10 Running Backs Experts Avoid (2025 Fantasy Football)

When preparing for your fantasy football drafts, knowing which players to target and others to avoid is important. The amount of information available can be overwhelming, so a great way to condense the data and determine players to draft and others to leave for your leaguemates is to use our expert consensus fantasy football rankings compared to fantasy football average draft position (ADP). In this way, you can identify players the experts are willing to reach for at ADP and others they are not drafting until much later than average. Let’s dive into a few running backs I’m avoiding at ADP in fantasy football drafts. And you can check out which experts are higher or lower than our expert consensus rankings using our Fantasy Football Rankings Comparison Tools.

Fantasy Football Draft Advice: Running Backs to Avoid

Let’s dive into running backs I am avoiding at ADP in fantasy football drafts.

Running Backs to Avoid

Expert Consensus’s Rank	Player	Derek Brown’s Rank	Diff.
11	Kyren Williams LAR – RB	18	7.0
13	Breece Hall NYJ – RB	20	7
31	Tyrone Tracy Jr. NYG – RB	38	7
37	Javonte Williams DAL – RB	43	6
39	Tyjae Spears TEN – RB	46	7
44	Ray Davis BUF – RB	51	7
46	Austin Ekeler WAS – RB	53	7
50	Jaylen Wright MIA – RB	56	6
51	Blake Corum LAR – RB	59	8
52	Braelon Allen NYJ – RB	62	10

Breece Hall (NYJ)

Aaron Glenn has stated this offseason that the Jets could operate with more of a committee approach for the backfield for the 2025 season. That’s definitely a worry for Hall, but he remains the most talented back in that room. If this is an equal competition for work based on talent alone, Hall should still be the unquestioned lead back in New York. Last year, Hall was the RB17 in fantasy points per game, ranking eighth in snap share, 15th in opportunity share, and tenth in weighted opportunity. Hall produced adequately on a per-touch basis last year, ranking 15th in explosive run rate, 16th in yards after contact per attempt, fifth in receiving yards per game, and 16th in yards per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). Hall should be a solid RB2 this season, even if he is ceding a little more work to Braelon Allen or Isaiah Davis. But as such, I have him RB20 while he’s currently an RB1 based on Expert Consensus Rankings.

Kyren Williams (LAR)

Last year, Williams pulled off his best yesteryear Rachaad White or Leonard Fournette impression. A volume gobbling inefficient back who turned in an RB1 season (RB10). Williams ranked first in snap share, second in opportunity share, and first in red zone touches. Williams had 350 touches and 1,481 total yards. With all that said, Williams was one of the most inefficient per touch backs in the NFL. Among 46 qualifying backs, he ranked 44th in explosive run rate, 37th in missed tackle rate, and 40th in yards after contact per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). Williams could retain his stranglehold on the volume again in a contract year, but it’s also possible that Blake Corum or Jarquez Hunter could eat into his workload. Williams is a top 15-20 running back who could easily be an RB1 again or see his stock come crashing down.

Tyrone Tracy Jr. (NYG)

Tracy Jr. took over as the Giants’ starting back in Week 5 last season and never looked back. Well, he did have some bumps in the road with fumbles. Tracy Jr. finished with the 23rd-most touches among running backs last year, but he was tied for the third-most fumbles at the position. New York decided to address their backfield in the draft with the addition of Cam Skattebo. Skattebo could push Tracy Jr. aside if he’s not careful. Skattebo had four fumbles last year in college. Still, four fumbles scattered across 338 collegiate touches is a different conversation than five with 230 touches last year, which is what happened with Tracy Jr. Tracy Jr. was explosive with his touches last year, ranking 16th in explosive run rate and 20th in missed tackles forced per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). The Giants may roll out a frustrating thunder and lightning committee in 2025, which would be the best-case scenario for Tracy Jr. because I don’t see Skattebo going away.