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. Buffalo Bills James Cook (Last Week #15)
An around bad week for the Bills, but James Cook in particular, who put up his second consecutive stinker. He got the ball five times and took it for a total of -4 yards. Tough to be worse than that.
31. Minnesota Vikings Alexander Mattison (Last Week #12)
After a couple of weeks of progress, Alexander Mattison took a huge step back this week against the Chiefs.
The Vikings running back turned eight carries into just 26 yards. It wouldn’t be shocking to see him get usurped by Cam Akers sooner rather than later.
30. New York Giants Matt Breida (Last Week #31)
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Not much has gone right for the Giants this year, particularly on the offensive side of the ball, Matt Breida included. New York’s de facto RB1 managed just 21 yards on nine carries and seemingly lacked any ability to make an explosive play.
29. Carolina Panthers Miles Sanders (Last Week #30)
The Miles Sanders signing may go down as one of the worst that we saw last offseason. Yes, he still seems to be affected by a nagging groin injury, but he’s doing very little to help this young Panthers offense.
28. New England Patriots Rhamondre Stevenson (Last Week #29)
It is hard to blame Rhamondre for his lack of production considering the Patriots offense looks completely broken, but when you go eight for 24, simply have to be buried in the power rankings.
27. BYE Cleveland Browns Jerome Ford (Last Week #27)
Ford has had a week to recharge after that beat down he and the Browns received at the hands of the Ravens, but he’ll have another challenging game ahead of him as they host the 49ers and that nasty defense.
26. Washington Commanders Brian Robinson (Last Week #16)
Brian Robinson is starting to slip into a slump. The Commanders’ bruising back went for a paltry 10 yards on six carries as Washington got manhandled by Chicago.
25. Pittsburgh Steelers Najee Harris (Last Week #25)
Najee Harris has really struggled to perform this year and with the emergence of Jaylen Warren, one has to wonder how much longer he will be able to hold on to the starting role.
24. Baltimore Ravens Gus Edwards (Last Week #28)
Gus Edwards was a nonfactor in the Ravens’ embarrassing loss to the Steelers. He went for 48 yards on 12 carries as Baltimore continually stalled out on offense.
23. BYE Los Angeles Chargers Joshua Kelley (Last Week #23)
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. Dallas Cowboys Tony Pollard (Last Week #13)
Tony Pollard, along with the rest of his Cowboys team seems to be trending in the wrong direction. We dropped him eight slots after his poor performance against an admittedly tough Niners D. Yes, San Fran is stout, but a franchise back needs to be able to do more than eight carries for 29 yards.
21. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Rachaad White (Last Week #21)
Quiet week for Tampa Bay Bucs back, Rachaad White, as he was resting up on a bye. He’ll have a tough match-up Week 6 with the new-look Detroit Lions coming into town.
20. Arizona Cardinals Emari Demercado (Last Week N/A)
With James Conner sidelined with an injury, Emari Demercado got the lion’s share of the work for the Cardinals this week. He had a strong showing, taking his 10 carries for 45 yards and a score against a tough Bengals D.
Let’s see if he can continue to build on this momentum with Conner likely to miss a few weeks.
19. Los Angeles Rams Kyren Williams (Last Week #11)
Kyren Williams took a big step back this week production-wise, though, it was in-part a result of the Rams gameplan. Stafford handed him the ball 13 times and he was able to manage a respectable 53 yards.
18. Denver Broncos Jaleel McLaughlin (Last Week #14)
With Javonte Williams still out of action, Jaleel McLaughlin has been slotted into the lead role. He only got nine carries against a tough Jets D, but managed an impressive 68 yards.
17. Houston Texans Dameon Pierce (Last Week #22)
After a weak start to the year, Dameon Pierce finally showed some signs of life this week, going for 66 yards on 20 carries and chipping in a 16-yard reception. Still would like to see more out of Pierce, but he’s beginning to trend in the right direction.
16. Cincinnati Bengals Joe Mixon (Last Week #17)
With the Bengals looking like they are back on track, the opportunities should really start to open up for Joe Mixon. Cinci’s running back got 25 carries against Arizona and took them for 81 yards.
15. Chicago Bears Khalil Herbert (Last Week #9)
Khalil Herbert had another solid showing this week, rushing for 7.6 yards per carry on 10 attempts, as the Bears cruised to victory over Washington.
14. Green Bay Packers AJ Dillon (Last Week #32)
For the first time this year, AJ Dillon had some success on the ground. He punished the interior of the Raiders d-line for 76 yards and a touchdown and was the bulk of Green Bay’s offense all night.
13. New Orleans Saints Alvin Kamara (Last Week #24
Alvin Kamara is starting to look like the Saints star of old. He was explosive and ran decisively in a Week 5 rout of the New England Patriots. He was just under 100 yards from scrimmage and punched in a touchdown on the ground.
12. Tennessee Titans Derrick Henry (Last Week #3)
Might we have spoken too soon declaring Derrick Henry back? It was another down week for the Titans star, as he took 13 carries for 43 yards in a loss and looked like a shell of himself.
11. Las Vegas Raiders Josh Jacobs (Last Week #18)
To be honest, Josh Jacobs still doesn’t look like he is playing quite at the level we’ve come to expect from him, he did, however, manage to find the endzone for the second consecutive week and helped the Raiders to a huge win over Green Bay.
10. BYE Seattle Seahawks Kenneth Walker III (Last Week #10)
Kenneth Walker III stayed put this week while his team was on the bye. Look for Seattle to try and get him going early against the Bengals this week.
9. Atlanta Falcons Bijan Robinson (Last Week #2)
Not the best week for Bijan, hence the slide, but the Falcons rookie is still drawing insane amounts of attention from opposing defenses and he did score a critical receiving touchdown in their low-scoring win.
8. Kansas City Chiefs Isiah Pacheco (Last Week #8)
Coming off his huge Sunday Night Football performance, Pacheco finally showed some consistency, putting up a solid week against the Vikes, totaling 64 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown.
7. Philadelphia Eagles D'Andre Swift (Last Week #5)
It was a relatively down week for D’Andre Swift, but with how he’s played thus far in 2023, it is tough to drop him more than a couple of slots, especially considering Philly won and he still finished just outside the top-10 rushers for the week.
6. Jacksonville Jaguars Travis Etienne Jr. (Last Week #26)
Etienne is finally starting to show the explosive playmaking ability that Jacksonville loved in him coming out of Clemson. He ran all over Buffalo for 136 yards and two tudders in a big Jags win across the pond.
5. Indianapolis Colts Zack Moss (Last Week #19)
With the announcement of Jonathan Taylor’s new deal, Moss’s future with the Colts is in question, but he had a huge week 5 going for 165 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries. It may not be in Indy, but Moss has set himself up well to be a starting back in this league.
4. New York Jets Breece Hall (Last Week #20)
This is the Breece Hall that Jets fans were desperate to see. Hall carried New York’s offense on his back this week, taking 22 carries for 177 yards and a touchdown in a season-preserving win against the Broncos.
3. Miami Dolphins De’Von Achane (Last Week #6)
Well, folks, it looks like De’Von Achane is here to stay. He put up another monster performance since overtaking Raheem Mostert in Miami, taking 11 carries for a preposterous 151 yards and a touchdown against a demoralized Giants team.
2. Detroit Lions David Montgomery (Last Week #4)
David Montgomery has officially emerged as a true bell cow back for the Lions. The vet carried Detroit to an easy win against the Panthers this week, going over 100 yards and a touchdown for the second consecutive week.
1. San Francisco 49ers Christian McCaffrey (Last Week #1)
With another week passing, Christian McCaffrey has continued his insane 14-game touchdown streak and puts himself more firmly in the MVP discussion. He is not only leading the league in rushing yards with 510, but he has eight total touchdowns through five games.
What changes would you make to our rankings for all 32 No. 1 RBs
