Jahmyr Gibbs Fantasy Football Rankings And Projections: Draft Him Over Saquon Barkley
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Jahmyr Gibbs has quickly established himself as one of the most dynamic all-around backs in fantasy football, blending speed, vision, and pass-catching ability for a high PPR floor. After finishing as the RB1 in PPR formats last year with the Detroit Lions, can he do it again in 2025?
Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions
Gibbs brought an explosive running style to Detroit’s offense that commanded value on all three downs. The Lions feature him on passing downs where his route running, hands, and open-field running paint a high floor, especially in PPR formats.
He has questions about his ability to handle pass protection, and his game takes a step back when running in tight quarters on the interior of an offensive line. Gibbs has plus speed (4.36 40-yard dash) and electric quickness. He runs with patience and vision, setting him up for an active role in Detroit’s offense in his rookie season.
Over three seasons at Alabama, covering 31 games, Gibbs gained 3,349 combined yards with 23 touchdowns and 104 catches on 483 touches. His best success came in 2022 (151/926/7 with 44 catches for 444 yards and three touchdowns). Gibbs has a sensational three-game stretch midseason (63/463/5 plus 10 catches for 81 yards).
In his rookie year, he gained 1,261 combined yards with 11 touchdowns and 52 catches on 234 touches (15.6 per week) over 15 games. Gibbs gave the fantasy market some trepidation about his 2023 value after a quiet first four games (39/179 with 14 catches for 70 yards – 9.73 FPPG), followed by two missed weeks with a hamstring issue.
An injury to David Montgomery led to two impressive games (37/220/2 with 14 catches for 95 yards – 57.50 fantasy points in PPR formats). Over his final 12 matchups (including the postseason), Gibbs scored 12 times while gaining 935 combined yards with 35 catches.
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He scored more than 20.00 fantasy points in five of these games (26.20, 21.50, 24.80, 25.00, and 21.40). His only strike was yards per catch (6.1). Gibbs didn’t break any runs over 40 yards, an area that should improve in his career. He was the 10th-best running back (243.70 fantasy points) in 2024.
Last season, Gibbs averaged 16.64 fantasy points per game over his first five games (66/348/3 with 14 catches for 104 yards and one score). He gained over 100 rushing yards in his following two matchups (15/116/2 and 11/127/1), with helpful outcomes in most of his next seven contests (131.70 fantasy points).
David Montgomery left Week 15 after four plays with a right knee injury, setting up a high-volume opportunity for Gibbs over his final four games (24.3 touches per game). He gained more than 100 rushing yards in each matchup (23/109/1, 18/117/1, 23/139/3, and 14/105/2) while also being active over this span catching the ball (4/45, 4/46, 5/31/1, and 6/70).
Jahmyr Gibbs 2025 Fantasy Football Outlook
Gibbs was the best running back last year, leading to 363.90 fantasy points, just ahead of Saquon Barkley, who sat out Week 18. He had a floor of 25.00 fantasy points in six games, five of which ended the year. Gibbs ranks third at running back according to ADP (behind Bijan Robinson and Barkley) while being a coin flip away from the top spot.
Detroit will rotate two backs again this year, with Gibbs on a path to grab more touches and shine later in the season. Let’s back him down to 275 touches with a floor of 1,800 yards and 16 touchdowns with an uptick in catches (60) while understanding he has an electric ceiling.
Gibbs is currently ranked as the RB2 in our 2025 PPR Rankings.
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With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.
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