Josh Jacobs Features 4 League-Winning Fantasy Football Running Back Candidates
The first round of a fantasy football draft is a place to avoid failure. We want to draft a player who will not flop. The second and third rounds of a draft are different. These are spots to find players who have first-round upside. They can be league winners at a discount. It happens all the time; a player rises well beyond preseason ADP. Today, we find a few running backs with that upside in store.
Chase Brown
When the Bengals have played football with Joe Burrow, Chase Brown, Ja'Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins, the results have been massive. All playing at the same time, the Bengals average 30.2 points per game. When all are not playing together, the Bengals average fewer than 23 points per game.
In 2025, which saw 9 games played without Burrow, Brown still finished as the RB7 in points per game. With a possible 30% offensive increase, Brown is my long-shot pick to finish RB1 in fantasy football.
Josh Jacobs
Current ADP: RB15/33.5 Overall
I am very high on Jacobs, partly due to his lingering suspension risk. While fans expect that Jacobs could miss multiple games, I side with that history. Rarely does the NFL ever suspend a player during an ongoing investigation. Unless the court case is closed in the short term, Jacobs should be home free to play all 17 games. There is yet to be a scheduled court case with no formal charges filed.
I have Jacobs as my RB7. Since the start of 2024, Jacobs has more red zone touchdowns than any other NFL player (26). While the fans hype up MarShawn Lloyd, I will not go against the elite running back that is Jacobs. Skill trumps all, and coming off of a lower-volume season of 234 carries, big things are in store over the full season, playing for the NFL's 4th-ranked offense.
Jadarian Price
Current ADP: RB26/65.7 Overall
I cannot emphasize enough that the story on Zach Charbonnet is plain wrong. He will be nowhere near his usual football self, regardless of his true return date. This backfield belongs largely to Price for at least 8 weeks. Even then, assuming good football from Price, he may own the majority of this offense all season long.
Price is the RB18 in my projections. That is being optimistic that when Charbonnet returns, he will command a snap-split. Price projects a season-long rushing yard share of 50% to Charbonnet's 31%.
Back in 2025, Kenneth Walker III and Charbonnet combined for a stunning total of 405 rushing attempts. Beginning Week 1, Price will not be in the split that the duo had last year. 300+ touches are easily possible for Price.
In a situation of variance, a ceiling is quite high. Price is in a variance situation as a rookie with a new offensive coordinator. Given that Brian Fluery is yet another Kyle Shanahan graduate, I would view the risk as minimal. The zone-running scheme aims to help Price be his best self, and to do so on the reigning Super Bowl-winning Seahawks.
Jacory Croskey-Merritt
Current ADP: RB37/110.5 Overall
For the first time in the Jayden Daniels era, the Commanders are planning to have an every-down running back. That man will be Croskey-Merritt.
In 2024, the Commanders made the NFC Championship Game. They did so on the heels of their stellar rushing attack, ranked 3rd in the NFL with 154 yards per game. Can the Commanders get back to that form? We cannot know for certain, but with a healthy Daniels, anything is possible. Far down at RB37, Croskey-Merritt has top-12 status in his range of outcomes.
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Thomas Carelli is a sportswriter based on Northern New Jersey. He is a massive New York Jets and Mets fan, but that is not where is sports fandom stops. He loves to watch and play golf, all things football, baseball, and much more. If he can watch it, he will. Thomas graduated from William Paterson University in 2018 with a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Management. He spent 4 years working at a local golf course, volunteered past PGA events, and spent some part-time experience with the New York Jets events team. His passions for sport runs deep and his articles show for it.