Latest news with #runningbacks
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Jets' Running Back Trio Gets Little 2025 Faith From PFF
Jets' Running Back Trio Gets Little 2025 Faith From PFF originally appeared on Athlon Sports. There is no secret about how the New York Jets offense will roll in 2025 with Tanner Engstrand and Justin Fields. Advertisement They want to run the ball. With a solid offensive line in front of Fields and a trio of running backs in Breece Hall, Braelon Allen, and Isaiah Davis, New York has all the pieces to have a decent run game in 2025. But decent is all they might get according to Pro Football Focus, which, when ranking all 32 teams' run games ahead of 2025, has the Jets at No. 17. "The Jets' running back unit appears to be at a crossroads with Breece Hall entering the final year of his rookie contract," Pro Football Focus writes. "Hall has flashed brilliance throughout his career but turned in a career-low 62.0 PFF overall grade last season due to issues with fumbles and drops. Advertisement "Braelon Allen showed some promise as a rookie, posting an 82.0 PFF rushing grade. Fellow rookie Isaiah Davis earned a 76.6 PFF rushing grade, though he took just 30 carries." New York Jets running back Braelon Allen (0) celebrates his touchdown against the Tennessee Titans during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. © Andrew Nelles / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images We get it. Hall hasn't hit 1,000 yards in any of his three seasons, Allen is purely a backup at this point in Year 2, and Davis is largely an unknown commodity. So we are purely projecting here, and with Hall in a contract year, despite the Jets stating they will use all three backs, Breece should be getting the majority of the carries. As things stand, the Jets having a middle-of-the-pack run game feels about right, as they ranked 31st for yards per game last season (91.8). So until they prove they can consistently rack up yards, the jury will be out on the trio being anything other than a so-so group. Advertisement Despite the potential being obvious. Related: Jets' Aaron Glenn/Justin Fields Tandem Labeled 'Ideal Match' Related: One Position Could Ruin Jets Playoff Chances This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 20, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Turbo Down: Giants Back Facing Uphill Climb
Turbo Down: Giants Back Facing Uphill Climb originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The New York Giants didn't remake their backfield in the 2025 offseason, but adding rookie Cam Skattebo in Round 4 provided a straightforward projection for the unit. Advertisement Second-year back Tyrone Tracy is set to start after exceeding every expectation for a rookie. He found over 1,000 yards from scrimmage and looked the part between the tackles, despite converting from receiver at Purdue. Skattebo, a bigger, more physical back, will complement him in short-yardage and goal-line situations. Between them, presumably, is veteran Devin Singletary, who struggled in 2024 but offers the roster's best blend of vision and footwork, providing teach tape for the younger backs. It doesn't make financial sense to prioritize moving on from him, even if his role is diminished in 2025. That leaves Eric Gray and Dante 'Turbo Miller' as running backs from last season's roster. Both Giants running backs face stiff competition to make the 53-man roster. At this point, neither is a safe bet to earn a spot. New York rostered three running backs for much of the season, sporting Gray in a backup role. With Skattebo in the building, there isn't room for either ancillary back. Advertisement Gray, having run for just 79 yards across two seasons, likely has the leg up over. But his experience isn't sizable, nor was his performance in that limited action. Miller, meanwhile, is yet to take an NFL carry. That, Big Blue View noted, doesn't work in his favor, even if he has more theoretical upside. 'Miller is now a 26-year-old with no real NFL resume, and a thin collegiate one,' Ed Valentine wrote. 'Since that productive 2021-22 season at Columbia, he had just six carries at South Carolina in 2022-23 and the touches he got in the preseason last year. That is not a lot of football played over the past few seasons. 'Making the 53-man roster and becoming a productive part of the Giants' backfield is a mountain Miller might not be able to climb.' Advertisement New York has the space to offer both practice squad spots, and Miller's athleticism lends itself to upside on special teams. With how much the Giants invested in special teams in the offseason, there isn't a clear path for Miller there, either. Related: Will Giants' Tyrone Tracy Jr. Break Out in 2025? Related: NFC East Running Back Rankings: Where Do Giants Land? This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 16, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Saquon Barkley Leads the NFL's Running Back Renaissance
Saquon Barkley Leads the NFL's Running Back Renaissance originally appeared on Athlon Sports. [Editor's note: This article is from Athlon Sports' 2025 NFL Preview Magazine. Order your copy today online or pick one up at retail racks and newsstands nationwide.]. Advertisement Two years after several of the NFL's top running backs convened to discuss the dreary financial outlook of their shared profession, things are starting to look up for the league's most undervalued position. Saquon Barkley's resurgent 2024 season with the Philadelphia Eagles helped bring the running back position back to prominence — 2,005 rushing yards, Offensive Player of the Year honors and a Lombardi Trophy to top it all off will do that. Barkley's all-time campaign was almost overshadowed by what Derrick Henry accomplished with the Ravens. Henry continues to defy Father Time, putting together a 1,900-yard season at 30 that helped propel Baltimore to the playoffs. Teams in the 2025 NFL Draft took notice after two of the league's most analytically minded franchises bucked recent trends by investing in running backs with calculated risks that paid off. Philadelphia Eagles RB Saquon Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images The result was the Raiders making Ashton Jeanty the highest-drafted running back since Barkley went second overall in 2018. Las Vegas selected the Heisman Trophy runner-up out of Boise State with the No. 6 pick. The Chargers followed suit, drafting North Carolina product Omarion Hampton 22nd. After no running backs went in the first round in 2024, two were taken in 2025. And while only one came off the board in the first 60 picks in the previous draft, five were drafted in that range in April. Advertisement While that's partially a reflection of a highly regarded running back class, it's also representative of reinvigorated investment in a position that had largely been disregarded in the draft and on the open market as of late. The San Francisco 49ers with Christian McCaffrey a few years ago and now the Eagles with Barkley have dedicated considerable resources toward acquiring and retaining the league's best running backs. And in the case of the Raiders (Jeanty), Chargers (Hampton) and the Atlanta Falcons (Bijan Robinson) and Detroit Lions (Jahmyr Gibbs) in 2023, front offices are spending premium draft capital to acquire top-end talent at the position, too. Philadelphia rewarded the 28-year-old Barkley with a record-breaking two-year, $41.2 million extension in the offseason that made him the first running back in NFL history to cross the $20 million per year threshold. Barkley's contract figure surpassed McCaffrey's two-year, $38 million extension, which he signed in the summer of 2024 after helping carry San Francisco to a Super Bowl appearance. Barkley and McCaffrey are the league's past two Offensive Player of the Year winners. Before they won the award in consecutive seasons, the last time running backs did so in back-to-back years was Shaun Alexander in 2005 and LaDainian Tomlinson in 2006. The start of the 2025 season in September is still months away, but Barkley has emerged as an early betting favorite to defend his title as reigning Offensive Player of the Year — something no player has done since Marshall Faulk from 1999-2001. Meanwhile, Jeanty has the best odds to win Offensive Rookie of the Year, which no first-year running back has done since Barkley. Advertisement In a pre-draft essay for The Player's Tribune, Jeanty wrote that while watching Barkley lead the Eagles to the Super Bowl, he thought: 'That can be me.' In the piece, he explained where he got his confidence from and charted his unique journey to the NFL. Jeanty's college career is more than enough to justify his aspiration to follow in the footsteps of the game's best running back — as lofty as that goal might be. Las Vegas Raiders drafted Ashton Jeanty this year with the sixth overall J. Rebilas-Imagn Images After a sophomore season that saw him win Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year and earn an All-America nod, he nearly doubled his rushing output from 1,347 yards to 2,601, the second-most in a single season in college football history behind Barry Sanders' 2,628 in 1988. Jeanty also led the Broncos to a 12-2 record and their first College Football Playoff appearance. Advertisement In his article, Jeanty made a strong case for the value of the running back position in today's game, pointing out that teams that made deep runs in the NFL playoffs 'had a solo running back — or at least a guy in that position who could make plays for them and take some of the load off the quarterback.' That would apply to the Eagles and Barkley, of course, but also to the Bills and James Cook, a second-round pick in 2022 who's coming off back-to-back Pro Bowl appearances. That 'solo running back' label is less applicable to the NFC runner-up Washington Commanders, whose leading rusher in 2024 was rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels. Washington brought in veteran Austin Ekeler last offseason to pair with 2022 third-round pick Brian Robinson Jr., but Daniels still paced the team with 891 yards on the ground. Comparatively, the Chiefs have invested even less in their running back room. Kansas City counted on veteran Kareem Hunt during their quest for a three-peat that ultimately came up short. The Chiefs reunited with Hunt, as former seventh-round selection Isiah Pacheco missed much of the year due to injury. Advertisement A two-time Super Bowl winner, Pacheco has been more than serviceable for Kansas City since he entered the league, but the wheels fell off the team's rushing attack this past season. The Chiefs, who have one of the longest active droughts without a 1,000-yard rusher in the league, ran for just 49 yards in their blowout Super Bowl LIX loss to Philadelphia. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes led the team with 25 yards on the ground. It's no secret that offenses are passing more often in the NFL, and Jeanty argued that this trend makes it more important than ever for teams to have a capable rushing attack in place in order to have a balanced offense. League-wide, 2024 was one of the most efficient rushing seasons on record. Running backs are also involved in the passing game in more ways than one. They are increasingly counted on as pass-catchers, as evidenced by McCaffrey's setting the single-season running back reception record with 116 catches in 2019. And then there's the matter of pass-blocking to keep the quarterback safe, another responsibility that falls to the running back when they're not toting the ball or running a route. 'It's just all about how you want to use them,' Jeanty said. 'So I think if you look at running back, from that standpoint, it's not just running the ball, right? There's three different phases of what a running back does, and I think that brings value to any offense if that guy is doing it at a high level.' Christian McCaffrey's big 2023 season earned him a lucrative new R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images Several of the running backs doing it at a high level in recent years were drafted early, like McCaffrey and Barkley. Gibbs and Bijan Robinson, Pro Bowl picks a season ago, also fit that mold. And naturally, Las Vegas has high hopes for what Jeanty can do in 2025 and beyond — the same goes for the Chargers with Hampton. But not every high-performing running back is a Round 1 pick. Advertisement Henry, who won the Heisman at Alabama, went in the second round in 2016 and didn't become a full-time starter until his third year in the league. The Buccaneers found Oregon product Bucky Irving, their first 1,000-yard rusher since Doug Martin in 2015, in the fourth round of the 2024 draft. Kyren Williams was drafted out of Notre Dame by the Los Angeles Rams in the fifth round in 2022 — he didn't start until his second season when he was named second-team All-Pro. The list goes on. Increasingly, teams are adding to existing strengths at running back. Perhaps no team exemplifies this better than the Lions, who lost 2020 second-round pick D'Andre Swift and NFL touchdown leader Jamaal Williams at the end of the 2022 season. Detroit addressed that hole by signing free agent David Montgomery the following offseason. That wasn't enough for head coach Dan Campbell's hard-nosed Lions, who spent the 12th pick on Gibbs a few months later. No team — not even the Eagles — has run for more touchdowns over the past two seasons than Detroit. The Chargers employed a similar approach by signing 2021 first-round pick Najee Harris in free agency and drafting Hampton soon after. As of mid-May, 10 running backs drafted in the first round are on active rosters — Los Angeles employs two of them. The Bolts haven't had a 1,000-yard rusher since Melvin Gordon III in 2017, but that drought might end this season with Harris and Hampton in head coach Jim Harbaugh's run-heavy offense. Advertisement The Falcons went out and spent a top-10 pick on Robinson two years ago after seemingly finding gold in Tyler Allgeier the season before. A fifth-round choice out of BYU, Allgeier ran for 1,035 yards as a rookie. Now, he and Robinson are the 1-2 punch in Atlanta, and Robinson has already emerged as one of the league's best pass-catching backs. The Seahawks, who infamously missed on Rashaad Penny in the first round of the 2018 draft, have taken two swings on second-round running backs in recent years. In 2022, Seattle snagged Kenneth Walker III, a talented back out of Michigan State who has dealt with injuries early in his career. There to fill in when Walker is on the mend is Zach Charbonnet, a UCLA product who shined in a handful of spot starts. The Vikings, who roster two of the highest-paid skill players at their respective positions in wide receiver Justin Jefferson and tight end T.J. Hockenson, also invest in their running backs. Minnesota agreed to re-sign 30-year-old Aaron Jones Sr. to a two-year, $20 million deal that made him the sixth-highest-paid player at the position in average annual value. Roughly a week later, the Vikes traded for Jordan Mason, who ran well in relief of McCaffrey a season ago in San Francisco. Mason, 26, was promptly signed to a two-year, $10.5 million extension. Between Mason and Jones, Minnesota has one of the highest-paid running back tandems in the NFL. Therein lies a benefit of having a quarterback (J.J. McCarthy) on a rookie contract. Advertisement The Panthers are not as committed to the running back position as some other teams in the NFL, but they've certainly invested in it. After McCaffrey played just three games in 2020, Carolina spent a fourth-round pick on Chuba Hubbard, who took until 2023 — the year after McCaffrey was traded to San Francisco — to truly take off. Since then, the Panthers spent a second-round pick on Jonathon Brooks, who missed most of his rookie year due to an ACL tear and will be out his sophomore season after tearing the ligament again in December. Carolina also signed Hubbard to a four-year, $33.2 million extension during the 2024 season and then proceeded to sign Rico Dowdle to a one-year, $2.75 million contract. Georgia product Trevor Etienne joined the fray in April when the Panthers spent a fourth-round pick on him. There are still varying schools of thought on running back value and how to go about assembling a running back room. The Eagles were the run-heaviest team in the league a season ago. But some of the teams who are in the same ballpark as far as rush rate — namely Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Washington — don't pay their lead backs anywhere near what Barkley earns. Over the past decade, the salary of the lead running back on Super Bowl-winning teams was often below $1 million. Detractors often pointed to that as evidence that a team could not win the Lombardi Trophy while paying a running back at the top of the market. Advertisement The 49ers nearly disproved that argument two years ago with McCaffrey, who was the league's highest-paid running back when San Francisco lost to the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII. The following season, the Eagles successfully did so with Barkley getting paid more than every fellow RB but McCaffrey and the Indianapolis Colts' Jonathan Taylor. Philadelphia in turn rewarded Barkley by making him the highest-paid running back in history. The reigning Super Bowl champions are set to enter the 2025 NFL season as the betting favorites to go back-to-back. And if they do, a running back will lead them there. Related: Athlon Sports 2025 NFL Preview Magazine Now Available Related: Key Dates Heading Into the 2025 NFL Season This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 10, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Cowboys Trade Rumors Swirl As Coach Scouts Two Young Newcomers
Cowboys Trade Rumors Swirl As Coach Scouts Two Young Newcomers originally appeared on Athlon Sports. As we turn for training camp, the Dallas Cowboys' running back room remains a fascinating watch. Miles Sanders and Javonte Williams currently loom as the top two on the depth chart, but as we know, at this time of year, that depth chart is fluid. Advertisement Plus, we add in Deuce Vaughn, who appears to be fighting for his NFL career, and rookies Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah, who make up the room. After the draft, head coach Brian Schottenheimer stated both could be starters; otherwise, they wouldn't have drafted them. And now Schotty's words on Blue and Mafah reflect that. "Those two young guys, they have a lot to learn in a good way," Schottenheimer said. "They're used to, most college guys are, they get to line scrimmage really fast, and they look over and they look for signs, there's guys holding up boards and signals. Now they're in a huddle and doing things like that, so a lot of it is you got to learn how to break down these lengthy calls and okay what matters to me and what doesn't, and I think those guys have done great." by Mike Fisher Should we also list all of the "name'' free agent running backs who have slowly moved off the shelf and onto teams? Amid a continuation of swirling rumors and criticisms - "Why didn't they sign Nick Chubb? Or J.K. Dobbins? Now should they trade for Dameon Pierce or Kenneth Walker?'' - the plan is for training camp to give Blue and Mafah the opportunity to continue impressing the coaching staff while competing with the two vets. Advertisement Sanders has been flashing this offseason, so too Williams, and now the two rookies are starting to make a little noise. Now, we aren't proclaiming the pair to be anything yet, and they will have to take their game up a level in Oxnard, which seems well within their wheelhouse. But at the moment? The run game is in a vastly different position than it was a year ago, and it might be propped up by two rookies who will have everything to prove. Related: Cowboys a Top Landing Spot for James Cook? Related: Cowboys' Dak Prescott Guarantees New Micah Parsons Contract Will Get Done This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 14, 2025, where it first appeared.
Fox News
05-06-2025
- Business
- Fox News
Who are the top 10 rushing duos headed into the 2025 NFL season?
The NFL has seen the running game featured heavily of late, and several running backs are getting new, high-end extensions. This development comes in the wake of Saquon Barkley breaking the league's combined single-season rushing record, Derrick Henry having a huge first year with the Baltimore Ravens and Christian McCaffrey balling out with the San Francisco 49ers before an injury-plagued 2024. There are also a handful of quarterbacks whose rushing ability is a featured part of their respective team's offense. That said, who are the best overall rushing combinations in the NFL — running backs and/or quarterbacks? Here are the top 10 rushing duos heading into the 2025 season, according to FOX Sports Research. Las Vegas' 2025 offense looks to feature a potent rushing attack, headlined by Jeanty, whom the Raiders selected with the sixth overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, and Mostert, who rushed for 1,012 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2023. Jeanty was the runner-up for the 2024 Heisman Trophy Award after rushing for a nation-best 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns at Boise State. Ironically, the Raiders were last in the NFL in rushing last season (79.8 yards per game), but Jeanty's grueling skill set and Mostert's proven track record give them a plausible one-two punch. The Washington Commanders have a lot going for them, but their rushing attack stands out first and foremost. Robinson has been a steady force across his three years (2022-24) in the league, averaging 776 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 4.1 yards per carry; he punched in a career-high eight rushing scores last season. Of course, Washington tripling its win total from 2023 to 2024 and making the NFC Championship Game was primarily due to the outstanding play of Daniels, who won 2024 Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. The 2023 Heisman Trophy winner threw for 25 touchdowns, posted a 100.1 passer rating, completed 69.0% of his passes and added 891 yards and six touchdowns on the ground. The Carolina Panthers stumbled into a running back room that has two players who rushed for over 1,000 yards last year. Hubbard has continued to produce and increase his production, rushing for a career-high 1,195 yards and 10 touchdowns on 4.8 yards per carry in 2024. Meanwhile, Dowdle, who signed with the Panthers after five years with the Dallas Cowboys (he missed the 2021 season due to a hip injury), became the team's starting back in 2024 and rushed for 1,079 yards and two touchdowns on 4.6 yards per carry in what was his first time getting the majority of the running back reps. Prior to his 235 carries in 2024, Dowdle's career high was 89 carries (2023). The Atlanta Falcons have built one of the best running back rooms in the league. A fifth-round pick in 2022, Allgeier rushed for 1,035 yards on 4.9 yards per carry in his rookie campaign. Then, Atlanta took Robinson with the eighth overall pick in 2023, and he became the team's featured running back. Still, Allgeier has rushed for 664 yards per season from 2023-24. Meanwhile, Robinson was a Pro Bowler in 2024 after rushing for 1,456 yards and 14 touchdowns on 4.8 yards per carry. He also totaled 61 receptions for 431 yards. The Seattle Seahawks have drafted well, and their running back room epitomizes that notion. Walker, a 2022 second-round pick, came on strong in his rookie season, rushing for 1,050 yards and nine touchdowns on 4.6 yards per carry, which he followed up by rushing for eight scores in 2023. Granted, Walker rushed for just 573 yards across 11 games in 2024. Charbonnet, a 2023 second-round pick, had his bright moments as a rookie and then rushed for 569 yards and eight touchdowns in 2024, while tallying 42 receptions for 340 yards. The Seahawks have a pair of quick running backs on rookie deals. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are another team that has drafted well and has the running back room to prove it. Tampa Bay selected Irving in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, and he became an integral part of its offense from the jump; Irving rushed for 1,122 yards and eight touchdowns on 5.4 yards per carry in his rookie campaign while reeling in 47 receptions for 392 yards. His 1,122 rushing yards were the most for a Bucs player in a single season since Doug Martin rushed for 1,402 yards in 2015. Meanwhile, White has been a balanced threat in Tampa Bay's offense, both bouncing to the outside and serving as a reliable part of the team's passing attack. In three years, White has rushed for 695 yards and three touchdowns and reeled in 55 receptions for 411 yards and four touchdowns per season. The Buffalo Bills love to run that football, which is what happens when arguably your two best offensive players can rip it up on the ground. A Pro Bowler in two of his first three years, Cook has emerged as one of the better backs in the league, rushing for 1,066 yards on 4.8 yards per carry per season from 2023-24 and rushing for 16 touchdowns in 2024. Meanwhile, Allen is arguably the most physically imposing quarterback in the sport, bulldozing defenders at 6-foot-5, 237 pounds. Allen, the 2024 NFL MVP, has rushed for 592 yards and nine touchdowns per season over his seven-year career (2018-24) and posted 13.5 rushing scores per season from 2023-24. Already a perennial Super Bowl contender, the Philadelphia Eagles brought in Barkley and created a physically imposing backfield of historical heights. After rushing for 1,000-plus yards in three of his six seasons with the New York Giants (2018-23), Barkley became the ninth running back in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards, posting 2,005 yards and 13 rushing scores in 16 games last year. Then, he rushed for five touchdowns in the playoffs, with three of those scores going for at least 60 yards. All the while, Hurts, the Super Bowl LIX MVP and a two-time Pro Bowler, has been a force to be reckoned with on the ground, rushing for 695 yards and 13 touchdowns per season from 2021-24, while being at the center of the "tush push" execution. The Detroit Lions' offense is a well-oiled machine, as it ranked second in the NFL in passing yards (263.2 yards per game) and sixth in rushing yards (146.4 yards per game) last season. A Pro Bowler in each of his first two campaigns, Gibbs has been an electric force as both a rusher and pass-catcher. Last year, Gibbs rushed for 1,412 yards and an NFL-high 16 touchdowns on 5.6 yards per carry, while racking up 52 receptions for 517 yards and four scores. Montgomery has missed three regular-season games in each of the past two years for the Lions but has been a battering ram with the ball in his hands, averaging 12.5 rushing touchdowns per season from 2023-24 and totaling 341 receiving yards in 2024. Detroit has ranked in the top six in the NFL in rushing in each of the past two years. The Baltimore Ravens have finished in the top three in rushing in each of the past seven seasons and first in the past two. That's what happens when you add Henry to an offense that already includes a two-time NFL MVP in Jackson. Henry, a five-time Pro Bowler, rushed for 1,921 yards and an NFL-high 16 touchdowns on a career-high 5.9 yards per carry in his first year with the franchise (2024). He also led the NFL with 19 carries for 20 or more yards. Jackson, who posted a career-high 4,172 passing yards, 41 passing touchdowns and a 119.6 passer rating in 2024, continues to kick up dust, also rushing for 915 yards and four touchdowns. Since 2019, Jackson has averaged 913 rushing yards and five rushing scores per season. Honorable mentions: Check out all of our Daily Rankers. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
