Week 1 RBs
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Now, on to the starts and sits…
✅ START: D'Andre Swift (CHI) @ Panthers
Swift enters Week 1 as Chicago's clear engine in Ben Johnson's offense, and the backfield picture just got cleaner in his favor.
Coming off a career year, Swift finished as the overall RB15 in 2025 (14.3 PPG) with a career-high 1,087 rushing yards.
He ranked 8th in the NFL in yards per touch (5.4) last season, elite efficiency for a lead back.
Kyle Monangai only just returned to practice Monday after a hyperextended knee, while Swift shook off his own cramp scare and looked fine, leaving Swift firmly entrenched as the early-down lead in Week 1.
Carolina gave up a lot of fantasy points to running backs a season ago, and with Monangai's workload still uncertain, Swift is a confident green light.
❌ SIT: Quinshon Judkins (CLE) @ Jaguars
Judkins is a talented player, but the matchup and moving pieces around him make Week 1 a risky opener.
He's working back from a broken leg and dislocated ankle suffered in Week 16 of last season, and shaking off rust in a season opener is never a given.
Jacksonville ranked as the NFL's 10th-stingiest defense against running backs last season (16.5 fantasy points allowed per game), a run-funneling unit that's tough on early-down backs.
Cleveland's offensive line is being rebuilt with five new projected starters, adding uncertainty to how quickly the run game will gel behind him.
Between the recent injury, an unproven line, and a defense that clamps down on RBs, this is a bench-and-monitor spot in Week 1.
✅ START: David Montgomery (HOU) vs. Buffalo
Montgomery landed in as good a spot as he could've asked for, and the matchup only sweetens the pot.
Acquired in a trade from Detroit, Montgomery is the presumed Texans RB1 after Houston released Joe Mixon this offseason.
Buffalo allowed 5.14 yards per carry in 2025 (30th in the league) and ranked dead last in yards after contact allowed per attempt (4.27).
On the season, the Bills also surrendered the 27th-most fantasy points to running backs, confirming a defense that struggled to contain the run all year.
A clear bell-cow role against a defense still fixing its run-D issues makes Montgomery an easy Week 1 plug-in.
❌ SIT: MarShawn Lloyd (GB) @ Minnesota
The Josh Jacobs news bumps Lloyd up the depth chart, but this is far from a plug-and-play spot.
With Josh Jacobs placed on the Commissioner's Exempt List, Lloyd suddenly finds himself atop Green Bay's backfield… but he hasn't shown he can handle a true starter's workload in his career to date.
Minnesota allowed just 12.4 fantasy points per game to running backs last season, the 2nd-stingiest mark in the entire NFL.
Jacobs' legal situation remains fluid with no clear timeline, meaning touch distribution behind Lloyd could still shift week to week.
Opportunity alone isn't enough here. An unproven back walking into the league's toughest run funnel is a tough sell for Week 1 lineups.
✅ START: RB Javonte Williams, DAL @ NYG
Williams put together a breakout 2025, and the Giants' run defense makes this one of the friendliest spots on the Week 1 slate.
Williams finished as the overall RB11 last season with a career-high 1,201 rushing yards and 13 total touchdowns, ranking 5th in the NFL in red zone touches (62).
The Giants allowed a historically poor 145.3 rushing yards per game in 2025, ranked dead-last with 5.3 yards per carry allowed, and gave up an NFL-high 75 runs of 10-plus yards.
Confirming the trend, New York also ranked 30th in fantasy points allowed to running backs on the year.
Even with a new coordinator in New York, Williams profiles as a strong RB1 play out of the gate. Keep scrolling.
❌ SIT: RJ Harvey (DEN) @ KC
Harvey flashed big in relief duty last year, and won leagues, but he's opening 2026 in a much murkier role.
Denver's own Week 1 depth chart lists J.K. Dobbins as the team's RB1, pushing Harvey back into more of a passing-down complement to start the season.
Last season, in games where both backs played, Harvey averaged just 7.9 opportunities per game, compared to 17.9 per game in games without Dobbins on the field.
Kansas City sits right in the middle of the pack (15th) in fantasy points allowed to running backs, so there's no obvious matchup boost to lean on either.
With Dobbins healthy and rookie Jonah Coleman also carving into the mix, Harvey's role is too unsettled to trust as a Week 1 starter.
That’s the RB list for the week. Good luck in Week 1 everybody!
-Joe
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