Ranking every RB room in the NFL by tiers: Lions backfield duo of Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery top group

Who didn’t love the running back resurgence in 2024? After the position had been sort of beaten down over the previous few seasons, running backs were, well, back. Last offseason saw a ton of shakeups with stars moving around the league, and most paid off to ridiculous degrees. Most notably, Saquon Barkley proved to be a key cog for the Philadelphia Eagles en route to a Super Bowl LIX title, while Derrick Henry formed a lethal duo with Lamar Jackson as the Baltimore Ravens led the NFL in rushing yards. 

While there wasn’t as much movement by backs this offseason, the NFL Draft was filled to the brim with talent that is now entering the league, headlined by Ashton Jeanty to the Raiders and Omarion Hampton to the Chargers. 

With the draft and free agency now behind us and the offseason programs in full swing, it’s an ideal time to look at each backfield in the league and stack them up against one another. Below, we’ve slotted each team’s backfield into one of seven tiers ranging from the “Dynamic Duos” to the “Work in Progress” section.

Tier 1: Dynamic Duos

1. Detroit Lions
2. Atlanta Falcons
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

We kept Tier 1 exclusive to teams that have strong depth at strictly the running back position. Key among them is the Detroit Lions, who have the best all-around running back room in the entire NFL. That’s to the duo of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, or “Sonic and Knuckles” as they were coined during last season. In 2024, they became the first duo in NFL history with 10-plus rushing touchdowns in consecutive seasons. Overall, there were seven games last season where they both scored a touchdown, which was tied for the most by a running back duo since 1970. Detroit is also 11-0 in games when both Gibbs and Montgomery score over the last two seasons. While Montgomery is the power to this backfield, Gibbs is the lightning and is just now grasping the peak of his powers. In 2024, Gibbs tallied 1,929 scrimmage yards. His 20 total touchdowns not only led the league but also set a new franchise record. Remember, this is a franchise that had Barry Sanders in its backfield at one point, so what Gibbs is doing is beyond special. The fact that the duo can keep each other fresh is a huge win for the Lions offense, staying among the league’s best.

Looking at the Atlanta Falcons, they have a solid duo of Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier. Robinson is ascending towards becoming the top running back in the NFL. His 304 rushes in 2024 were fourth-highest in the league, and the former first-round back turned it into 1,456 yards (third-highest) and 14 touchdowns (tied for fifth-highest). That’s not even accounting for his 61 receptions for 431 yards receiving and a touchdown. At just 23 years old, Robinson should only improve, which is a scary proposition for the rest of the league. Meanwhile, Allgeier continues to be one of the more underrated backs in the league. Whenever he’s given an opportunity, the fourth-year pro delivers. For reference, Robinson averaged 4.8 yards per carry last season, and Allgeier was right behind him at 4.7. 

You may be surprised to see the Tampa Bay Buccaneers so high in these tiers, but you shouldn’t. They were casually fourth in the NFL in rushing yards in 2024, thanks largely to the arrival of Bucky Irving. The fourth-round pick hit the ground running to begin his pro career, logging 1,514 yards from scrimmage with 1,122 of them coming on the ground. Irving’s 5.4 yards per rush average is the most by a rookie who rushed for 1,000 or more yards since Adrian Peterson. He’s also the first rookie since Peterson to average 6.0 yards per touchdown on 250-plus carries. Behind him, the Bucs have Rachaad White, who registered 1,006 yards from scrimmage and nine total touchdowns last season, giving the unit some high-quality depth. 

Tier 2: RB-QB duos

1. Philadelphia Eagles
2. Baltimore Ravens
3. Buffalo Bills
4. Arizona Cardinals
5. Washington Commanders

As we looked at slotting these backfields, it seems silly not to factor in the quarterback position on teams where they are a main piece of the rushing attack. So, we collected them up here and put them just a notch below those teams above, with more pure running back depth to keep within the spirit of these tiers. And this group certainly doesn’t lack star power. In fact, it includes the best running backs in the league. 

Starting with the Eagles, Saquon Barkley was a man on a mission in his first season with Philadelphia. If he wanted to, the former Giant could’ve aimed to break Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record, but opted to prioritize health to end the regular season. That proved wise as Barkley went berserk in the postseason, rushing for 499 yards and five touchdowns as Philly went on to win Super Bowl LIX. When combined with his regular season production, Barkley rushed for the most yards (2,504) in a season all-time (including playoffs). So, we’ve established that Barkley is pretty good at running the football. What makes Philly even more dynamic on the ground is Jalen Hurts, who added 630 yards rushing and a team-high 14 rushing touchdowns. The “Tush Push” has been virtually unstoppable for the Eagles, and a large part of that has been thanks to Hurts’ power rushing ability. 

Already, it seems like we’ve gone too long without bringing up the team that actually led the NFL in rushing yards last season in the Baltimore Ravens. Derrick Henry had long been a target of the Ravens, and they were finally able to sign him as a free agent last offseason. His pairing with Lamar Jackson gave Baltimore an unfair duo on the ground with Henry — who rushed for 1,921 yards and 16 touchdowns — proving the power, and Jackson — who is widely considered the greatest rushing QB of all time —  bursting at the seams with explosive rushes. They helped the Ravens average 5.76 yards per rush last season, which is the most in NFL history. 

Meanwhile, if you like rushing touchdowns, look no further than the Buffalo Bills. James Cook and Josh Allen formed a lethal pairing out of the backfield in 2024 and scored 28 rushing touchdowns between them. Combined with the playoffs, Cook finished his season with 19 rushing touchdowns, which was the most in franchise history. He also became the first Bills back since LeSean McCoy to register back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons. 

The Arizona Cardinals get a bit overlooked with how impactful their ground game is thanks to James Conner and Kyler Murray. Last season, they were seventh in the league in rushing yards with Conner leading the way with 1,094 yards on the ground. The 30-year-old has been a stellar weapon for Arizona and seems to be getting better with age, notching a career-best 1,508 scrimmage yards in 2024. Meanwhile, Murray finished his season with 572 yards rushing and five touchdowns. 

The final team in this tier is the Washington Commanders, who took the NFL by storm last season thanks to Jayden Daniels. The 2024 second overall pick was central to the team’s rushing attack last season. Daniels’ 891 yards on the ground broke the rookie record for a quarterback. That led the Commanders team, but not far behind him was Brian Robinson Jr., who finished with 799 rushing yards and eight touchdowns after being limited to 14 games. As a team, Washington finished third in the league in rushing yards. 

Will Saquon Barkley be able to his OVER on rushing yards in the 2025 season or will he take a step back?

Tier 3: One-man bands

1. Indianapolis Colts
2. Green Bay Packers
3. Los Angeles Rams
4. Minnesota Vikings
5. New Orleans Saints
6. Houston Texans
7. Tennessee Titans

This third tier is exactly what the title describes: A backfield that is primarily handled by one main player. For Indy, that’s unquestionably Jonathan Taylor. If Anthony Richardson had a firmer grip on the starting quarterback job, the Colts could’ve pushed to be Tier 2, but with his situation dicey, we’ll simply focus on Taylor. Even after only suiting up in 14 games last year, the 26-year-old was fourth in the league in rushing yards with 1,431, only looking up to Bijan Robinson, Derrick Henry, and Saquon Barkley. When firing on all cylinders, Taylor is among the very best running backs in the league, and his 89.7 yards per game career average is the fifth most in NFL history. 

The Packers were one of the teams to dive headfirst into the running back market last offseason, inking Josh Jacobs to a four-year, $48 million contract in free agency. That investment saw quick returns with Green Bay finishing fifth in the league in rushing, and Jacobs was sixth among backs after finishing with 1,329 yards on the ground. Jacobs’ 15 rushing touchdowns were tied for the third-most in franchise history. 

Even after drafting Blake Corum in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Los Angeles Rams continued to ride almost exclusively on Kyren Williams. The 24-year-old followed up his Pro Bowl season in 2023 with another solid showing, logging 1,481 yards and 16 touchdowns from scrimmage last season. Williams’ 1,299 yards rushing ranked seventh among backs. 

The Minnesota Vikings brought in Aaron Jones last offseason, and after a career-high 1,138 yards rushing from the veteran, decided to extend him this offseason. Jones has been one of the more versatile backs in the NFL over his career, with his prowess to not only work in between the tackles, but also as a receiver. He finished last season with 51 receptions for 408 yards receiving and two touchdowns. When healthy like he was last season, Jones is one of the more explosive backs the NFL has the offer. 

The New Orleans Saints and Houston Texans have two backs from the 2017 draft class in Alvin Kamara and Joe Mixon. They are the primary ball carriers out of their respective backfields and can take over a game any given week. With Kamara, he’s surprisingly never registered a 1,000-yard rushing season, but it’s his ability to impact the game as a receiver that makes him one of the deadliest backs in the league. Last season, he finished with 1,493 yards from scrimmage with eight total touchdowns. He also fumbled just once over the last two seasons. As for Mixon, he was a Pro Bowler in his first season with the Texans, rushing for 1,016 yards and 11 touchdowns in 14 games played. He also added 309 yards as a receiver. 

In Tennessee, the Titans’ backfield won’t instill much fear in opposing defenses, but they did get a productive season out of Tony Pollard, who was one of their main pieces on offense. He finished the year with 301 total touches, which was more than double the next man on the roster, and turned that into 1,317 scrimmage yards and five touchdowns. Pollard’s 1,079 yards rushing ranked 12th-highest in the league. With the addition of No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward under center, it’s possible the Titans’ ground game could be a little more potent. 

Tier 4: Up and comers

1. Cincinnati Bengals
2. Los Angeles Chargers
3. Las Vegas Raiders
4. New York Giants
5. New York Jets
6. Carolina Panthers

This group has some young faces leading their backfield that possess some high upside. Lost in the shuffle of the Bengals failing to reach the playoffs and then extending both Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins this offseason was the emergence of Chase Brown out of the backfield. In his second season in the league, Brown exploded for 1,350 scrimmage yards and 11 total touchdowns with just 10 starts. If you take the 13 games where Brown recorded double-digit carries last season, he’d be looking at a projected total of 1,605 scrimmage yards and 14 total touchdowns, so he’s just scratching the surface of his potential. It’s also a scary proposition that this type of weapon is now in the backfield for Joe Burrow to utilize. 

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders both took running backs in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. L.A. selected Omarion Hampton with the 22nd overall pick and will pair him with veteran Najee Harris, whom the club signed in free agency. Hampton recorded the second-most rushing yards (3,164) in FBS over the last two seasons. Meanwhile, Harris heads to the Chargers after totaling 1,000 yards rushing in each of his first four seasons in the NFL. As for the Raiders, they took Boise State phenom Ashton Jeanty with the No. 6 overall pick. Las Vegas ranked dead last in rushing yards last season, so Jeanty’s arrival is a welcome one that provides loads of upside. Jeanty was a force at Boise State during his final collegiate season, rushing for 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns. He’s drawn pre-draft comparisons to LaDainian Tomlinson, and if he comes anywhere close to that, it’ll be a night-and-day transformation for the Raiders backfield. 

Like Bucky Irving with the Buccaneers, the New York Giants also had a Day 3 running back come out of the woodwork to take over their backfield. Tyrone Tracy Jr. was one of the few bright spots for the Giants’ offense, finishing his rookie season with 1,123 yards from scrimmage and six total touchdowns. On top of his emergence, New York also added Cam Skattebo, who finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting after a dynamic season for Arizona State last season, at the NFL Draft. So, this Giants backfield is starting to load up with young talent. 

As for their MetLife Stadium roommate, the New York Jets have a backfield duo in Breece Hall and Braelon Allen that should enjoy the changeup at head coach. Aaron Glenn comes from the Detroit Lions and saw firsthand how important the running game is, and now has some intriguing pieces at his disposal. Hall had somewhat of a letdown year after breaking out in his second season in the league in 2023. That said, the former second-round pick still finished with 1,359 yards from scrimmage last season and is only turning 24, so there is still plenty of upside. Meanwhile, Allen is a big-bodied back who flashed at times during his rookie season. 

In Carolina, Chuba Hubbard was one of the breakout stars last season, although it may have been hidden due to Carolina’s struggles. The back finished the season with 1,366 yards from scrimmage and 11 touchdowns, but was placed on injured reserve due to a calf injury in late December. However, it doesn’t appear that it should limit his availability in 2025. On top of Hubbard, the Panthers signed Rico Dowdle — who rushed for 1,079 yards for the Cowboys last season — in free agency and drafted Florida running back Trevor Etienne in the fourth round, further deepening the unit. 

Tier 5: Injury concerns

1. San Francisco 49ers
2. Miami Dolphins
3. Kansas City Chiefs
4. Seattle Seahawks

This is a tier with the most variance. While the ceiling his ridiculously high for some of these clubs, the floor is also quite low due to injury concerns. Starting with the San Francisco 49ers, the injury bug was a lead actor during their 2024 season, taking a bite out of a number of key players. In the backfield, Christian McCaffrey dealt with an Achilles injury that forced him to miss the first chunk of the season. After he returned in mid-November, McCaffrey lasted just a month before a PCL injury ended his season for good. When right, McCaffrey is one of the most dynamic weapons — not just running backs — in the NFL, and the Niners have one of the best backfields in the league. While McCaffrey is said to have no restrictions entering the offseason program, it’s noteworthy that these injuries are starting to pile up. 

In Miami, the Dolphins have an interesting collection of backs. The group is headlined by De’Von Achane, who is a lightning rod with the ball in his hands. Despite playing 17 games last season, he routinely was slowed with injury, which brings up questions about his durability and, in turn, the ceiling of Miami’s backfield going forward. Even with him dinged up at times, however, Achane tallied 1,499 yards from scrimmage for the Dolphins last year, further emphasizing how much potential there is with this unit. Miami also has 2024 fourth-round pick Jaylen Wright, who impressed as a rookie. 

The Kansas City Chiefs had an interesting season in the backfield. The club lost starting back Isiah Pacheco in Week 2 due to a fractured fibula and wasn’t able to return until Week 13. Even when he got back on the field, however, he was used sparingly. In his five regular-season games played after returning, Pacheco registered 49 rushing attempts for 175 yards. In the playoffs, he ran the ball a total of 13 times over three games for 37 yards. Veteran Kareem Hunt took over the bulk of the carries down the stretch, but it will be interesting to see how Pacheco carves back into the rotation in 2025 now that he’s healthy. 

The Seattle Seahawks’ backfield should be in a higher tier if they could somehow turn off injuries like you can in Madden NFL. From a talent perspective, Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet are quite the duo, but have struggled to stay on the field. Walker has not played a full season in his career and was limited to 11 games in 2024 due to an ankle injury that landed him on injured reserve. While Charbonnet has been able to cushion the blow of his loss, Seattle’s offense is running best when Walker is on the field, and you can’t guarantee that from week to week. 

Tier 6: Day 2 rookie headliners

1. Cleveland Browns
2. New England Patriots
3. Pittsburgh Steelers
4. Denver Broncos

This is a collection of teams that decided to bring in some highly-touted backs on Day 2 of the 2025 NFL Draft. The Cleveland Browns actually came away from the draft with two backs, but plucked Ohio State’s Quinshon Judkins with the 36th pick in the second round, which earmarks him as a possible top dog. They also added Tennessee’s Dylan Sampson, further injecting youth into the backfield.  Cleveland also has Jerome Ford still on the roster, who has a 1,000-yard scrimmage season on his résumé. 

As for the New England Patriots, Tre’Veyon Henderson gives the offense some much-needed firepower out of the backfield. Given his strong ability in pass protection, he could see the field quite a bit as a rookie. If he adopts the passing-down role, that’s proven to be a highly featured aspect of Josh McDaniels’ offense. Meanwhile, New England also has veterans Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson on the roster, who’ll factor into the carries. 

In Pittsburgh, the Steelers let Najee Harris leave in free agency and Iowa back Kaleb Johnson in the third round to pair with Jaylen Warren. In his final collegiate season, Johnson rushed for 1,537 yards and 21 touchdowns and had drawn pre-draft comparisons to Atlanta’s Tyler Allgeier. If he became a comparable player, that’d be a solid addition to the backfield. Meanwhile, in 15 games played last season, Warren finished with 821 scrimmage yards, which was down from his 1,154-yard season in 2023. 

The Denver Broncos found their running back of the future with the 60th pick of the 2025 NFL Draft by bringing in UCF’s RJ Harvey. He ran the fourth-fastest 40-yard dash (4.4 seconds) among all backs at the NFL Scouting Combine, so he is injecting some speed into Sean Payton’s backfield. He also averaged 13.3 yards per catch at the collegiate level last season. As for the carryovers from 2024, the Broncos still have Jaleel McLaughlin and Audric Estime on the depth chart. 

Tier 7: Work in progress

1. Chicago Bears
2. Jacksonville Jaguars
3. Dallas Cowboys

These are the teams that still have some work to do in their respective backfields. In Chicago, the Bears were tied for the third-lowest yards-per-carry average in the NFL last season. They also recorded the eighth-fewest total rushing yards. D’Andre Swift took the vast majority of the carries, finishing the year with 253 rushing attempts. However, he averaged just 3.8 yards per carry. With an improved offensive line and Ben Johnson now calling plays as the head coach, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Chicago have a much more respectable ground attack in 2025. 

The Jaguars finished last season with the sixth-lowest rushing yards in the NFL. Starter Travis Etienne took a dramatic step backward after back-to-back seasons with at least 1,000 yards rushing to begin his career. In 2024, he rushed for just 558 yards, losing ground to fellow back Tank Bigsby. He led the team with 766 yards, but also fumbled four times during the year, which doesn’t instill a ton of confidence heading into 2025. Jacksonville did select Bhayshul Tuten in the fourth round of the 2025 draft, who could factor into this backfield equation, especially if Etienne and Bigsby continue to struggle. 

Lastly, the Dallas Cowboys, who were plagued by a poor running game throughout last season and were ridiculed for not pursuing Derrick Henry, continue to find themselves looking for answers in the backfield. Last year, they were 27th in the league in rushing and spent free agency signing veterans Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders. While each of those backs flashed at earlier points in their careers, they’ve more recently plateaued and don’t provide a ceiling high enough to project a turnaround for Dallas. The club also drafted Texas back Jaydon Blue, but that selection came in the fifth round.