Fantasy Football: Veteran Running Backs Thrived In New Systems

For the fantasy drafters investing in proven running backs that moved to winning franchises with established offenses, there were multiple great values in 2024.

Saquan Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles

In most drafts last summer, Barkley was a late first-round to an early second-round selection in many fantasy leagues. The previous year, he gained only 3.9 yards per rush and 6.8 yards per catch in the Giants’ dismal offense. There were concerns with his value at the goal line, with Jalen Hurts using the Brotherly Shove to pad his scoring stats. In addition, Philadelphia had a low-volume passing attack, and their running backs ranked poorly in the NFL as far as pass-catching opportunities.

The Eagles played on Friday night in the opening weekend of the NFL season in 2024. Barkley gained 132 combined yards with three touchdowns and two catches on 26 touches to vault himself to a top-three fantasy selection for any remaining fantasy drafts after that game.

Philly gave him 378 touches over 16 games (he sat out Week 18), leading to an excellent rushing season (345/2,005/13) with 33 catches for 278 yards and two touchdowns (career lows for a season with at least 13 games played). In the postseason, Barkley added another 574 yards with five touchdowns and 13 catches on 104 touches.

SAQUON BARKLEY WITH A BACKWARDS HURDLE.

🤯🤯🤯 @saquon ONE OF ONE. NEVER SEEN THIS BEFOREpic.twitter.com/RXFS76Y55H
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) November 3, 2024

Josh Jacobs, Green Bay Packers

Coming into last year, the Packers had a developing young quarterback with Jordan Love. He had receiving talent at wide receiver and tight end, but the Packers were in transition at running back.

Jacobs was awesome in 2022 (2,053 combined yards with 12 touchdowns and 54 catches on 393 touches) while gaining 4.9 yards per carry. The following season, he missed four games, and the Raiders created smaller rushing lanes (3.5 YPC), sending Jacobs to free agency on a down season.

Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs (8) warms up before the game against Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. | Brad Rempel-Imagn Images

After signing with the Packers, Green Bay still had A.J. Dillon on the roster, suggesting a semi-split for Jacobs. A neck issue led to Dillon landing on the injured reserve on August 27th, opening up more touches for the newly signed running back.

Green Bay gave Jacobs 77 touches over their first four games, leading to 381 combined yards and seven catches (11.28 FPPG in PPR formats) with no touchdowns. The Packers flipped their offensive script after Week 7, and Jacobs responded with 15 touchdowns over his next 11 starts (scored in every game except two). He gained 1,135 yards with 23 catches on 20.2 chances per game.

Derek Henry, Baltimore Ravens

Henry was another running back coming off a down season while trending in the wrong direction. He gained a career-low 4.2 yards per rush in 2023, giving him three consecutive years with weakness in this area (4.3 in 2021 and 4.4 in 2022).

The Ravens had a history of running the ball well, but Lamar Jackson was a threat at the goal line, and Henry wasn’t expected to be much of a factor catching the ball. Baltimore gave him 386 touches, resulting in a stellar 6.0 yards per carry and overall stats (2,384 combined yards with 21 touchdowns and 19 catches). He scored 383.4 fantasy points in PPR formats over his 19 games played.

and the first touchdown of the 2024 nfl season goes to… DERRICK HENRY 👑 pic.twitter.com/jXSQci609m
— NFL Fantasy Football (@NFLFantasy) September 6, 2024

If the shoe fits, it must be legit! Baltimore went on to score 62 offensive touchdowns (the most in franchise history) but finished with five fewer rushing touchdowns (21) than in 2023 (26). The Ravens' running game gained 3,189 yards last season on 554 carries.

2024 was an outlier season for running back movement in the free agency in the NFL. These three backs outperformed their ADPs and helped fantasy teams win leagues and overall championships. Based on this, a team with talent on offense can create an elite opportunity for a running back who has a history of success and is healthy. All three players entered last year after age 25: Saquon Barkley (27), Josh Jacobs (26), and Derrick Henry (30).

The only running back who fits this profile in 2025 appears to be Najee Harris of the Los Angeles Chargers. In the early draft season of the National Fantasy Football Championship, he ranked 22nd at running back with an ADP of 68.

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