Evaluating Woody Marks through a fantasy football lens requires a realistic assessment of a player whose team has already shown us exactly how it feels about his standalone role. Selected as a fourth-round pick last year, Marks struggled with efficiency, posting a sluggish 3.6 yards per carry. While he did manage to catch 3 touchdowns, and that is certainly not nothing in PPR formats, the broader context of the offseason is incredibly telling. If the Houston Texans were genuinely impressed with what they saw from Marks, they would not have aggressively brought in David Montgomery to take over the backfield.
Should You Draft Woody Marks in Fantasy Football?
I’m not going there.
I understand if you want to bet against David Montgomery. They just brought him in, and he’s not the youngest pup on the leash here. We’ve got Marks, who was drafted two years ago. He’s a decent draft-capital kind of guy. If you want to say the Texans brought him in because they believed in him, sure, but they believed in him last season. They gave him 220 chances last season. I’m not saying he failed 220 times, but he certainly didn’t impress.
They went out because they think they’re in a Super Bowl-winning window. They think they can win at the highest of levels, and they can, because of that defense. If C.J. Stroud elevates to, I don’t know, QB13 this season, they’ve got a real chance to do damage in January. They brought in David Montgomery. To me, that means you’re bringing in a veteran running back, one that you feel good about on a snap-by-snap basis, one that you want to count on and feature behind an offensive line that wasn’t any good last season.
Maybe Marks’ struggles weren’t all his fault last season, but he wasn’t good. They decided they needed to upgrade the position, and this is a team that wants to win and win regularly. If they’re not going to Marks, I don’t see how this happens. If you want to make it a Montgomery contingency bet and you want to say Montgomery is going to get hurt, fine. I just don’t see them going back to Marks, who again had 220 opportunities to impress and couldn’t impress them enough to say, “Nah, we’re going to bring in a veteran running back from Detroit.”
Marks is what he is. I don’t think he’s overly talented. I don’t think he’s a great fit in the NFL. I don’t think he’s going to take work off the plate of Montgomery when he’s healthy.
If you’re betting against Montgomery, that’s one thing. You do your thing. Spend the 150th overall pick on Marks. I just don’t think the upside is great enough given who he’s being drafted around. You’ve got guys that could step into a legit role. If you want to go to Detroit, I think I’d rather have Isiah Pacheco. I don’t think Jahmyr Gibbs is any great threat to get injured, but if he took over in that offense, with at least some proof of concept of hard running and NFL-level production, I think Isiah Pacheco would be a better play if he was given 15 touches in Detroit than Marks if he was given 15 in Houston.
I’m out. You could draft backup running backs all you want. I’m not going to slight you there. Marks isn’t a top-5 handcuff for me. I’m not drafting him in 2026, and I think you should pass too.
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Woody Marks’ Week 1 Fantasy Outlook
The Texans think they can win at a high level this year and, in following that desire, they went out and acquired a high-floor option in David Montgomery.
Marks had a chance to impress as a rookie and fell short. Part of his struggles could be blamed on the offensive line, but is this unit going to elevate to elite sooner rather than later?
I don’t doubt that Marks will get some run, and there is contingent value to keep in mind, but if Montgomery is active for Houston, Marks is very much inactive for you this season.
Don’t overcomplicate things.
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Where Marks Ranks Among 2026 Running Backs
- J.K. Dobbins | DEN
- RJ Harvey | DEN
- Chris Rodriguez Jr. | JAX
- Aaron Jones Sr. | MIN
- Zach Charbonnet | SEA
- Woody Marks | HOU
- Tyler Allgeier | ARI
- Keaton Mitchell | LAC
- Mike Washington Jr. | LV
- Tank Bigsby | PHI
- Jonah Coleman | DEN
Check the full position group on PFN’s 2026 PPR Running Back Board.
