Fantasy Football Stats to Know: Running Backs

FantasyPros has published approximately 12.5 million pieces of fantasy football content this offseason to help you crush your league mates’ souls and dominate your fantasy draft. Our goal is to ensure you walk away with fantasy gold at the end of the season.

It can be difficult to read such a vast amount of content, which is why we’ve rounded up 25 of the most actionable, can’t-miss stat nuggets you absolutely need to know for the 2025 fantasy football season. In addition to our expert consensus rankings (ECR) and Real-Time ADP, you don’t have any excuses not to be prepared for your upcoming draft(s). Click on each author’s byline to read the entire article. Good luck this season.

2025 Fantasy Football Stats to Know

Must-Know Running Back Fantasy Football Stats

Saquon Barkley (RB – PHI)

Last season, Saquon Barkley had 436 carries (including the postseason). Here’s a list of recent (since 2000) 400+ carry seasons by a running back and their performance the following season:

Running Back Age 400+ Carry Season Carries Fantasy Finish Fantasy Finish (Next Season)
DeMarco Murray 26 2014 436 RB2 RB15
Eddie George 27 2000 431 RB3 RB21
Shaun Alexander 28 2005 430 RB1 RB30
Larry Johnson 27 2006 429 RB3 RB40
Jamal Lewis 21 2000 412 RB15 Did Not Play
Corey Dillon 30 2004 410 RB7 RB18
Edgerrin James 22 2000 408 RB2 RB33
Curtis Martin 31 2004 408 RB4 RB29
Arian Foster 27 2012 405 RB3 RB45
Ahman Green 26 2003 403 RB3 RB15
Jamal Lewis 24 2003 401 RB4 RB26

The defense rests.

-Joe Pisapia

Tyrone Tracy Jr. (RB – NYG)

Upon taking over the backfield in Week 5, Tyrone Tracy Jr. was the RB26 for the rest of the season in the second-lowest scoring offense in the NFL, including four weeks of RB1 production. The loss of Daniel Jones took the Giants’ offense from bad to putrid, but in his six games with Jones, Tracy tallied 516 rushing yards on 95 carries, good for nearly 5.5 yards per carry. He struggled to maintain that efficiency with Tommy DeVito behind center, but he looked the part, and the former receiver continued to excel as a pass-catcher with 284 receiving yards on the season.

-Chad Workman

Austin Ekeler (RB – WSH)

Austin Ekeler was the overall RB34 in PPR formats last year despite playing just 12 games. He averaged more PPR points per game last season than Sam LaPorta, Jaylen Waddle and Chris Olave, to name a few. Ekeler does not even need to improve on last year’s numbers to be considered a value.

Let’s consider the very real possibility that Ekeler does improve on those numbers. When Brian Robinson Jr. missed three games due to injury last season, here were Ekeler’s weekly finishes in PPR leagues: RB25, RB13, RB6. Again, he doesn’t even have to reach those thresholds to be a value.

-Mick Ciallela

Isaiah Davis (RB – NYJ)

The New York Jets have a trio of very talented running backs, led by Breece Hall (for now?), and sophomore running backs Braelon Allen and Isaiah Davis. Hall is known for his breakaway speed and big-play ability. Allen is a 235-pound bruiser, while Davis makes plays as a runner and receiver with excellent vision and good hands in the passing game.

Davis had just 30 carries last season but managed an impressive 5.8 yards per carry (YPC), with eight of those runs going for 10+ yards, outperforming Hall (4.2 YPC) and Allen (3.6 YPC). Davis stood out even more in yards per carry after contact, averaging 3.6 compared to Hall and Allen, who both averaged 2.1. The Jets are planning to go with a committee approach in the backfield in a run-heavy offense, which will include dual-threat starting quarterback Justin Fields.

-Denis Sosic

Kyren Williams (RB – LAR)

Kyren Williams had 316 carries in 16 games last season. The only running backs who had more carries than Williams in 2024 were Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry.

But can we count on Williams to be a workhorse again in 2025? The Rams keep drafting running backs. First, it was Blake Corum with a third-round pick last year, then Jarquez Hunter with a fourth-round pick this year.

Williams also handled 82.6% of the Rams’ carries within five yards of the goal line last season — the second-highest percentage of any back in the league behind only Derrick Henry. Williams has been an effective short-yardage runner, but what if he starts ceding more of those close-in carries?

Williams went from averaging 5.0 yards per carry in 2023 to averaging 4.1 yards per carry last year. He also had a career-high five fumbles in 2025.

It’s possible Williams can be a top-10 fantasy running back for a third consecutive season. I just don’t want to bet on it.

-Pat Fitzmaurice

Kenneth Walker (RB – SEA)

When Kenneth Walker is healthy, he should be a dominant force in fantasy football in a new-look Seahawks offense that will place heavy emphasis on running the football. In 2024, Walker remained one of the league’s most elusive running backs, finishing the year as Pro Football Focus’ (PFF) fifth-highest graded running back with 61 forced missed tackles in just 11 games played. He had a league-leading forced missed tackle rate of 30%.

The No. 1 RB in Klint Kubiak offenses have the chance to be a true league winner. Last season, Alvin Kamara finished first in expected fantasy points with Kubiak running the offense. In 2021, as the coordinator for the Vikings, Kubiak coached both Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison to success. Cook was the RB4 in points per game (PPG) that season, and Mattison posted similar top-five fantasy numbers in his spot starts for Cook. Nearly 18 PPG were scored between the two.

-Andrew Erickson

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