5 Fantasy Football Busts to Avoid (2025)

While the 2025 NFL regular season is still months away, it’s never too early to prepare for the upcoming fantasy football season. Much will change between today and when fantasy drafts start this summer. However, let’s look at five running backs that fantasy players should avoid drafting this year.

Fantasy Football Running Backs to Avoid

Christian McCaffrey (SF)

Unfortunately, McCaffrey’s days as an elite RB1 are over. The superstar is still a productive running back but has significant injury risk. McCaffrey has played seven or fewer games in three of the past five seasons. Last year, he missed the first nine weeks with Achilles tendinitis and the final five with a knee injury. The veteran averaged four rushing yards per attempt and 10.1 half-point PPR fantasy points per game in his four contests last season. I won’t draft McCaffrey as anything more than a high-end RB2 in 2025.

Aaron Jones (MIN)

Minnesota re-signed Jones to a two-year contract before the start of free agency, locking him in as the starter for next season. Yet, fantasy players will want to avoid drafting him this summer. Last year, the veteran finished as the RB16, averaging 12.7 half-point PPR fantasy points per game. However, Jones averaged 4.3 rushing yards per attempt over the final eight weeks, totaling 47 or fewer yards in half of those contests. More importantly, don’t be surprised if the Vikings add meaningful competition to their backfield during the NFL Draft.

Isiah Pacheco (KC)

Last year, Pacheco was a popular second-round pick in fantasy drafts. Unfortunately, the former Rutgers star was a bust, ending the season as the RB63, averaging 7.3 half-point PPR fantasy points per game, missing 10 weeks with a fractured fibula. More importantly, he averaged only 3.7 rushing yards per attempt in 2024. By comparison, Pacheco averaged 4.7 rushing yards per game over the first two years of his career. Furthermore, he lost work to Kareem Hunt. Meanwhile, the Chiefs quickly added Elijah Mitchell at the start of free agency.

Rachaad White (TB)

White ended last year as the RB24, averaging 10.9 half-point PPR fantasy points per game. However, I refuse to draft the former Arizona State star in 2025 because of Bucky Irving. He finished as the RB14, averaging 13 fantasy points per game as a rookie. White had some impressive performances last season, scoring 23.9 or more fantasy points twice. Unfortunately, his workload significantly declined at the end of the year. White totaled 20 touches and 13.9 fantasy points over the Buccaneers’ final three regular season games and lone playoff contest.

Nick Chubb (FA)

While Chubb is a free agent at the time of writing this article, the veteran running back isn’t expected to re-sign with the Cleveland Browns this offseason. He was a superstar for most of his career. However, Chubb has missed 24 games over the past two years (70.6%) because of a gruesome knee injury and a broken foot. More importantly, the veteran averaged only 3.3 yards per rushing attempt and 7.6 half-point PPR fantasy points per game last season, both career lows. Unfortunately, his days as a superstar are over.