Saquon Barkley ran for north of 2,000 yards in his first season with the Birds, but everything touching this offense came with friction in 2025. The big plays dried up, the efficiency dipped across the board, and the vibes were a disaster.
Should I Draft Saquon Barkley in Fantasy Football?
This is a new season, and I think we are getting a bit of a discount on RB1. Barkley enters his age-29 season in a good physical space (six DNPs over the past four years, just two since joining Philadelphia) and with a resume that suggests he is built to handle the grind of the NFL season
- 625 carries over the past two years
- 26 carries and 6 targets in the playoff loss last season
START PREPARING: PFN’s FREE Fantasy Draft Simulator
As bad as things felt at times last season, he did clear 1,400 scrimmage yards and had a 40+ yard gain in four separate games. His yards per carry before first contact dipped by 48.5% from his borderline historic 2024 campaign, and while asking him to run pure again isn’t wise, finding some sort of middle ground is plenty reasonable.
More room to work creates more room for explosive plays. Easy game.
I can’t imagine this team moving on from AJ Brown with the intention to lean into the pass game, and that puts Barkley in position to again get valuable work in an above-average unit.
FANTASY RANKINGS: PFN’s FREE Fantasy PPR, Half-PPR, and Non-PPR Rankings
He’s posted over 40 red zone touches in each of the past three seasons, a run that includes 105 in his 32 games as part of this organization. I like the value of Tank Bigsby late (whether you draft Barkley or not), but that’s a contingent argument more than it is one against their star when active.
Even if you’re not a big fan of this profile, I think you should draft him around the 1-2 turn. Philly opens with Washington, Tennessee, and Chicago in September. A fresh version of Barkley could rack up over 400 yards of offense and a few scores in that stretch, allowing you to cash out if you so choose (Seahawks and Texans in Weeks 15-16 are a reasonable fear for managers confident that they will have postseason games to worry about).
Kyle Soppe’s RB Fantasy Rankings 2026
- Bijan Robinson | ATL
- Jahmyr Gibbs | DET
- James Cook III | BUF
- Ashton Jeanty | LV
- Jonathan Taylor | IND
- Christian McCaffrey | SF
- De'Von Achane | MIA
- Saquon Barkley | PHI
- Chase Brown | CIN
- Derrick Henry | BAL
- Javonte Williams | DAL
- Kenneth Walker III | KC
- Jeremiyah Love | ARI
- Omarion Hampton | LAC
- D'Andre Swift | CHI
- Travis Etienne Jr. | NO
- Breece Hall | NYJ
- Kyren Williams | LAR
- Josh Jacobs | GB
- David Montgomery | HOU
- Cam Skattebo | NYG
- Bhayshul Tuten | JAX
- TreVeyon Henderson | NE
- Bucky Irving | TB
- Chuba Hubbard | CAR
- Jaylen Warren | PIT
- Jordan Mason | MIN
- Jadarian Price | SEA
- Quinshon Judkins | CLE
- Jacory Croskey-Merritt | WAS
- Kenny Gainwell | TB
- Rhamondre Stevenson | NE
- Tony Pollard | TEN
- RJ Harvey | DEN
- Zach Charbonnet | SEA
- Rico Dowdle | PIT
- Blake Corum | LAR
- Kyle Monangai | CHI
- Chris Rodriguez Jr. | JAX
- Tyler Allgeier | ARI
- Rachaad White | WAS
- Aaron Jones Sr. | MIN
- J.K. Dobbins | DEN
- Isiah Pacheco | DET
- Nick Singleton | TEN
- James Conner | ARI
- Kimani Vidal | LAC
- Tyrone Tracy Jr. | NYG
- Jaylen Wright | MIA
- Woody Marks | HOU
