D'Andre Swift Anchors 3 Talented Mid-Round Fantasy Football Running Backs
You've approached the middle rounds of your fantasy football draft. It might be round 4, 5, 6, or even 7. An RB2 is needed, and you cannot quite sort out who the best pick(s) may be. Look no further than this publication. I have scraped the data and found the lowest risk and the highest upside. At cost, these are the four best mid-round running backs that ought to be targeted.
All ADP's are PPR-based.
D'Andre Swift
Current ADP: RB19/44th Overall
The most important factor to me is Kyle Monangai's health. He is a true question mark for Week 1. Monangai hyperextended his knee and will have a mild risk of re-injury over the first few games. That gives Swift a head start in this backfield.
In 2025, Swift was better than Monangai in the following:
- +14.0 better PFF Grade
- +0.3 better Yards per Attempt
- +6 more Broken Tackles
- +15 more Explosive Runs
- +21.5 better PFF Recieving Grade
Ben Johnson aims to make this Bears offense generational. Seeing what he accomplished in 2025, no one should label him as below his acclaim. Johnson is brilliant, and I believe he will go down as an elite coach over the next couple of decades.
Quinshon Judkins
Current ADP: RB20/45th Overall
When it comes to bad NFL offense, I firmly believe that the risk is quite low. The projections on Judkins are based on the Browns scoring fewer than 16 points per game. The NFL's worst-rated offense scored an average of 15.0 points per game over the past 5 seasons. The floor is not much lower than the current FPI projection.
My projection is based heavily on that FPI rating, as it is the truest measure of an NFL team's value. Judkins is my RB23 in PPR formats. He will carry a heavy workload. Dylan Sampson is simply a 3rd-down back, and no one else threatens. If the Browns manage to at least escape the bottom-3 NFL offenses, Judkins has top-half RB2 ability. His ceiling is an RB1 if Todd Monken finds some magic.
Jadarian Price
Current ADP: RB24/57th Overall
The hill I will die on is that Price will be the top rookie running back in 2026. He has a higher share of his immediate offense, and that unit happens to be far better than Jeremiyah Love's crew in Arizona. For reference, the Seahawks project to score 4.0 more points per game than the Cardinals.
#Seahawks Zach Charbonnet - Comments suggest Wk 1 = possible, but suspect very unlikely. Data favors high re-injury risk before 9 months, which would be late-Nov. Project late-Nov return + 6 wk ramp up#Bears Luther Burden - Data favors Wk 1 w/o dip. Re-injury risk 10-15%
— Deepak Chona, MD. SMA (@SportMDAnalysis) August 23, 2026
4/8
Zach Charbonnet is on the IR and out for at least 4 games, and likely longer. Deepak Chona, MD. SMA lists him as a high re-injury risk. It is all Jadarian Price in Seattle, with a dip of George Holani to lessen the load in spots. Let's not forget that Price is no "guy off the streets"; he is a first-round draft pick.
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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.