Week 1 Fantasy Football Running Back Outlook: Will Jeremiyah Love or Quinshon Judkins be Fantasy Viable?
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Jeremiyah Love and Quinshon Judkins head into week 1 with Fantasy managers expecting big seasons from the young running backs.
Both rookie running backs face tough matchups in week 1, but can either of them break through and provide valuable Fantasy points?
Jeremiyah Love
Love Fantasy managers can breathe a sigh of relief as the third-overall pick is expected to be suited up for his regular-season debut in week 1. There was concern about Love missing regular-season action after suffering an ankle injury in his preseason debut.
While Love appears to be ready for action in week 1, Fantasy managers may want to bump the breaks on expectations for Love in week 1. Love is listed behind Tyler Allgeier in the Arizona Cardinals depth chart to start the regular season. With Allgeier listed as the starter, Fantasy managers can expect a split of the workload between the backs as Love works to be 100% again.
Despite being the RB 2 in week 1, Love will still see a decent amount of touches. What makes Love intriguing in PPR and Half-PPR formats will be the running back’s receiving work out of the backfield. WIth the Cardinals expected to be trailing the Los Angeles Chargers, a passing-emphaisized game environment will lead to more snaps with Love on the field.
Love will have to fight against Trey McBride, Michael Wilson and Marvin Harrison Jr. for targets, but the Cardinals running back should still see a sufficient amount of targets out of the backfield.
Love showcased his ability in his preseason debut, but Fantasy managers may have to wait a bit until Love is allowed to overtake the bulk of the Cardinals running-back touches.
Cardinals Rookie Running Back Jeremiah Love Made Multiple Raiders Players Miss In His Preseason Debut pic.twitter.com/eQdwBsWkDW
— Sports Hoops news🏀 (@BardenJaden) August 14, 2026
Quinshon Judkins
Judkins is set for a workhorse amount of carries in the Cleveland Browns’ season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Compared to Love, Judkins will see the bulk of the Browns’ carries. Last season, Judkins averaged 18.2 touches per game and it should be no different in the week 1 opener.
While the hefty amount of touches are encouraging, Judkins and Co. face a tough matchup in the season opener. The Jaguars finished second-best against opposing running backs last season, limiting opposing running backs to 18.3 FPPG. On top of the Jaguars’ prowess against opposing running backs, the Browns aren’t expected to put up many points on the board as the Browns are last among all teams in expected points in week 1.
The heavy workload is encouraging for Judkins Fantasy managers, but the lack of goal-line opportunities mixed with a negative game script could limit Judkins’ Fantasy production in week 1.
QUINSHON JUDKINS FOR 6
— Underdog NFL (@UnderdogNFL) September 21, 2025
18 rushing attempts
94 yards
1 TD
BROWNS TIE IT UPpic.twitter.com/zJeXskjCyq
The Verdict
Both running backs face difficult situations and opponents in week 1, but offer value depending on the scoring format of different leagues.
In PPR and Half-PPR leagues, Love offers receiving upside as Love will see more targets in an expected pass-happy game script.
In standard formats, Judkins' heavy workload is too good to pass up, despite facing a tough Jaguars defense.
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Jeff Salcedo is a writer for Fantasy Sports on SI with extensive experience covering the NFL, MMA, NBA, and soccer. A dedicated fantasy sports enthusiast, he has competed in fantasy leagues and daily fantasy sports (DFS) contests for more than a decade. Before joining Fantasy Sports on SI, Salcedo worked as a senior sports reporter for BYU's student newspaper, The Daily Universe.
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