Tom Strachan | Wed, Mar 18th 2026, 7:26am EDT

4 Must-Have Running Backs (2026 Fantasy Football)

With NFL Free Agency mostly behind us at this point, and the draft still over a month away, now is a good time to take a step back and consider the fantasy football landscape. Best ball drafts have been open since January, and the dynasty season is in full swing. Being prepared for how the next few months may play out can give you a huge advantage when the games finally arrive. With that in mind, here are four must-have running backs based on their current situations.

Fantasy Football Must-Have Running Backs

Jahmyr Gibbs (DET)

The Lions are in quick rebuild mode, trying desperately to disprove Dan Campbell, who now infamously said in 2024, “This may have been our only shot” after crashing out in the NFC Championship. The Lions have seen significant turnover in their coaching staff, lost pieces on defense, and are now dealing with plenty of changes on offense, too. Throughout that, though, Jahmyr Gibbs has been seeing his stock rise steadily. In 2023, Gibbs saw 234 total touches, which increased to 302 in 2024 and then, in 2025, spiked even higher to 320. Gibbs has had over 1800 total scrimmage yards in both of the last two seasons and scored 38 touchdowns combined in that time. It would have been easy to be excited about Jahmyr Gibbs for the 2026 season, regardless, but now that David Montgomery has been traded to the Texans, the ceiling really does feel like the roof. In the six games that Gibbs has played without Montgomery, he’s averaged 27.4 PPR points, an increase of 50% from his typical 18.7. Gibbs has also seen an increase in receptions by over one per game, almost seven more rush attempts per game, and a massive increase from 67 rushing yards to 110 per game. Since 2021, the RB1 overall in PPR formats has typically scored between 22 and 25 points per game, and it’s unlikely Gibbs scores much beyond that, even if a small sample size gives a rosy picture, but we know he will see true bell cow usage, has a competent quarterback attached to him and very little competition from Isiah Pacheco. The only question is, can the offensive line be rebuilt well enough to allow him to be the best of the best?

Ashton Jeanty (LV)

It was hard not to be excited for Ashton Jeanty’s arrival in the NFL, even if there were legitimate questions about the level of competition he faced in college. When the Raiders selected him sixth overall in the 2025 NFL Draft, the expectations were tempered slightly because of where the Raiders were as an offense. What wasn’t expected, though, was how dramatically bad the offense performed, starting with the offensive line, which ranked dead last in PFF’s offensive line rankings. As PFF pointed out in their end of season rankings, no other team gave up more than 35 sacks, but the Raiders managed to allow a whopping 47. This woeful play led to Jeanty ranking 48th out of 49 running backs with 100 or more attempts when it came to yards before contact per attempt. Jeanty dealt with that contact fairly well, ranking 17th in yards after contact per attempt and almost two-thirds of his 975 yards came after contact. Getting close to 1000 yards in that environment is admiral and with Tyler Linderbaum resetting the center market, and left tackle Kolton Miller healthy, the Raiders will have enough pieces on this offensive line to be a marked upgrade. Not to mention, the Super Bowl-winning Klint Kubiak is now in charge of the team and, most importantly, the offense. It’s not hard to imagine a world where Jeanty is a top-five fantasy performer.

Kenneth Gainwell (TB)

It was a career-year for Kenneth Gainwell in 2025, finishing as the RB20 in half-point PPR formats and scoring the 13th most points from Week 10 onwards. Gainwell saw 209 total touches, by far the most of his career, and he used that to get paid $14m over two years with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. A massive upgrade from the $1.79m Pittsburgh paid him in 2025. The Bucs needed a receiving back and someone with a change of pace to spell Bucky Irving, who missed seven games in 2025. Irving is a nice player, but not a complete back, and with Rachaad White departing, it made sense for Tampa to prioritize someone like Gainwell. Last year the Bucs’ offense took a step backwards, and it was less friendly to receiving backs, with them gaining the 13th-lowest target share in the league. In 2024, they ranked third-highest, and with Zac Robinson taking over as offensive coordinator, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them try and get Baker Mayfield more comfortable with more running back involvement. Robinson arrives from Atlanta, whose running backs saw the fourth-highest target share in 2025. In PPR formats, it’s hard not to like the sound of those numbers for Gainwell.

David Montgomery (HOU)

As we’ve already talked about, the Lions offense will look very different this year without David Montgomery, but just because Sonic and Knuckles aren’t in the same backfield anymore, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t stay interested in the pair of them. Montgomery heads to the Texans for significant draft capital, and has very little competition around him. Woody Marks had a reasonable first season in the NFL and surpassed expectations as a fourth-round pick, but he struggled to create much with Houston’s poor offensive line, ranking 48th among 49 running backs with 100 or more attempts when it came to yards per carry (3.59), also 48th in missed tackles forced per attempt and 37th in yards after contact per attempt. Marks is better suited to a change of pace role, and Montgomery has proven that he can be the tough runner used to take the majority of touches. Montgomery is a better pass catcher and better goal line back, so the only advantage Marks really has is being younger. Montgomery should see plenty of touches and if the Texans are able to get better play from their offensive line and CJ Stroud, Montgomery can easily be a top-18 running back this year.

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