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Austin Swaim's risky fantasy football RB trade targets in dynasty leagues for 2026, including his top RB trade target for dynasty leagues this upcoming season.
Sometimes in dynasty fantasy football, you've got to put yourself out there to improve your roster -- especially at the running back position.
The risks can be evident. A player is aging. They're either injury-prone or knowingly facing that uphill battle at a position with frequent injuries. Next year's new crop of rookies might unseat what you think is a potential breakout situation. There are plenty of reasons why acquiring an RB in dynasty can be a huge roll of the dice.
Nonetheless, here are my five favorite spins at the wheel before training camp gets underway.
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Quinshon Judkins, Cleveland Browns
Quinshon Judkins might be the riskiest player to buy this offseason in dynasty -- regardless of position. I still want to because of his talent.
#Browns fans can get excited about Quinshon Judkins, who’s participating in team drills: pic.twitter.com/KkW6htsJnH
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) May 20, 2026
After full participation in OTAs, it seems Judkins is on the road to recovery from the dislocated ankle that ended his rookie season. That's not really sounding the alarm bells on its own, but it is a factor most would mentally start with if considering a trade for him.
Then, we have the overhaul in Cleveland. Kevin Stefanski's staff, which drafted Judkins, is gone, and Todd Monken's staff has replaced it. Monken, of course, fed Derrick Henry 307 carries last year, so it might not end up a negative despite the uncertainty. GM Andrew Berry is certainly at a crossroads with another poor season, though.
If there's an innate risk to Judkins, it's that, at RB12 in RotoBaller's dynasty rankings, he just becomes the latest talented back stuck in the quicksand that has swallowed Breece Hall. Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders wouldn't be betting favorites to be Cleveland's quarterback of the future, and the Browns have proved capable of finding whatever bust might be looming in a loaded 2027 quarterback class.
Per Fantasy Points data, Judkins saw the third-highest rate of stacked boxes (53.9%) in 2025. If a revamped offensive line and wide receiving room give this offense just a league-average pulse, he can encroach on double-digit touchdowns and take his seat within the upper echelon of dynasty running backs entering 2027.
Zach Charbonnet, Seattle Seahawks
I don't see Zach Charbonnet (knee) as particularly risky, but many wouldn't be in that camp.
Since scoring the final of a career-high 12 touchdowns in 2025, Charbonnet has been hit with a double whammy. He suffered a torn ACL in Seattle's first playoff game against San Francisco, putting the start of his 2026 season in doubt. As with all players, there's a risk his effectiveness has waned.
But wait -- it gets worse. Seattle used the No. 32 overall pick on a running back to replace the departing Kenneth Walker III. Jadarian Price is seemingly the favorite to lead this backfield in carries now -- although I wouldn't put that in stone given early OTA usage.
As a minor cherry on top, the play-caller who handed him all that goal-line work, Klint Kubiak, is also now in Las Vegas.
Why buy? Well, the former second-round pick still doesn't turn 26 until January, and he's entering the final year of his deal. For more of a long-term outlook, he could end up with a new team in 2027.
However, not being the most ardent fan of Price's prospect profile, I'm not even sure his turn as RB1 in Seattle's backfield will still come. Plus, there's some sort of role immediately for him upon his return in the passing game. He's drawn 116 targets in three years; Price caught 15 passes total in three years at Notre Dame.
Charbonnet has averaged 0.91 PPR fantasy points per touch in three seasons, including 0.89 with last year's heaviest workload of his career. That was 17th among all RBs (min. 100 touches). I feel like he's become an afterthought just because the GM who drafted Rashaad Penny, who wanted to move back from No. 32, has taken another pass at the position.
Jonathon Brooks, Carolina Panthers
The term "make or break" gets thrown around a lot in fantasy football, but Jonathon Brooks' fantasy value will either be a top-20 running back or completely gone by the end of 2026.
The former 2024 second-round pick hasn't even been on the field enough to know whether he's a true bust or not. He's got 12 touches in two seasons. Anyone speculating on the talent here would be fibbing, and I'd probably lean back on a final season at Texas with 1,425 scrimmage yards to say he's not too shabby -- provided the knee recovery hasn't sapped his ability.
In dynasty, Brooks was a first-round pick, and the "buy-low" window has truly never opened. It certainly hasn't this offseason, considering the Panthers let Rico Dowdle walk and didn't draft a running back. That leaves Brooks, Chuba Hubbard, and Trevor Etienne in a three-pronged race for touches.
Per Pro Football Focus (PFF), Hubbard struggled last year at just 2.45 yards after contact per attempt. Carolina will probably give him the first crack at touches, but he'll need to prove his effectiveness to stay ahead.
Turning 23 later in July, Brooks' story is far from over. In fact, doctors seem confident they've appropriately repaired his knee this time, and Carolina played it extremely cautiously to wipe out his 2025.
I think back to Chris Olave's concussion situation for comparison, and his dynasty value is basically unaltered after one great, healthy season. Would the same grace not be given to Brooks if he starts for a Panthers team that ranked fifth in the NFL's rush rate over expectation (6.1%) last season?
Jordan Mason, Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings' offensive outlook, outside of Justin Jefferson, is pretty fluid. That definitely goes for their running back room.
At first glance, they've run back their duo from last year, Jordan Mason and Aaron Jones Sr. Despite Jones missing five games last year, Mason didn't quite live up to the late-round hype he had in redraft leagues based on that scenario. He averaged 13.5 FPPG in full-PPR formats in those games Jones missed, but also battled his own injuries for a second consecutive season, missing most of Weeks 16 and 17.
Jones turns 32 in December, so it'd be surprising if a similar window didn't open in 2026. Mason also remained a strong runner despite the quiet performances in the timeshare, ranking 11th in yards after contact per attempt (3.41). The overall results were masked by a wave of injuries to Minnesota's offensive line and J.J. McCarthy's struggles.
TOUCHDOWN VIKINGS! 🏈
Jordan Mason follows up a 14-yard run with a short dash for six! 👏 pic.twitter.com/ikM2hczyBv
— NFL UK & Ireland (@NFLUKIRE) October 5, 2025
Minnesota added Demond Claiborne, a 5'9" burner, in the sixth round of the draft, but physiology implies he wouldn't threaten Mason's goal-line work. The Georgia Tech alum saw 27 carries to Jones' 14 in scoring range last year.
Mason seems like a classic post-hype sleeper. His situation really hasn't changed, but the offense will almost certainly be better, and I'm a bit less concerned about the veteran's age (27) when he didn't top 90 carries in either of his final two college seasons and has never been a lead back in the NFL. He's a fresh runner.
Age is what makes him a bit risky, though. Another dud season, and the clock might start ticking quickly.
DJ Giddens, Indianapolis Colts
Managing a player like DJ Giddens right now can be pretty terrifying. That "B" word is looming.
Giddens did absolutely nothing in his rookie campaign to justify the faith that he'll be a long-term fantasy contributor. He only earned 26 carries and two targets that were not caught, totaling 3.7 scrimmage yards per touch. There was no electricity or highlights.
A lot of that had to do with the surprise season of Jonathan Taylor, though. Taylor totaled 1,963 scrimmage yards in a season where he received MVP whispers and, importantly, played all 17 games after missing a combined 16 contests in the prior three seasons. Giddens was an investment, expecting that not to be the case.
However, the Colts are really committing to one of Giddens or seventh-round rookie Seth McGowan through their actions. They let Ameer Abdullah and Tyler Goodson walk in free agency, opening the door for one of the two to be the clear RB2 behind Taylor.
The former Kansas State star turns 23 in August and just started playing organized football in high school. A "learning curve" was somewhat expected.
The pieces may never come together, but there are players like McGowan, J'Mari Taylor, and Eli Heidenreich going in the fourth round of this year's rookie drafts. Instead, why not offer that pick for Giddens? It seems crazy, given those three's obstacles to playing time, that if Taylor turned an ankle in Week 1, Giddens could be a weekly starter right away.
I sense a real opportunity here for one of my favorite 2025 prospects. Remember, Kyren Williams had just 35 carries as a rookie. Chase Brown had just 44. It takes some time for a Day 3 pick to actually get the opportunity to prove themselves at running back if there's a productive starter in place.
Who Should I Draft Fantasy Football Tool
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2026 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Quinshon Judkins, Jonathon Brooks, Zach Charbonnet, Jordan Mason, DJ Giddens. These are some common searches for 2026 fantasy football drafts.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player's name. In the second box, search for the second player's name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Draft? button to see who the recommended draft picks are based on fantasy football rankings, projections, and more.
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Popular Draft Searches. Curious to see some tough draft decisions for 2026? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Draft? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
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