Fantasy Football Week 3 Running Backs Projections and Rankings: Chuba Hubbard Rises, JK Dobbins Falls
At the running back position, Jahmyr Gibbs has grabbed a strong hold on RB1 status amid the Falcons' woes, with the Falcons raining down on Bijan Robinson. Risers include Chuba Hubbard and Javonte Williams. Fallers include Saquon Barkley and MarShawn Lloyd, who take a hit. These Week 3 running back projections paint a new picture of what you can expect. It aims to confirm the start 'em, sit 'em decision that must be made.
Top-12 Running Backs
Despite the Atlanta Falcons' abysmal offense, Robinson will remain the RB2. His volume projection is immense at nearly 80% of the team's rushing share. Given his explosive ability, Robinson also has a high projected touchdown rate per touch. With a Falcons team that has scored 16 points through two games, Robinson is still the RB7.
Derrick Henry has 4 touchdowns this season. He averaged 5.3 yards per attempt, proving that age is just a number. The Cowboys offer a favorable matchup on Sunday Night Football.
Now that Jonathan Brooks heads to the IR, Chuba Hubbard will take on a strenuous role. His yardage share projection expands to 75% of the Panthers' ground attack and an additional 12.5% of their air attack. Hubbard is the RB8 through two weeks, much to deal with an active Brooks.
High-Upside Plays
Jadarian Price is a buy-low candidate. He is outside the top-30 running backs in fantasy football. If it weren't for a mild injury during Sunday's Week 2 game, Price would have had over 15 touches per game.
Missed Tackles Forced vs. Yards After Contact per touch, via @FantasyPtsData
— Ryan Heath (@RyanJ_Heath) September 23, 2026
Jadarian Price and Kenneth Walker leading the pack. How poetic. pic.twitter.com/aRUyWv1ef9
In Week 2, TreVeyon Henderson had 16 rushing attempts that went for 76 yards and a touchdown. That was 10 more attempts and 10 more total snaps played than Rhamondre Stevenson. If Henderson can finally take over RB1 duty, he is a must-start RB2 every week.
Fade These Running Backs
MarShawn Lloyd's short time as RB1 may well be over. He and Chris Brooks were out-snapped by Kaleb Johnson in Week 2. No Packers running back is to be trusted.
JK Dobbins is expected to play in Week 3 despite some injury concerns. However, Denver gets a brutally difficult Rams defensive front. I expect that game to be low-scoring, something like a 20-17 final score.
Sleeper of the Week
The Chiefs have been vocal about Emmett Johnson seeing more work in the future. The perfect opportunity for more Johnson will be this upcoming Sunday. The Chiefs are the most likely winners this week and are almost certainly up big against the Dolphins. In which case, Johnson could end up touching the football 10+ times. The eyeballs do confirm, Johnsin darn' good at football.
Emmett Johnson DANCIN' out there
— NFL (@NFL) September 21, 2026
INDvsKC on NBC/Peacock
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/X7YXNw6QVs
Week 3 Projected Leaders
- Rushing Attempts: Derrick Henry (25.2)
- Rushing Yards: Derrick Henry (108.2)
- Rushing Touchdowns: Gibbs, Henry (1.1)
- Receptions: Bijan Robinson (5.7)
- Receiving Touchdowns: Bijan Robinson (0.4)
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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.