Two Rookie RBs Including RJ Harvey Lead Week 11's List of the 6 Best Running Back to Start
Week 11 is here, and it's time for fantasy owners to set their lineups. Injuries and bye weeks are going to be an issue this week, so we have to get the running backs right. This week, we are going to find the best fantasy running backs available. These are the running backs you should be starting in Week 11.
Start RJ Harvey, Denver Broncos, in Week 11
JK Dobbins suffered a foot injury on Thursday Night Football, that we do not yet know the extent of. However, we do know that he is going for a second opinion, which is concerning. Because of that, we are expecting him to miss Week 11. If he does, that should open the door for Harvey to finally get his chance to be the lead back in Denver. If Dobbins is ruled out, Harvey becomes a very interesting start.
Start TreVeyon Henderson, New England Patriots, in Week 11
The expectations for Thursday Night Football are that both Rhamondre Stevenson and Terrell Jennings will be unable to play on a short turnaround. That leaves the vast majority of the work for the dynamic rookie rusher. He also has a strong matchup against the New York Jets, who just traded away their top run stopper, Quinnen Williams, last week at the trade deadline. As long as Stevenson isn't back, which we don't expect, then Henderson is a must-start after his breakout Week 10.
Start Chase Brown, Cincinnati Bengals, in Week 11
Brown doesn't have the greatest matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers this week; however, there is something that has flown under the radar because it happened before the Bengals' bye week. Samaje Perine, who had been getting significant snaps, suffered a high-ankle sprain and is expected to miss time. That should leave Brown with a similar workload to what we saw in the back half of 2024 when he was a breakout fantasy star.
Updated Week 11 Running Back Rankings and Cheatsheet
Retweet if D’Andre Swift just gave your matchup life #DaBears pic.twitter.com/JvLCU8mcAK
— FantasyPros (@FantasyPros) October 14, 2025
Start D'Andre Swift, Chicago Bears, in Week 11
There was some concern that Swift would be in a split backfield in Week 10 after rookie Kyle Monangai's breakout Week 9. That turned out not to be the case. Swift was given 13 carries and eight targets, which he turned into 98 yards, while Monangai saw just seven carries and one target, which he turned into 28 yards and a touchdown. It doesn't seem like there is much reason to be concerned about Swift's volume in Week 11.
Start Woody Marks, Houston Texans, in Week 11
It once again seems like Marks has taken over the Texans' backfield. Hopefully, we haven't been fooled again, because we are plugging him into our lineups this week against the Tennessee Titans. The Titans are allowing the fifth-most fantasy points to running backs this season, and are constantly in negative game scripts, which are great for the opposing running backs. Marks got 14 carries and three targets in Week 10, while Nick Chubb saw just five carries and one target.
Start Emari Demercado, Arizona Cardinals, in Week 11
It sounds like both Trey Benson and Bam Knight are very much in doubt for Week 11. That should leave Demercado with heavy volume. We've seen him look like the best rusher in this backfield for weeks, and he could have a huge day against a battered San Francisco 49ers defense this week if he sees the bulk of the snaps.
More Fantasy Football Strategy for Week 11
-0e06b43c57ceb063781f337e307e72d4.png "Mark Morales-Smith")
Mark Morales-Smith is a father of five, a former college football scout and semi-pro football player. Morales-Smith is a long-time competitive fantasy football player with well over a decade of professional writing experience at multiple high-level sites, including Sports Illustrated, FullTime Fantasy, FantasySP, and more.
Follow CoolCutter21