Whether you are a beginner or an obsessive fantasy football enthusiast, utilizing a rock-solid rankings list can help you crush your fantasy draft. One position that is crucial to your fantasy success is finding reliable running backs to anchor your starting lineup.
Here’s a closer look at the fantasy RB rankings in a non-PPR format entering the 2024 NFL season.
Ranking the Top Fantasy Running Backs
FIND MORE POSITIONAL RANKINGS: QB | WR | TE | K | DEF | SF
1) Christian McCaffrey | San Francisco 49ers
2) Kyren Williams | Los Angeles Rams
3) Bijan Robinson | Atlanta Falcons
4) Breece Hall | New York Jets
5) Jonathan Taylor | Indianapolis Colts
6) Jahmyr Gibbs | Detroit Lions
7) Saquon Barkley | Philadelphia Eagles
8) Travis Etienne Jr. | Jacksonville Jaguars
9) Josh Jacobs | Green Bay Packers
10) Isiah Pacheco | Kansas City Chiefs
11) De’Von Achane | Miami Dolphins
12) Derrick Henry | Baltimore Ravens
13) Rachaad White | Tampa Bay Buccaneers
14) Alvin Kamara | New Orleans Saints
15) Kenneth Walker III | Seattle Seahawks
16) Joe Mixon | Houston Texans
17) James Cook | Buffalo Bills
18) D’Andre Swift | Chicago Bears
19) David Montgomery | Detroit Lions
20) Aaron Jones | Minnesota Vikings
21) Rhamondre Stevenson | New England Patriots
22) Jaylen Warren | Pittsburgh Steelers
23) Raheem Mostert | Miami Dolphins
24) Zamir White | Las Vegas Raiders
25) Najee Harris | Pittsburgh Steelers
26) James Conner | Arizona Cardinals
27) Zack Moss | Cincinnati Bengals
28) Tyjae Spears | Tennessee Titans
29) Nick Chubb | Cleveland Browns
30) Brian Robinson Jr. | Washington Commanders
31) Gus Edwards | Los Angeles Chargers
32) Ezekiel Elliott | Dallas Cowboys
33) Jaleel McLaughlin | Denver Broncos
34) Chase Brown | Cincinnati Bengals
35) Trey Benson | Arizona Cardinals
36) Jonathon Brooks | Carolina Panthers
37) Devin Singletary | New York Giants
38) Javonte Williams | Denver Broncos
39) Tony Pollard | Tennessee Titans
40) Tyrone Tracy Jr. | New York Giants
41) Austin Ekeler | Washington Commanders
42) Chuba Hubbard | Carolina Panthers
43) Rico Dowdle | Dallas Cowboys
44) Jerome Ford | Cleveland Browns
45) Ray Davis | Buffalo Bills
46) Blake Corum | Los Angeles Rams
47) Jaylen Wright | Miami Dolphins
48) J.K. Dobbins | Los Angeles Chargers
49) Antonio Gibson | New England Patriots
50) Roschon Johnson | Chicago Bears
51) Dylan Laube | Las Vegas Raiders
52) Ty Chandler | Minnesota Vikings
53) Zach Charbonnet | Seattle Seahawks
54) MarShawn Lloyd | Green Bay Packers
55) Kendre Miller | New Orleans Saints
56) Tyler Allgeier | Atlanta Falcons
57) Kimani Vidal | Los Angeles Chargers
58) Rasheen Ali | Baltimore Ravens
59) Dameon Pierce | Houston Texans
60) Miles Sanders | Carolina Panthers
61) Eric Gray | New York Giants
62) Keaton Mitchell | Baltimore Ravens
63) Alexander Mattison | Las Vegas Raiders
64) D’Onta Foreman | Cleveland Browns
65) Deuce Vaughn | Dallas Cowboys
66) Jamaal Williams | New Orleans Saints
67) Audric Estimé | Denver Broncos
68) Clyde Edwards-Helaire | Kansas City Chiefs
69) Justice Hill | Baltimore Ravens
70) Elijah Mitchell | San Francisco 49ers
71) Khalil Herbert | Chicago Bears
72) Kenneth Gainwell | Philadelphia Eagles
73) AJ Dillon | Green Bay Packers
74) Tank Bigsby | Jacksonville Jaguars
75) Bucky Irving | Tampa Bay Buccaneers
76) Isaac Guerendo | San Francisco 49ers
77) Jeff Wilson Jr. | Miami Dolphins
78) Royce Freeman | Dallas Cowboys
79) Will Shipley | Philadelphia Eagles
80) Michael Carter | Arizona Cardinals
81) Pierre Strong Jr. | Cleveland Browns
82) Samaje Perine | Denver Broncos
83) Jordan Mason | San Francisco 49ers
84) Emari Demercado | Arizona Cardinals
85) Israel Abanikanda | New York Jets
86) D’Ernest Johnson | Jacksonville Jaguars
87) Chase Edmonds | Tampa Bay Buccaneers
88) Cordarrelle Patterson | Pittsburgh Steelers
89) Ronnie Rivers | Los Angeles Rams
90) Chris Rodriguez Jr. | Washington Commanders
91) Trey Sermon | Indianapolis Colts
92) Isaiah Spiller | Los Angeles Chargers
93) Evan Hull | Indianapolis Colts
94) Cam Akers | Houston Texans
95) Keaontay Ingram | Kansas City Chiefs
96) Salvon Ahmed | Free Agent
97) Braelon Allen | New York Jets
98) Jaret Patterson | Los Angeles Chargers
99) Craig Reynolds | Detroit Lions
100) Ty Johnson | Buffalo Bills
101) Kevin Harris | New England Patriots
102) Sione Vaki | Detroit Lions
103) Sean Tucker | Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Who Are the Best Running Backs To Draft In Fantasy?
Bijan Robinson
If you want to give yourself an upset stomach, then just take a closer look at Tyler Allgeier’s usage compared to Bijan Robinson’s last season.
2023 Rushing Stats
- Robinson: 214 carries, 976 yards (4.6 YPC), four touchdowns
- Allgeier: 186 carries, 683 yards (3.7 YPC), four touchdowns
If that isn’t nauseating enough, Allgeier seeing twice as many carries inside the 5-yard line as Robinson last year should be enough to make fantasy managers vomit.
If that wasn’t enough to make you sick, then here’s the real cherry on top of the expired milkshake. Robinson saw the exact same amount of carries inside the 5-yard line as third-string RB Cordarrelle Patterson (2).
For some perspective, Robinson saw fewer carries inside the 5 last season than Chris Rodriguez Jr., Samaje Perine, Ty Chandler, Rico Dowdle, Kenneth Gainwell, and Royce Freeman. Yikes.
Thankfully, this egregious coaching malpractice wasn’t left unpunished, as Arthur Smith was promptly fired after the conclusion of the 2023 NFL season. This cleared the way for new head coach Raheem Morris to hire Zac Robinson — who has spent the last five years on the Los Angeles Rams offensive coaching staff working under Sean McVay — as the new offensive coordinator.
This is the same offensive staff that featured Kyren Williams in the Rams’ backfield last season, who finished with a league-high 21.7 total touches per game in 2023. Robinson averaged just 16.0 total touches per game last year, which was slightly lower than Javonte Williams (16.5), Chuba Hubbard (16.3), and Najee Harris (16.7).
Robinson seeing just 28 more carries than Allgeier (despite the former averaging nearly a full yard more per carry) in 2023 definitely lowered his fantasy floor a bit, especially in an offense that produced just 47 trips to the red zone last year — 25th in the league due to inconsistent quarterback play.
However, another reason to be encouraged for a breakout year for Robinson in 2024 is the addition of Kirk Cousins. Cousins executed this McVay-adjacent offensive scheme at a fairly high level in Minnesota and Washington, which could certainly help the offensive production across the board for the Falcons.
Despite Robinson’s disappointing rookie season, he still finished as a top-10 fantasy RB with 1,463 total yards, 58 receptions, and eight touchdowns. If these changes impact Robinson’s usage and red-zone opportunities the way we can reasonably expect them to, then the sky could be the limit for him in 2024.
For a second consecutive year, fantasy managers who believe that Robinson’s exceptional talent could lead to fantasy excellence will have to pay a premium price to have the second-year back anchor their fantasy team. This year, I expect it to pay off.
Christian McCaffrey
The term “league-winner” is used frequently in fantasy football. Yet, very few players who actually deserve this title are properly awarded this distinction.
San Francisco 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey’s 2,023 total yards and 21 touchdowns from scrimmage this past year made him the runaway top overall RB in fantasy football by a wide margin, which makes him one of the few players qualified for this high praise.
Sure, McCaffrey’s reception totals weren’t quite as staggering as his 116 receptions for 1,005 receiving yards back in 2019. Nevertheless, his 391.3 fantasy points in full-PPR formats were 100.8 points more than the RB2 overall (Breece Hall), an absurdly wide gap when you consider that the gap between the QB1, WR1, and TE1 to the QB2, WR2, and TE2 is just 74.8 fantasy points combined.
McCaffrey may be turning 28 before the start of the upcoming season, but a quick look back at his 2023 production shows that he has no signs of slowing down.
2023 Notable Stats
- Yards Per Carry: 5.36 (career high)
- Total Touchdowns: 21 (tied for most in the NFL)
- Total Touches: 339 (led the NFL)
- Rushing Yards After Contact: 573 (led the NFL)
- Receptions: 67 (third-most at RB position)
- Runs of 50+ Yards: Three (tied for most in the NFL)
This was not a one-year wonder. McCaffrey averaged 21.7 fantasy points per game from Week 7 through the rest of the season after joining San Francisco in 2022, good for the RB1 overall during that span.
McCaffrey haters may be quick to point out that he still missed 23 games over his final two years with the Carolina Panthers, but he’s shown no injury concerns since joining the 49ers. Injuries are a part of football.
If you pass on McCaffrey at No. 1 overall in your fantasy draft because you’re afraid he might get hurt or are projecting Father Time to start tapping his shoulder out of nowhere this year, then you’re probably only hurting your own chances of winning.