Top RBs by Round
You need to build your roster around your elite WRs and RBs. Here are the best running backs to draft in each of the first 5 rounds of fantasy drafts.
Round 1: Jahmyr Gibbs (DET)
Gibbs was already a top-5 fantasy RB in a timeshare… now the timeshare is gone, and his ceiling just got a whole lot higher.
David Montgomery was traded to Houston in March, leaving Gibbs as the undisputed Lions RB1. Isiah Pacheco signed on a modest $1.81M deal… that’s money for a backup, not a threat.
His 2025 production was elite even while sharing the backfield: 274.1 weighted opportunities (4th), 89 targets (3rd), 17 TDs (2nd), and 21.7 fantasy points per game (4th).
His RB schedule flips from 25th-easiest in 2025 to 3rd-easiest in 2026: one of the biggest strength-of-schedule swings of any RB in the league.
The Lions exercised his 5th-year option and a long-term extension is expected. With the workload, the matchups, and the contract security all pointing the same direction, Gibbs is the clear-cut RB1 in Round 1.
Round 2: Omarion Hampton (LAC)
Hampton put up RB1 numbers as a rookie in only nine games. Now he heads into Year 2 with a full workload, a better O-line, and a new offensive coordinator who knows how to use running backs.
In the games he played, Hampton commanded a 69.7% opportunity share and logged 28 red zone touches, establishing himself as the workhorse and the goal-line hammer before missing seven weeks.
His receiving profile is a genuine weapon: a 94% catch rate (32-of-34) and an 11th-ranked target share among RBs in just nine games.
The Chargers upgraded the offensive line with C Tyler Biadasz and expect healthy returns from tackles Slater and Alt, while Mike McDaniel takes over as OC with a scheme built for explosive backs (think Achane).
A 15.1 PPG average as a healthy rookie, with the backfield now fully his — Hampton is exactly the kind of Year 2 breakout candidate that wins fantasy drafts.
Round 3: Travis Etienne (NO)
The Saints handed Etienne the richest total RB contract in NFL history, and their offense is ready made to give him the chance to earn it.
Coming off a bounce-back 2025 (1,399 yards from scrimmage, a career-high 13 TDs, and a finish as the overall RB11), Etienne brings elite production into a new situation, not a hope-and-a-prayer profile.
New Orleans holds the 1st-easiest schedule for RBs in 2026 for the second straight year, and the offense added LG David Edwards (4-year, $45M guaranteed) to a line getting a major overhaul.
His receiving upside is real: six receiving TDs in 2025, including a Week 15 with 73 receiving yards and 3 scores through the air. So he's a volume sponge in high-leverage situations.
Alvin Kamara's contract restructure and declining efficiency signals Etienne is the long-term lead back. In the easiest RB schedule in football, behind a retooled line, that's a clear path to RB1 finishes.
Round 4: David Montgomery (HOU)
Montgomery's 2025 was a down year, but context matters, and everything about his new situation in Houston points toward a significant rebound.
The Texans released Joe Mixon, handing Montgomery a clear path to feature-back usage. Woody Marks is the only competition, primarily for passing-down work.
Houston added All-Pro OG Wyatt Teller and first-round OG Keylan Rutledge to a run game that ranked 22nd in 2025, so Montgomery is about to run behind a much better front.
Even in his "down" year, he ranked 19th in fantasy points per opportunity (0.89) and nearly matched Gibbs in receiving production before a mid-season injury. The efficiency has always been there.
Montgomery lands on a top-tier contender with a rebuilt interior line, and the backfield is his to lose. That's a high-floor RB2 worth every pick in Round 4.
Round 5: D’Andre Swift (CHI)
Swift posted the best season of his career in 2025 under Ben Johnson, and this is no longer a new system... it's a familiar one with more firepower.
His 2025 efficiency numbers were legitimately elite: 8th in yards per touch (5.4), 9th in True Yards Per Carry (4.8), and a career-high 1,087 rushing yards on the way to finishing RB15 overall.
Swift is the established primary scorer in the backfield — 41 red zone touches (16th in the NFL), 10 total TDs (15th), and the clear "lightning" to Monangai's "thunder" in Johnson's two-man system.
His pass-catching upside rounds out the profile: 6th in yards per catch among RBs (8.8) in 2025, and a receiving floor that keeps him relevant in week-to-week fantasy lineups.
A tougher schedule in 2026 is the one real concern, but 250-260 projected touches, coaching continuity, and proven efficiency at every level make Swift one of the best values left on the board in Round 5.
That’s the list. Draft a couple of these guys, and you’ll have a strong stable of rock-toters in your lineup every single week.
Tomorrow, I’ll tell you about a few players to AVOID at current ADP.
-Joe