Cam Skattebo Leads Running Back Touches In Week 4 While More Rookies Break Out

Week 4 showcased the rising stars of the 2025 running back class, with rookies like Ashton Jeanty, Omarion Hampton, Cam Skattebo, and Woody Marks delivering breakout fantasy performances.

New York Giants running back Cam Skattebo (44) reacts during the third quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at MetLife Stadium. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The 2025 running back draft class started to emerge last week, highlighted by Ashton Jeanty (21/138/1 with two catches for 17 yards and two touchdowns) kicking in the fantasy door with his correction game. His yards per carry climbed from 3.1 to 4.1 while moving to 13th in running back scoring (60.20) in PPR formats.

Omarion Hampton has been a beast in back-to-back games (24.90 and 27.50 fantasy points) while offering a high floor on all three downs. He led all running backs in fantasy points per touch (1.62) in Week 4, and the Chargers had him on the field for an impressive 89% of their snaps. On the downside, Hampton tied for 22nd in touches (17) for the week.

Week 4 Running Backs With 20+ Touches

Here’s a top at the running backs with 20 or more touches in Week 4:

Shawn Childs

Note: I added three highlighted stat columns: TCH = touches, FPTs = fantasy points in PPR scoring, and FPT/T = fantasy points per touch (PPR)

Rookie Running Backs Dominate In Week 4

The Giants rode Cam Skattebo early and often last week, leading to a league-high 27 touches. Unfortunately, he gained only 3.2 yards and 5.5 yards per catch while scoring only 0.41 fantasy points per touch (PPR – lowest of the top 28 running backs).

Quinshon Judkins (25 touches) remained active (115 combined yards with one score and four catches). The Browns gave him 44 touches over the past two weeks, but he was on the field for 55% and 58% of Cleveland's snaps.

Cleveland Browns running back Quinshon Judkins (10) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Green Bay Packers during the fourth quarter at Huntington Bank Field. | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

The Texans gave Woody Marks RB1 snaps for the first time in Week 4. He responded with the sixth-best running back day (119 combined yards with two touchdowns and four catches on 21 touches). 

Five of the top 12 running backs in fantasy score were rookies this week.

The surprise running back for the week was Kenneth Gainwell. Pittsburgh gave him the ball 25 times over his 41 snaps (77%), leading to his best fantasy outcome (134 combined yards with two touchdowns and six catches) in his career. His career high in touches before last week was 18 (69 games). His success invites more snaps, which will be a problem for Jaylen Warren while Kaleb Johnson picks up dust on the bench.

In Week 4, 11 running backs scored more than 20.00 fantasy points in PPR leagues, with three players posting impact games.

• Ashton Jeanty (34.50)
• Josh Jacobs (31.70)
• Kenneth Gainwell (31.40)

Top 12 Running Backs In Touches After Week 4

Here are the top 12 running backs in touches after four games:

Shawn Childs

Christian McCaffrey continues to lead the NFL in touches (100), putting him on pace for 425 touches. He’s gaining only 3.3 yards per carry. His low production on the ground is still better than Saquon Barkley (3.1 YPR – 5.8 in 2024), who has yet to gain more than 20 yards on his 91 touches (2nd most).

The best running back this year in yards per carry (5.4) has been Jonathan Taylor. He is tied for third in touches (90), with Josh Jacobs and Bucky Irving, who are also struggling to find daylight beyond the line of scrimmage (3.3 yards per rush each).

James Cook leads running backs in touchdowns (5) while ranking sixth in touches (87). The biggest surprise in touches of the top 12 running backs is Javonte Williams (26.3 touches per game) due to his success running the ball (5.0 yards per carry and four touchdowns). 

Here are the top 10 running backs in fantasy points per touch (PPR) with 24 touches or more:

• De’Von Achane (1.23)
• Bhayshul Tuten (1,16)
• Woody Marks (1.11)
• Kenneth Gainwell (1.11)
• Bijan Robinson (1.08)
• David Montgomery (1.06)
• James Cook (1.05)
• Jacoby Croskey-Merritt (1.05)
• Derrick Henry (1.02)
• Jahmyr Gibbs (1.01)