Cleveland Browns Running Back Fantasy Football Outlooks: Quinshon Judkins vs. Jerome Ford

Joey's fantasy football outlooks for Jerome Ford and Quinshon Judkins in 2025. Which Cleveland Browns running back should you draft in 2025 fantasy football?

With Nick Chubb signing with the Houston Texans, the only significant returner to the Browns' backfield in 2025 is Jerome Ford, who was effective in a limited role in 2025. The Browns were not planning on keeping Chubb around because the team selected two running backs at the NFL Draft in April.

While fourth-round draft pick Dylan Sampson was very productive in college, his skill set translates to that of a change-of-pace back at the NFL level. The player I believe will push Ford for touches the most is second-round rookie Quinshon Judkins, a big and physical back capable of handling a heavier load.

If Ford and Judkins get the majority of the touches, how will the opportunities be split between the two backs, and what does this mean for fantasy football purposes? Let’s take a look at the Browns' situation and predict how each back will perform in 2025.

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Skill Sets

Right off the bat, one thing that stands out about this backfield is Ford's and Judkins' different skill sets. Let's start with the returning Ford, who impressed in 2024 despite the awful offense surrounding him.

At 5-foot-10, 210 pounds, Ford is a good outside runner with home-run speed. While the Browns' offensive line underperformed in 2024, Ford could still use that speed to rip off some big runs and provide some life for the Cleveland running game.

JEROME FORD REVERSES FIELD FOR THE 69-YARD RUN 🔥

📺: #CLEvsPIT on ABC
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/zWM8hlwLFw pic.twitter.com/vKk11EADHH

— NFL (@NFL) September 19, 2023

Even though this play is from 2023, it is still an accurate depiction of how Ford produced in 2024 despite playing for such a lackluster offense. Even when the blocking was less than ideal, he could change directions and make defenders miss en route to extra yards.

This helped make Ford one of the league's most efficient runners: he averaged 5.4 yards per carry on 104 carries.

Ford also possesses solid toughness and can shake off tackles in one-on-one situations. While he's most effective bursting to the outside, he is still servicable as an inside runner in short-yardage and goal-line situations.

However, that's where Judkins comes in. Standing at 6 feet, 221 pounds, Judkins is a compact and powerful runner who excels running through contact.

His aggressive running style helped him produce at Ole Miss as a workhorse and at Ohio State, where he shared the backfield with fellow star TreVeyon Henderson. He racked up over 1,000 yards in all three of his college seasons and gained 1,060 yards on just 194 carries in 2024.

But Judkins didn't become the 36th overall pick in the NFL Draft just because of his size and strength. He's got sweet feet for a back his size, and has already impressed at minicamp with his ability to shift his weight.

This cut by Quinshon Judkins just made me LOL.

Look how smooth he is flipping his hips and changing direction. 👀#Browns #DawgPound #NFL
pic.twitter.com/5R9xHFe1Qx

— Matt Wilson (@CoachWilson66) June 4, 2025

That combination of abilities makes Judkins a potential three-down back at the pro level. While he is an effective inside runner, he was also asked to run outside of the tackles at Ole Miss and Ohio State and did so proficiently.

Judkins' only issue on outside runs is his speed. While his ability to move in a straight line is far from a weakness (he ran a 4.48 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine), he is often unable to escape pursuit due to the time it takes him to get up to speed.

That said, Judkins' short-area burst and quickness for his size make him an intriguing player at the NFL level.

Offseason Changes

The Browns chose to retain head coach Kevin Stefanski despite an awful 2024 season in which the Browns went 3-14. According to Pro Football Reference, Cleveland ranked last in the NFL in offense (15.2 points per game) and 27th in defense (25.6 points allowed per game).

However, Stefanski also took the Browns to the playoffs twice in four years and won Coach of the Year in 2020, when the Browns won their first playoff game since 1994. That fact has given Cleveland a good reason to keep its faith in him.

Stefanski's biggest task will be repairing the league's worst offense. While the Browns' offense was poor for many reasons, the main one was a lack of stability under center. For the third straight season, starting quarterback Deshaun Watson failed to reach 10 starts due to injury and was poor even when he was on the field.

In 2024, Watson threw five touchdowns and three interceptions in seven games before suffering a season-ending Achilles tear in Week 7. The $230 million fully guaranteed contract he received in 2022 is starting to look like one of the worst contracts in NFL history.

With Watson potentially out of commission for all of 2025, the Browns are attempting to replace him with younger talents. The team drafted two rookies, Dillon Gabriel from Oregon and Shedeur Sanders from Colorado, to battle veterans Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett for the starting job.

It will be a messy battle, and regardless of who wins out, the running game will likely be the primary source of offense in Cleveland for the foreseeable future. Ford and Judkins are important, but so is the offensive line they will be running behind.

Although the Browns' veteran offensive line regressed in 2024, continuity at quarterback could help the unit improve. On paper, the unit's only weakness is at left tackle, but youngster Dawand Jones could turn that weakness into a strength.

If Cleveland's offensive line can revert to its 2023 form, that would help Ford and Judkins thrive while also taking pressure off whoever plays quarterback for them next season.

Predictions

Some might assume that Judkins' skill set is good enough to earn the majority of the touches from the get-go. But that's not usually how it works when a team has other viable backs on the roster.

For instance, take Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs. The No. 12 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, Gibbs was an exciting player who has become a real superstar in the Motor City.

However, he was eased into his role as an NFL running back in his rookie season. He played less than 50% of the snaps in two of his first three games and did not receive a consistent workload until Week 9. That was due to the presence of David Montgomery, the player he shares the backfield with to this day.

So while Judkins will eventually become an important part of the Browns' offense, it won't happen right away. It is possible that he out-touches Ford on the season, but he will likely start in a limited role at least for a month.

Meanwhile, drafting Ford is risky business for the opposite reason. He may start the year as the team's RB1, but if Judkins starts to work his way into the offense, he could drift into irrelevance by the end of the year.

Throw in the uncertain situation at quarterback, and you have a backfield not to prioritize in fantasy football. Both Judkins and Ford will start the year as low-end RB2s, with Judkins possessing the higher upside of the pair. Expect them to flip in value by the end of the season, with Judkins gaining value and Ford losing it.

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