Week 4 was a big one for NFL running backs, let’s take a look around the league and see how they are stacking up heading into this week’s slate.
32. Green Bay Packers AJ Dillon (Last Week #32)
There’s not been a single good thing to say about the Packers run game in 2023. Aaron Jones has been hurt and in his absence, the usually reliable AJ Dillon has been a ghost production-wise.
31. New York Giants Matt Breida (Last Week #31)
Breida got a significant uptick in usage on Monday Night, going from four carries to 14. You just wouldn’t know it if you looked at his performance.
Saquon’s understudy netted just 30 yards, an average of 2.1 a pop in an embarrassing outing for him and the rest of the New York offense.
30. Carolina Panthers Miles Sanders (Last Week #19)
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Granted, Miles Sanders was battling through a nagging groin injury on Sunday, but he really struggled against a weak Vikings defense.
Sanders totaled just 32 yards from scrimmage, getting outgained by Chuba Hubbard, his backup.
29. New England Patriots Rhamondre Stevenson (Last Week #20)
Nothing was working for the Patriots offense this week, Rhamondre Stevenson included. The oft-reliable running back had next to nothing when it came to running lanes and he struggled to make any opportunities for himself.
28. Baltimore Ravens Gus Edwards (Last Week #23)
Gus Edwards has really struggled trying to take the reins from the injured starter, J.K. Dobbins. Luckily, not much was asked of him in a thorough beatdown of the Cleveland Browns, but still, 15 for 48 yards is a weak showing.
27. Cleveland Browns Jerome Ford (Last Week #12)
With Deshaun Watson missing Sunday’s game as a late scratch, Cleveland’s offense really struggled to find any rhythm whatsoever. This clearly impacted Jerome Ford, whose production took a nose dive from what we’ve seen thus far in his time filling in for Nick Chubb.
26. Jacksonville Jaguars Travis Etienne Jr. (Last Week #15)
Etienne struggled to get much across the pond this weekend, totaling just 55 yards on 20 carries and tacking on three catches for 17 yards.
25. Pittsburgh Steelers Najee Harris (Last Week #26)
Week 4 was Najee Harris’ best outing of the season, unfortunately, it came in a thorough beatdown at the hands of the Texans and his production was still relatively pedestrian.
24. New Orleans Saints Alvin Kamara (Last Week #28)
Alvin Kamara didn’t look 100% up to speed in his return from suspension, but there were definitely flashes. It will be interesting to see if the former Pro Bowler can find his footing Week 5 and start producing at the clip people expect from him.
23. Los Angeles Chargers Joshua Kelley (Last Week #25)
Joshua Kelley has been okay standing in for Austin Ekeler thus far in 2023. He didn’t wow anyone this week against Vegas, but treaded water for the Chargers run game, going for 65 yards on 17 carries with a long of 22.
22. Houston Texans Dameon Pierce (Last Week #29)
With Houston’s offense exploding for 30 points against Pittsburgh, there were a lot of opportunities for Dameon Pierce to try and reestablish himself as the efficient and explosive runner he was during his rookie season.
That Dameon Pierce still seems to be M.I.A but he did more than double his previous season high for yardage going for 81 yards on 24 carries.
21. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Rachaad White (Last Week #14)
Rachaad White is starting to turn back into a pumpkin for the Buccaneers. Tampa’s running back had a breakout performance Week 2, but in the time since he’s gone for 38 and 56 yards respectively. He’ll need to do more if he wants to hold on to the lion’s share of the carries for a surprisingly competitive Tampa Bay team.
20. New York Jets Breece Hall (Last Week #21)
After an explosive outing in Week 1, Breece Hall has really struggled to maintain any level of consistency in an admittedly turbulent Jets offense. He did, however, play his best game since then this week, turning his measly six carries into 56 yards and tacking on three catches for 13 yards.
19. Indianapolis Colts Zack Moss (Last Week #16)
With Jonathan Taylor’s future with the team still very much hanging in the balance, Zack Moss has done an extremely serviceable job. He took a step back this week usage-wise, but maintained his efficiency and went for 70 yards against a tough Rams defensive front.
18. Las Vegas Raiders Josh Jacobs (Last Week #18)
The Raiders struggling star had an extremely mediocre “best game of the year” in Week 3 and nearly duplicated that performance this week, going for 58 yards on 17 carries, as opposed to 62 yards on 17 carries.
He did, however, manage to find the endzone for the first time this season.
17. Cincinnati Bengals Joe Mixon (Last Week #8)
The opportunities just haven’t been there for Joe Mixon this year thanks to the struggles Cinci has had in the passing game. He got the ball just 14 times in a blowout loss to the Titans, but deserves credit for taking them for 4.8 per—totaling 67 yards.
16. Washington Commanders Brian Robinson (Last Week #10)
Brian Robinson isn’t the most explosive back on the block, but he does run hard. He gutted out 45 yards and touchdown against a tough Philly d-line, lowkey impressive, but not good enough to prevent a fall in the rankings.
15. Buffalo Bills James Cook (Last Week #9)
Sunday was far and away James Cook’s worst showing of the season, but to be fair, not much was asked of him, as Josh Allen chucked the ball all over the field against Miami, seemingly at will.
Cook finished with just 12 carries for 29 yards, but did get into the endzone for the first time this season.
14. Denver Broncos Jaleel McLaughlin (Last Week N/A)
With Javonte Williams sidelined after two carries and zero yards, Jaleel McLaughlin got a few more opportunities than he normally would’ve for the Broncos and looked pretty decent doing so. Seven carries isn’t a huge sample size, but he averaged over 10 yards a carry and contributed in the passing game as well, catching three passes for 32 yards and a touchdown.
If McLaughlin can replicate this kind of performance, he’ll quickly start to climb these rankings.
13. Dallas Cowboys Tony Pollard (Last Week #5)
Pollard was relatively quiet this week against the Patriots, but that seemed like a by-product of the game being a blowout almost immediately. Tony got the rock just 11 times, averaging 4.3 per tote, adding three for 13 in the passing game.
12. Minnesota Vikings Alexander Mattison (Last Week #24)
This was the kind of performance people were expecting out of Alexander Mattison all year after getting slotted in as RB1 for the departed Dalvin Cook. He averaged 5.6 yards per carry against Carolina, going over 90 yards for the second consecutive week.
11. Los Angeles Rams Kyren Williams (Last Week #22)
Kyren Williams had his best game of the season for L.A. Stafford handed him the ball 25 times and he went for over 100 yards and added two critical touchdowns.
10. Seattle Seahawks Kenneth Walker III (Last Week #13)
Kenneth Walker continued his hot steak, getting in the endzone for the third straight week and averaged 4.6 yards on 17 carries in a dominant Seahawks win.
9. Chicago Bears Khalil Herbert (Last Week #30)
Khalil Herbert exploded on Sunday for far and away his best game of the season, jumping all the way up in the rankings from 30th to 9th! The Bears running back went for over 100 yards on the ground and caught four passes for 19 yards and a score.
8. Kansas City Chiefs Isiah Pacheco (Last Week #17)
Isiah Pacheco was a monster on Sunday Night against a ferocious Jets defense. He ran hard and fast all night taking 20 carries for 115 yards and a touchdown, while also managing to take his three catches for 43 yards.
7. Arizona Cardinals James Connor (Last Week #3)
The 49ers were determined to let anyone besides James Conner beat them this week and did well to limit him to just 52 yards on 11 carries, pushing the Pro Bowler back eight spots in the rankings.
6. Miami Dolphins De’Von Achane (Last Week N/A)
De’Von Achane surprised a lot of people this week overtaking Raheem Mostert for the bulk of the work and production for the second consecutive week.
He didn’t get over 200 yards again… But he did take just eight carries for 101 yards and two touchdowns!
5. Philadelphia Eagles D'Andre Swift (Last Week #2)
D’Andre Swift has been a force to be reckoned with for the Eagles since taking over the lion’s share of the work Week 2.
His totals were slightly more modest this week, but he did take 14 carries for 56 yards and a touchdown.
4. Detroit Lions David Montgomery (Last Week N/A)
Heading into the week, there were serious questions as to whether David Montgomery would get any sort of serious usage following his thigh injury.
The Lions veteran back answered the bell in a big way, erupting for 121 yards and three touchdowns on a mammoth 32 carries.
3. Tennessee Titans Derrick Henry (Last Week #7)
King Henry is back! In a vintage performance, Derrick Henry took 22 carries for 5.5 a pop, totaling 122 yards and a touchdown in a convincing Titans win.
2. Atlanta Falcons Bijan Robinson (Last Week #6)
Even across the pond playing at 9:30 AM ET, Bijan Robinson still jumps off the screen at you. The Falcons rookie was their only source of offense this week, taking 14 carries for 105 yards despite a truant passing game.
1. San Francisco 49ers Christian McCaffrey (Last Week #1)
Christian McCaffrey is quietly putting himself right in the thick of the MVP conversation for this year. The 49ers All-Pro went for 106 yards and three touchdowns on the ground and added another score, not to mention 71 yards and seven catches as a receiver.
What changes would you make to our rankings for all 32 No. 1 RBs
