards (77.3%) came after contact, which shows the difficulty of Jeanty's situation and his ability to utilize his physicality to make the most of it. But luckily for Raiders fans, there's some light at the end of the tunnel.
The Raiders have the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, which they'll most likely use to draft quarterback Fernando Mendoza. They have also hired Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak as their new head coach, who has worked wonders with the Seahawks' run game and offensive line.
Before hiring Kubiak, they were in the bottom five in rushing yards and were ranked by PFF as having the second-worst offensive line. Those numbers have improved drastically, as they had the 10th-most rushing yards and the 14th-best offensive line according to PFF.
If he can work his magic with the Raiders, Jeanty's fantasy stock will skyrocket.
Jordan Mason - Minnesota Vikings
Mason was in the spotlight in the 2024 season, and while he did a good job filling in for the injured Christian McCaffrey in the 49ers' nightmare season, he's done an equally impressive job with the Vikings, filling in for the injured Aaron Jones.
Jordan Mason extends the Vikings lead to two scores
WASvsMIN on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/PyNGFYGud8
— NFL (@NFL) December 7, 2025
Jones will turn 32 next year and has missed 11 games over the past three years due to injuries, so the Vikings must find a replacement for him sooner rather than later.
That replacement could already be on the roster, as Jordan Mason has proven himself to be a great pure rusher. He averaged 3.41 yards after contact per carry in 2025, which is eighth amongst the 36 RBs with at least 150 carries.
He also forced a missed tackle on 32.1% of his rushing attempts, which is a freakishly high rate, and is better than superstars such as Bijan Robinson (30.0%), Jahmyr Gibbs (25.5%), and De'Von Achane (20.6%).
The only flaw in Mason's game is his receiving ability, but he's already good enough for his value as a fantasy RB2, and could do even better if allowed to shine.
Tank Bigsby - Philadelphia Eagles
Another player who is itching for a chance to prove himself is Bigsby. After a disappointing rookie year in 2023, Bigsby ran for 766 yards and scored seven touchdowns as a sophomore, as he also averaged 4.6 yards per carry.
The arrival of Liam Coen signaled the need for other backs who could fit his system better, and the team drafted Bhayshul Tuten and LeQuint Allen Jr. All of a sudden, Bigsby was deemed surplus to requirements and was traded to the Eagles.
While Saquon Barkley and the Eagles in general had a Super Bowl hangover, Bigsby made some big plays to help the team break the NFC East division winner's curse.
From Week 8 to the end of the season, Bigsby ran for 333 yards and two scores while averaging a ridiculous 5.8 yards per carry. He also averaged 3.76 yards after contact per attempt this year, a number only bettered by Achane (4.11) and Robinson (3.95).
Saquon's production went down this year, and he just turned 29, so there's a real chance that the Eagles utilise Bigsby more this season to prepare him for a starting role down the line.
Blake Corum - Los Angeles Rams
Corum was a big fantasy darling when the Rams took him in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft, but his rookie year was a big letdown. He only played in 10.9% of the team's offensive snaps and had 58 carries for 207 yards.
Blake Corum rumbles 48 yards for the TD!
LARvsAZ on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/aroS7jo0iI
— NFL (@NFL) December 7, 2025
The 2025 season started similarly for Corum, as he had one carry for two yards in the season opener. However, his snap count gradually increased as the season went on, and by the second half of the season, he was finally relevant in fantasy football.
Corum ran for 405 yards on 63 attempts (6.4 yards per carry) and found the endzone five times in his last six games of the year. He finished as the standard RB15 during that span, and while his pass-catching leaves a lot to be desired, his pure rushing ability will make him a fantasy asset for years to come.
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