With Week 5 in the books, let’s take a look around the league at the NFL’s best ball carriers and see how they’ve been performing.
32. Minnesota Vikings Alexander Mattison (Last Week #31)
And just like that—Alexander Mattison is back to square one. The Vikings “solution” to losing Dalvin Cook got 18 carries against Chicago this week and turned it into a staggeringly low 44 yards.
31. Baltimore Ravens Gus Edwards (Last Week #24)
Ravens running back Gus Edwards has really not done much with his opportunity to start following the early season injury to J.K. Dobbins. Edwards netted just 41 yards at 2.6 a pop against the Titans in London.
30. New England Patriots Rhamondre Stevenson (Last Week #28)
Stevenson hasn’t been able to get anything going this year. Granted, opposing teams are stacking the box and daring Mac Jones to beat them, but still, 10 for 46 is tough. He only got the edge over Mattison and Edwards because he found his way into the endzone once.
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29. BYE Green Bay Packers AJ Dillon (Last Week #14)
It isn’t exactly fair, but AJ Dillon is getting slotted back to the bottom of the barrel while on his bye week. He’s really only had one solid week thus far and other backs around the league performed well while he was on his couch.
28. Arizona Cardinals Emari Demercado (Last Week #20)
As it turns out, Emari Demercado was not ready to take the bulk of the work in James Conner’s absence. The Cardinals stand-in struggled to get anything going against the Rams D.
27. Houston Texans Dameon Pierce (Last Week #17)
Dameon Pierce is back in the doghouse this week after a poor outing against the Saints. The Texans second-year back had just 34 yards on 13 carries.
26. Pittsburgh Steelers Najee Harris (Last Week #25)
Najee had a much-needed bye this week as questions swirl around his job security. Hopefully, the former first-round pick can get something going against the Rams this week, otherwise he may not be RB1 much longer.
25. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Rachaad White (Last Week #21)
Rachaad White—and the rest of the Bucs run game, the entire offense, really had nothing for Detroit this week. White got the ball just seven times and totaled 26 rushing yards.
24. Washington Commanders Brian Robinson (Last Week #26)
Another quiet week for the Commanders second-year running back. Robinson got the ball 10 times against Atlanta and totaled just 31 yards on the ground. He did, however, add two catches for 25 yards and a touchdown, salvaging the performance.
23. Dallas Cowboys Tony Pollard (Last Week #22)
Dallas got back on track this week, knocking off the Chargers on Monday Night Football, but Pollard was quiet again, going for just 30 yards on 15 ineffective carries.
22. Cincinnati Bengals Joe Mixon (Last Week #16)
Joe Mixon continues to look lost in the Cincinnati offense. The usually-productive back totaled just 38 yards on 12 carries against Seattle.
21. Buffalo Bills James Cook (Last Week #32)
James Cook had a nice bounce-back week against the Giants, turning 14 carries into 71 yards that Buffalo desperately needed with the passing game looking stagnant.
20. New York Giants Saquon Barkley (Last Week N/A)
Seeing Saquon Barkley back on the field must have brought a tear to Giants fans’ eyes. Barkley single-handedly revived a dormant run game, taking his 24 carries for 93 yards against a tough Bills defense.
19. Denver Broncos Javonte Williams (Last Week N/A)
Javonte Williams looked solid in his return to action, taking 10 carries for 52 yards. It will be interesting to see how he manages what figures to be an increased workload in the coming weeks..
18. Los Angeles Chargers Austin Ekeler (Last Week N/A)
Ekeler struggled to get anything going on the ground this week behind a weak Chargers o-line, but he did convert four receptions into 35 yards, including a 28-yarder that set up a touchdown.
17. Chicago Bears D’Onta Foreman (Last Week N/A)
Foreman was solid this week in Khalil Herbert’s absence, taking 15 carries for 65 yards, though he did get lucky on his fumble staying with Chicago.
16. Cleveland Browns Jerome Ford (Last Week #27)
Jerome Ford looked fresh coming off the bye and did well splitting the load with Kareem Hunt. Ford took it to a nasty 49ers defense to the tune of 17 carries for 84 yards.
15. Carolina Panthers Chuba Hubbard (Last Week N/A)
It has been said before, but man was the Miles Sanders-signing a mistake. Chuba Hubbard stepped in for Sanders this week with no problem and outpaced Sanders’ early season production significantly, going for 88 yards and a touchdown against Miami.
14. Las Vegas Raiders Josh Jacobs (Last Week #11)
Another high-usage, mediocre output week for Josh Jacobs. The Raiders running back got 77 yards, but it took him 25 attempts and he brought little to the passing game, securing just two catches.
13. Philadelphia Eagles D'Andre Swift (Last Week #7)
Tough week for Swift against a brutish Jets defense. The Eagles dynamic rusher took 10 carries for just eighteen yards.
12. New Orleans Saints Alvin Kamara (Last Week #13)
Alvin Kamara looked good this week, but there weren’t a ton of lanes for him to run against a stout Texans D. He took 19 carries for 68 yards, but was a reliable check-down option, hauling in seven catches for 36 yards.
11. Atlanta Falcons Bijan Robinson (Last Week #9)
Another down week for Bijan, who continues to slide in the rankings. The Falcons star rookie split carries with Tyler Allgeier, with each getting 13, and was out gained 51 to 37.
10. Indianapolis Colts Zack Moss (Last Week #5)
Zack Moss was balling in Jonathan Taylor’s absence, but the Colts running back has slowed considerably upon Taylor’s return, even though he’s still getting the bulk of the action. Moss will need to get back on track soon if he wants to retain the lion’s share of the work.
9. Seattle Seahawks Kenneth Walker III (Last Week #10)
Kenneth Walker III was huge for Seattle on an afternoon when they needed all the offense they could get out of him. He had 89 yards from scrimmage and a crucial rushing touchdown that kept them in the game against Cinci.
8. Detroit Lions David Montgomery (Last Week #2)
Six carries for 14 yards is brutal, yes, but Montgomery missed most of the game with an injury. He’s been one of the most reliable backs all year though, so we’ll give him a one-week grace period before plummeting him in the rankings.
7. Tennessee Titans Derrick Henry (Last Week #12)
His usage is still down, but Derrick Henry had a couple of vintage moments this week against Baltimore, including an epic 63-yard run. Henry was the bulk of the Titans offense too, he took just 12 carries for 97 and a touchdown, while chipping in two catches for 16 yards.
6. Los Angeles Rams Kyren Williams (Last Week #19)
Kyren Williams had a huge game against Tampa Bay this week. The Rams running back was elusive and explosive all game, taking 20 carries for a massive 158 yards and a touchdown.
5. Jacksonville Jaguars Travis Etienne Jr. (Last Week #6)
The Jaguars running back had another big week, getting into the endzone twice on the ground and totaling 83 yards from scrimmage.
4. San Francisco 49ers Christian McCaffrey (Last Week #1)
Christian McCaffrey got off to another hot start in this one, continuing his insane, now 15-game touchdown streak, but it appears that the old injury bug has reared its ugly head, though the severity is still unclear.
3. Kansas City Chiefs Isiah Pacheco (Last Week #8)
Isiah Pacheco continues to build momentum this season. He played well against the Broncos, taking 16 carries for 62 yards and added six catches for 36 yards, narrowly missing 100 scrimmage yards in a game where they were tough to come by.
2. New York Jets Breece Hall (Last Week #4)
Jets fans have to be pumped to have Breece Hall back healthy. The second-year back has been a game-changer for them. He went for five catches and 54 yards, with a long of 25, and added 39 and a touchdown on the ground against a tough Eagles defense for a huge Jets win.
1. Miami Dolphins Raheem Mostert (Last Week NA)
It appears it doesn’t much matter who is toting the rock in this high-powered Dolphins offense, as Mostert and Achane continue to toggle back and forth and put up insane numbers.
Mostert torched the Panthers this week for 115 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries.
