When it comes time to draft running backs in fantasy football, the prevailing consensus is to try and set yourself up nicely in the early rounds. We do see some variation in strategy, but having a top-end RB can set you up nicely in terms of a solid floor on a week-to-week basis.
However, you cannot just blindly draft superstar RBs or easily have a roster with five of the top 20 options on it. That is where our fantasy football rankings can help you. Using PFN’s consensus fantasy football RB rankings, you can compare each player to the ADP of the site you are drafting and devise a plan for which players you are going to look to target and when.
The rankings below are a consensus of our three fantasy experts, Derek Tate, Jason Katz, and Kyle Soppe. Between them, they have over two decades of fantasy football writing experience and are constantly analyzing the latest news and data to ensure our rankings are up to date. These rankings also provide the basis for PFN’s “Who Should I Draft” tool, Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer, and Trade Value Charts.
Ranking the Top Fantasy Running Backs
FIND MORE POSITIONAL RANKINGS: QB | WR | TE | K | DEF | SF
1) Christian McCaffrey | San Francisco 49ers
2) Bijan Robinson | Atlanta Falcons
3) Breece Hall | New York Jets
4) Jonathan Taylor | Indianapolis Colts
5) Jahmyr Gibbs | Detroit Lions
6) Kyren Williams | Los Angeles Rams
7) Saquon Barkley | Philadelphia Eagles
8) Derrick Henry | Baltimore Ravens
9) Travis Etienne Jr. | Jacksonville Jaguars
10) De’Von Achane | Miami Dolphins
11) Isiah Pacheco | Kansas City Chiefs
12) Josh Jacobs | Green Bay Packers
13) Joe Mixon | Houston Texans
14) James Cook | Buffalo Bills
15) Rachaad White | Tampa Bay Buccaneers
16) Kenneth Walker III | Seattle Seahawks
17) Alvin Kamara | New Orleans Saints
18) David Montgomery | Detroit Lions
19) Aaron Jones | Minnesota Vikings
20) D’Andre Swift | Chicago Bears
21) James Conner | Arizona Cardinals
22) Zack Moss | Cincinnati Bengals
23) Najee Harris | Pittsburgh Steelers
24) Zamir White | Las Vegas Raiders
25) Rhamondre Stevenson | New England Patriots
26) Jaylen Warren | Pittsburgh Steelers
27) Brian Robinson Jr. | Washington Commanders
28) Raheem Mostert | Miami Dolphins
29) Jonathon Brooks | Carolina Panthers
30) Ezekiel Elliott | Dallas Cowboys
31) Gus Edwards | Los Angeles Chargers
32) Nick Chubb | Cleveland Browns
33) Javonte Williams | Denver Broncos
34) Tyjae Spears | Tennessee Titans
35) Devin Singletary | New York Giants
36) Tony Pollard | Tennessee Titans
37) Austin Ekeler | Washington Commanders
38) Trey Benson | Arizona Cardinals
39) Chase Brown | Cincinnati Bengals
40) Blake Corum | Los Angeles Rams
41) Jerome Ford | Cleveland Browns
42) Zach Charbonnet | Seattle Seahawks
43) Rico Dowdle | Dallas Cowboys
44) Chuba Hubbard | Carolina Panthers
45) Tyler Allgeier | Atlanta Falcons
46) Jaleel McLaughlin | Denver Broncos
47) Antonio Gibson | New England Patriots
48) Kendre Miller | New Orleans Saints
49) Ty Chandler | Minnesota Vikings
50) MarShawn Lloyd | Green Bay Packers
51) Roschon Johnson | Chicago Bears
52) J.K. Dobbins | Los Angeles Chargers
53) Ray Davis | Buffalo Bills
54) Khalil Herbert | Chicago Bears
55) Elijah Mitchell | San Francisco 49ers
56) Dameon Pierce | Houston Texans
57) Jaylen Wright | Miami Dolphins
58) Clyde Edwards-Helaire | Kansas City Chiefs
59) AJ Dillon | Green Bay Packers
60) Keaton Mitchell | Baltimore Ravens
61) Justice Hill | Baltimore Ravens
62) D’Onta Foreman | Cleveland Browns
63) Miles Sanders | Carolina Panthers
64) Alexander Mattison | Las Vegas Raiders
65) Bucky Irving | Tampa Bay Buccaneers
66) Kenneth Gainwell | Philadelphia Eagles
67) Jamaal Williams | New Orleans Saints
68) Braelon Allen | New York Jets
69) Audric Estimé | Denver Broncos
70) Tank Bigsby | Jacksonville Jaguars
71) Dylan Laube | Las Vegas Raiders
72) Jeff Wilson Jr. | Miami Dolphins
73) Michael Carter | Arizona Cardinals
74) Jordan Mason | San Francisco 49ers
75) Pierre Strong Jr. | Cleveland Browns
76) Samaje Perine | Denver Broncos
77) Will Shipley | Philadelphia Eagles
78) Israel Abanikanda | New York Jets
79) Emari Demercado | Arizona Cardinals
80) Deuce Vaughn | Dallas Cowboys
81) D’Ernest Johnson | Jacksonville Jaguars
82) Chris Rodriguez Jr. | Washington Commanders
83) Isaiah Spiller | Los Angeles Chargers
84) Cam Akers | Houston Texans
85) Cordarrelle Patterson | Pittsburgh Steelers
86) Chase Edmonds | Tampa Bay Buccaneers
87) Trey Sermon | Indianapolis Colts
88) Eric Gray | New York Giants
89) Ronnie Rivers | Los Angeles Rams
90) Evan Hull | Indianapolis Colts
Who Are the Best Running Backs To Draft in Fantasy?
Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers
Fantasy managers can and should have zero concerns about Christian McCaffrey’s effectiveness. That said, it’s at least worth considering that he is 28 years old and has 1,948 career touches.
McCaffrey has a shade under 800 touches over the past two seasons, both of which saw him play more games than he ever did in Carolina due to the 49ers actually being able to advance deep into the postseason.
Nevertheless, there’s no tangible reason to fade McCaffrey. We’ve seen exactly zero signs of decline. There’s also no argument for any running back other than McCaffrey as the overall RB1.
If McCaffrey fails, it will be because of injury. But we can’t predict that. Those fading him last year tried and likely went with the “safer” route of WRs like Justin Jefferson or Ja’Marr Chase. How’d that work out?
Outside of those two years in 2020 and 2021, McCaffrey has been healthy his entire career. The reality is football is a violent game where players get hurt. It’s going to happen again this year. If it does, that’s just bad luck.
All we can do is take the best players at every possible pick. From the moment your fantasy draft starts, McCaffrey is the best player.
– Jason Katz, PFN Fantasy Analyst
Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons
It’s very easy to fall into the trap of not drafting players who burned you the year before. While that often comes with a drop in ADP, making taking them again more palatable, Bijan Robinson should certainly be exempt even with his ADP rising.
Robinson is going as the RB2, No. 6 overall. The fantasy community is giving Robinson a complete mulligan for his 2023 season. Significant progression is baked into his ADP.
Even with Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke at quarterback, Robinson could easily have averaged 17+ fantasy points per game last season had he had a remotely competent head coach.
Now, not only is Robinson poised to see a boost from proper usage, but he will see a boost from Kirk Cousins making this offense better as a whole. Robinson is a threat for 2,000 yards and 20 touchdowns this season. It’s in his range of outcomes.
It’s very much a toss-up between him and Breece Hall as the RB2. There’s no wrong answer. I lean toward Robinson and have him ranked in the No. 2 spot. You can justify Robinson as high as No. 2 overall.
– Jason Katz, PFN Fantasy Analyst