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Should you start Ashton Jeanty, TreVeyon Henderson, Omarion Hampton in Week 2? John explores the outlooks for three rookie running backs in Week 2 of the 2025 season.
Las Vegas Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty, New England Patriots RB TreVeyon Henderson, and Los Angeles Chargers tailback Omarion Hampton were three of the first four running backs selected in the 2025 NFL Draft. Jeanty was selected with the No. 6 overall pick, Hampton was chosen later in the first round, and Henderson was an early second-round pick.
None of these players eclipsed 15.0 PPR fantasy points in their Week 1 outings. Jeanty logged 12.0 PPR fantasy points, Hampton finished with 8.1, and Henderson had 11.1 points. Obviously, it's been just one week, but the results so far haven't been highly encouraging.
Still, in fantasy football, all you care about is starting the players that will score you the most points in any given week. With Week 2 coming up, fantasy managers who drafted these players want to know if they're good starts. So are they? Let's dive in.
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Ashton Jeanty Fantasy Football Outlook
Jeanty was hailed as a "generational" RB prospect. His stat line of 19 carries for 38 yards, at just 2.0 yards per carry, and two catches for two yards was disappointing, though he did salvage his fantasy day with a rushing touchdown. Still, against the New England Patriots defense, this wasn't an encouraging result.
The Patriots have one of the NFL's poorer defenses on paper. Last season, they allowed a close-to-league-average 4.4 yards per rush attempt. Jeanty's mark of half that is equal parts a red flag that he's probably not as good as advertised, and an indictment of the state of the team's offensive line.
Not drafting Ashton Jeanty in the first round in fantasy purely because his offensive line is horrible was a fair move. pic.twitter.com/520a4SoAvj
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) September 7, 2025
His usage was excellent, and at the position you drafted him in redraft leagues, likely in the late first or early second round (if you took him at all), it doesn't make sense to bench him. But he might struggle with poor efficiency all season.
Jeanty was hyped as a prospect as so good that he'd be able to overcome offensive line struggles. That's why many fantasy managers drafted him over Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry. I imagine close to 100 percent of them would trade Jeanty for Henry in a redraft league now, but it's too late.
I analyzed Jeanty as a prospect, and never saw him as the elite RB that consensus seemed to believe he was. It might be time to adjust expectations downward and expect a high-volume, inefficient season. But he should still be in your starting lineups.
TreVeyon Henderson Fantasy Football Outlook
Henderson didn't have an inefficient day, but he didn't get a ton of touches. His volume might be set to increase soon, though. His backfield mate, RB Rhamondre Stevenson, struggled in Week 1, carrying the ball seven times for just 15 yards (2.1 yards per carry) and catching two of his three targets for 12 yards.
Henderson had five carries for 27 yards and six catches for 24 yards on his six targets. The receiving volume is certainly encouraging. If it holds for the season, he could have a nice fantasy year heavily buoyed by PPR points. Still, he managed just four yards per reception.
TreVeyon Henderson - Week 1 rushing
5 carries
27 yardsI don't expect him to ever be the lead carrier, but when he touches the ball, his speed makes plays. pic.twitter.com/RImCIIRzHC
— Michael Rodnick (@MJRodnick) September 9, 2025
My analysis of Henderson really hasn't changed. He's a hugely explosive athlete, but struggles to break tackles. It was a problem in college and remains a problem in the NFL. It's best to get him in space, where he can make big plays by chewing up ground quickly with his elite speed.
I've said in the offseason that TreVeyon Henderson's production will depend heavily on the Patriots ability to get him in space. He's an electric athlete, but very poor at playing through contact.
Among RBs with 10 touches, he's dead last by a mile in YACo/touch through Week 1. pic.twitter.com/0jggPS3GFP
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) September 11, 2025
He forced just one missed tackle on his 11 touches, and averaged only 0.27 yards after contact per touch, easily the lowest by far of any running back with 10 or more touches in Week 1. It's a small sample size, sure, but it lines up with his struggles in playing through contact in college.
It's a 1 game sample size, sure, but it tracks perfectly with what we saw in college. Electric on plays where he's not meaningfully contacted by the defense. Otherwise, not so great https://t.co/AmCkqfw9YH
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) September 11, 2025
Still. You likely had to spend a high pick to get him. And he has the explosiveness to create huge plays if he has the space to do it. One big rush or reception, combined with his receiving volume, can make him a nice start in PPR leagues any week. So you should keep him in your lineups.
But he might be a very boom or bust player moving forward.
Omarion Hampton Fantasy Football Outlook
Hampton's Week 1 wasn't too impressive. He took 15 carries for 48 yards and caught both his targets for 13 yards without scoring a touchdown. Still, the game script didn't work in his favor, as the Chargers passed the ball very heavily against the Kansas City Chiefs. That game plan made sense -- it's the Chiefs, after all.
There are a few key factors to consider. The first is that the Chargers should likely run the ball more heavily moving forward. The second is that RB Najee Harris (eye) could get more of a workload moving forward as his eye injury continues to heal.
REPORT: Najee Harris could see an increased workload in Week 2 per Jim Harbaugh pic.twitter.com/4CO6CGjlxl
— The Fantasy Source (@FantasySource_) September 9, 2025
Hampton was an early pick, but Chargers offensive coordinator Greg Roman has remained steadfast in his commitment to using committee backfields when he has a decent RB2. Hampton shouldn't be benched, and he's more talented than Harris, but never underestimate Roman's willingness to give his RB2 meaningful touches.
Moving forward, similar volume from Hampton should be expected, as the Chargers will likely opt to remain run-heavy against poorer offense. Game script will play a factor, though, and in games where the team needs to pass a lot, we could see more disappointing volume from Hampton.
Still, you have to start him, and hope for him to get the goal-line carries moving forward.
Who Should I Start Tool
Not sure who to start? Check out the Who Should I Start tool:
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Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 2 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Ashton Jeanty, TreVeyon Henderson, Omarion Hampton. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 2. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 2 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Week 2 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Ashton Jeanty, TreVeyon Henderson, Omarion Hampton. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 2.
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 Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed, our Who Should I Start? tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circles), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 2 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 2 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 2 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 2 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Ashton Jeanty, TreVeyon Henderson, Omarion Hampton compared to others:
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