Chris Towers updates his rankings and tiers at the RB position
• 2 min read
Things are largely holding steady in my running back rankings, but there has been some movement, for sure. The top-12 seems pretty set, with the exception of one player: Alvin Kamara, whose off-field questions still loom. He’s set for a preliminary hearing for his assault charges on Aug. 1, but we probably won’t know much more about the timetable then than we do now. Kamara has every incentive to try to delay legal proceedings as much as he can, and the NFL is unlikely to take action until and unless the legal system plays out, so it’s entirely possible Kamara won’t face any discipline until next season. If I knew he was going to be eligible to play the whole season, Kamara would be a top-five option for me, likely No. 4.
A few players I did notably move up in this update are James Robinson and Rhamondre Stevenson, who both now sit in the fringe RB3 range. There has been buzz about Stevenson pushing Damien Harris for the lead RB role for the Patriots, and he’s the only RB there with three-down potential, meaning he’s the most high-upside one there. That’s a trend we’ll be keeping a very, very close eye on during training camp, and I included Stevenson in my Breakouts update this week as well.
As for Robinson, while he still has a lot to prove in coming back from a ruptured Achilles, the fact that he won’t be on the PUP list to open camp seems like a big deal to me. We’ve seen him be a difference-making contributor for Fantasy, and while it’s fair to be skeptical about his physical readiness coming off this specific injury, there simply aren’t many proven backs with three-down skills available late in your drafts. Robinson still went outside of the top-100 in our most recent mock draft after the news came out, so he still looks like a value to me.
- Christian McCaffrey
- Jonathan Taylor
- Austin Ekeler*
- Dalvin Cook
- Najee Harris*
- Aaron Jones
- D’Andre Swift
- Derrick Henry
- Leonard Fournette
- Joe Mixon*
- Saquon Barkley
- David Montgomery
- Alvin Kamara
- James Conner*
- Javonte Williams
- Nick Chubb
- Ezekiel Elliott*
- J.K. Dobbins
- Travis Etienne
- Josh Jacobs
- Antonio Gibson
- Breece Hall*
- Cam Akers
- Miles Sanders
- AJ Dillon
- Elijah Mitchell*
- Kareem Hunt
- Chase Edmonds
- Tony Pollard
- Damien Harris
- Clyde Edwards-Helaire*
- Devin Singletary
- Kenneth Gainwell
- James Cook
- Rashaad Penny
- Rhamondre Stevenson
- James Robinson
- Cordarrelle Patterson
- Alexander Mattison
- Ronald Jones II
- Melvin Gordon*
- Dameon Pierce
- Nyheim Hines
- J.D. McKissic
- Jamaal Williams
- Kenneth Walker III
- Darrell Henderson
- Gus Edwards
- Michael Carter
- James White
- Zamir White*
- Darrel Williams
- D’Onta Foreman
- Marlon Mack
- Isaiah Spiller
- Damien Williams
- Rex Burkhead
- Jeff Wilson
- Kenyan Drake
- Sony Michel*
*End of a tier
