Week 13 Running Back Projections, Updated Rankings: Bucky Irving Rises

Week 13 fantasy football running back rankings highlight Bucky Irving’s return, Bijan Robinson's dominance, and more.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving (7) runs with the ball for a touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons during the third quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

With six weeks left in the 2025 NFL season, Christian McCaffrey (311.10) has already scored over 300.00 fantasy points while playing one more game than his top contenders. Jahmyr Gibbs (55.40 fantasy points) closed the gap on the top-tier running backs last week, when he delivered a game that was worth twice as much as the second-highest scoring running back (Christian McCaffrey – 27.20 fantasy points). Six other backs scored over 20.00 fantasy points in Week 12.

• Emanuel Wilson (26.50)
• Ashton Jeanty (24.80)
• Derrick Henry (22.80)
• James Cook (21.90)
• Kareem Hunt (21.00)
• Travis Etienne (20.60)

Best Fantasy Football Running Backs in 2025

Here are the top 12 running backs ranked by scoring average in PPR leagues after 12 weeks:

• Christian McCaffrey (25.93)
• Jonathan Taylor (25.68)
• Jahmyr Gibbs (23.55)
• De’Von Achane (21.36)
• Bijan Robinson (20.51)
• James Cook (18.70)
• Josh Jacobs (18.15)
• Javonte Williams (16.39)
• Kyren Williams (15.82)
• Ashton Jeanty (15.14)
• Saquon Barkley (14.95)
• Travis Etienne (14.86)

Week 12 Fantasy Football Running Back Bust

Los Angeles Rams running back Kyren Williams (23) warms up before the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium. | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Kyren Williams, Los Angeles Rams

The Buccaneers held Williams to 48 combined yards with one catch on 13 touches last week. He remains a top 10 running back, but his workhorse opportunity is no longer in his 2025 profile. The Rams' success passing has led to Williams having 14 or fewer rushes in seven of his last eight starts. Los Angeles continues to limit his opportunity in targets (32 – 24/184/3). 

Runner Up: D’Andre Swift (2.90 fantasy points) lost the snap and touch battle to Kyle Monangai, putting him in the bust mode and raising concerns about his next opportunity. 

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Each week, I’ll release my depth charts and projections on Wednesday, with a neutral eye informed by hints from previous results or in-season injuries. These statistics represent baseline outlooks, with their potential already factored in. Touchdowns create impact scores and winning fantasy days, especially in non-PPR formats. Who scores them each week is the Holy Grail that the fantasy market searches for weekly.

My projections will be ranked, and they won’t resemble the weekly consensus in any way. My man, Matt Brandon, is in charge of finding a balance between my player outlooks and the public view of each week's rankings.

Week 13 Fantasy Football Running Back Projections Preview

Here’s a look at our opening Week 13 top 12 running back projections:

Shawn Childs

Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons

Over his first five games, Robinson averaged 24.84 fantasy points in PPR formats despite only scoring three times. The Falcons gave him the ball 107 times (21.4 per game), leading to big plays in all areas (5.8 yards per rush and 14.1 yards per catch). His fantasy value has been a much weaker area in four (6.80, 17.60, 10.80, and 14.70) of his last six matchups, allowing other running backs to jump Robinson in the season-long rankings. He only has three rushing touchdowns after hitting paydirt 14 times on the ground in 2024. 

Shawn Childs

The Jets rank 20th vs. running backs (267.80 fantasy points). They allow 4.1 yards per carry with backs scoring 15 times (four receiving). 

• James Cook (21/132/2 with one catch for three yards)
• De’Von Achane (20/99/1 with one catch for two yards)
• Javonte Williams (16/135/1 with a four-yard catch for a TD)
• Chase Brown (105 combined yards with two touchdowns and three catches)
• TreVeyon Henderson (93 combined yards with three touchdowns and five catches)
• Derrick Henry (88 combined yards with two touchdowns and two catches)

Robinson is the top-rated running back this week, but he comes into Week 13 with some question marks. Atlanta had him on the field for 66% of their plays last week, his lowest snap percentage since Week 2. If Drake London doesn’t play, the Falcons will be without a talented player to move the ball. And lastly, Tyler Allgeier continues to get in his way for rushing touchdowns (7).

Bucky Irving, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

In shallow leagues with no injured reserve spots, Irving could still be in the free agent pool after missing the last eight weeks with shoulder and foot injuries. He gained 99 combined yards from Week 2 to Week 4, leading to him averaging 19.83 fantasy points per game in PPR formats. Despite his success and heavy workload (72 touches), Irving gained only 3.5 yards per carry with no rushing touchdowns. 

Shawn Childs

The Cardinals slipped to 22nd in fantasy points allowed to rushing backs (272.90). They averaged 4.5 yards per rush and scored 14 touchdowns.

• Christian McCaffrey (140 combined yards with 10 catches)
• Kenneth Walker (110 combined yards with one catch)
• Jonathan Taylor (21/123/1 with four catches for 14 yards)
• Christian McCaffery (121 combined yards with two touchdowns and five catches)
• Travis Etienne (116 combined yards with one touchdown and three catches)

With Baker Mayfield expected to miss this week’s game, Tampa will have a lower scoring bar in this matchup. Irving makes the Bucs’ offense better, but another running back will get in his way for touches out of the gate. I have him on a path to be a backend RB2 in Week 13 in PPR formats.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW OUR FULL WEEK 13 RUNNING BACK PROJECTIONS!