When preparing for your fantasy football drafts, knowing which players to target and which 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 of Derek Brown’s top early-round fantasy football draft picks to target at the running back position.
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2026 Fantasy Football Draft Advice: Early-Round Running Backs to Target
DBro shares some of his favorite early-round running backs to target in 2026 fantasy football drafts.
James Cook (BUF)
Well, so much for all of the regression talk about James Cook last year. Cook crushed all of the haters, improving his stock as the RB6 in fantasy points per game. He led the NFL in rushing yards (1,621) while finishing third in rushing attempts and sixth in rushing touchdowns (tied). Cook had 14 total touchdowns compared to the 18 that he spiked in the previous season. Cook remained extremely efficient as a rusher, ranking 15th in explosive run rate and 11th in yards after contact per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). His passing game usage was nearly identical to the previous season, with 40 targets (38 targets in 2024) and 8.8 yards per reception (8.1 in 2024). We can quibble about where Cook sits in the RB1 rankings in 2026, but he remains a rock-solid RB1 in one of the best offenses in the NFL.
Omarion Hampton (LAC)
Last year, Omarion Hampton‘s rookie season was derailed by an ankle injury in Week 5. When he came back, he wasn’t close to 100% healthy and had only one game with over a 55% snap rate. Any games after Week 4 last year, I’m just tossing in the trash because that wasn’t the “real” Hampton. In 2025, in Weeks 1-4, Hampton averaged 17 touches and 95 total yards as the RB13 in fantasy points per game. In that small sample of games, he posted a 7.4% explosive run rate, a 19% missed tackle rate, and 2.54 yards after contact per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). If he had kept up that pace the entire year in those three categories, he would have ranked fourth, tenth, and eighth in those categories (minimum 100 carries). Those are impressive numbers and speak to his talent and upside in 2026 as Mike McDaniel’s possible bellcow. Hampton also contributed through the air in his first four NFL games with a 10.1% target share, 27.5 receiving yards per game, and 1.12 yards per route run. McDaniel is sure to get Hampton involved through the air after designing offenses of the last three seasons that have ranked third, third, and seventh in target share to the running back position. Yes, I know that Hampton isn’t De’Von Achane, but this is still a feather in Hampton’s cap. Hampton should be a rock-solid RB1 with massive upside in 2026.
Chase Brown (CIN)
Last year, Chase Brown started slowly as the RB34 in fantasy points per game in Weeks 1-5. After that point, he was exactly who fantasy gamers thought they were drafting as the RB6 in fantasy points per game. In Weeks 6-18, among 48 qualifying backs, he ranked 17th in explosive run rate, fifth in yards after contact per attempt, and 16th in missed tackles forced per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). During that span, he averaged 18.2 touches and 100.1 total yards. Brown had to deal with Samaje Perine eating into his workload during Weeks 13-18, but it didn’t capsize his production. During that stretch, while he did play 60.5% of the snaps and 71.6% of the snaps in the red zone, he did have 17 red zone carries versus Perine’s 13. If Brown can capture more of the red zone work in 2026, his ceiling and floor will be raised considerably from a week-to-week and season-long perspective. Brown is a solid RB1 with top-five upside this season.
Kenneth Walker III (KC)
Kenneth Walker arrives in Kansas City as the Chiefs’ new lead back. Walker had a disappointing season in 2025 from a fantasy standpoint as the RB28 in fantasy points per game, but it’s easy to see why it unfolded that way. Walker had to split the passing game usage with Zach Charbonnet, and he was shown the cold shoulder by Seattle in the red zone. Last year, Walker had a 31.9% route share versus Charbonnet’s 34.7% route share (per Fantasy Points Data). In the games that Charbonnet was active, Walker saw only 34.8% of the running back red zone rushing work (30 red zone carries versus Charbonnet’s 51). With a lucrative contract signed and delivered for Walker, I don’t see him missing out on the high usage boat in 2026. Talent isn’t the problem for Walker; it was just the way that Seattle deployed him. Last year, Walker ranked second in explosive run rate, first in missed tackle rate, ninth in yards per route run, and 12th in first downs per route run. He was a per-touch efficiency marvel. I don’t foresee him being a true bellcow with Kansas City, and I don’t want that because he has dealt with injury issues in the past. With his salivating mix of talent and efficiency, Walker should be an explosive RB1 in 2026.
Javonte Williams (DAL)
Last year, Javonte Williams was a massive surprise in fantasy, to everyone, including me. I was very bullish about his 2025 outlook, but I was hoping at best for a volume-driven RB2 residing in an explosive offense. Well, Williams crushed even my expectations as the RB11 in fantasy points per game, finishing with a career high 1,201 rushing yards and 13 total touchdowns. Among 49 qualifying backs, he ranked 16th in explosive run rate and third in yards after contact per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). His season was also a tale of two halves as he faded some down the back half of the year. In Weeks 1-8, he averaged 18.5 touches, 90.7 total yards, and scored nine total touchdowns as the RB8 in fantasy points per game. In Weeks 9-17, he averaged 17.4 touches, 76.5 total yards, and scored only four total touchdowns as the RB25 in fantasy points per game. Much of his fantasy stock drop was related to the fall in touchdown production, which can be simple variance. His deeper analytics back up that his play didn’t fall off on a per-touch efficency standpoint. In Weeks 1-8, he had a 4.8% explosive run rate with an 11% missed tackle rate and 3.52 yards after contact per attempt. That yards after contact per attempt mark is otherworldly. In Weeks 8-17, he posted a 5.5% explosive run rate with a 13% missed tackle rate and 2.33 yards after contact per attempt. He improved his marks down the stretch in two of those three categories. If Williams can post production as he did over the first half of the 2025 season for an entire year, he is a locked-in top ten back with top-five upside. At his floor, he looks like a low-end RB1 or top 15 fantasy back.
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