Trenton Corn’s 2023 fantasy football RB rankings 16-30

Welcome to part two of my running back rankings for fantasy football! I’ll break down RB’s 16-30 and give you guys good sleepers to target late in your drafts.

Trenton Corn

Jun 11, 2023

If you haven’t read part one of my RB rankings (which I suggest you do), I’ll recap my top 15 RB’s below:

Bijan Robinson
Christian McCaffery
Austin Ekeler
Najee Harris
Derrick Henry
Nick Chubb
Saquon Barkley
Tony Pollard
Jonathan Taylor
Josh Jacobs
Breece Hall
Joe Mixon
Dalvin Cook
Rhamondre Stevenson
Jahmyr Gibbs

As I mentioned in that article, I suggest you get at-least two of those RB’s in the first four rounds. However, it doesn’t stop there. You need to draft MULTIPLE running backs, considering they’re the hardest position to predict in all of fantasy.

16. Travis Etienne:

In what was essentially his rookie season, Etienne proved to be arguably the most explosive RB in the league, but struggled to produce at times outside of those big plays. In “year two” and the Jaguars offense looking to solidify themselves as one of the best in the league, we could see Etienne take a step forward this year if he becomes more consistent.

17. Alvin Kamara:

It’s hard to tell if Kamara had lost a step or if he has just been in a bad offense these last two years, but his 12.2 fantasy points per game tied Miles Sanders last season and ranked 16th amongst RB’s. The offense should be improved with Derek Carr at the helm, so he should be better, but I can also see Jamal Williams (last years RB8) out producing him.

18. Alexander Mattison:

With Dalvin Cook gone, Mattison steps into the fold as the Vikings lead back in a good offense and should become one of the more reliable backs in the league. Ty Chandler and DeWayne McBride probably will be a bigger thorn in his side that what many would like, but leaving your drafts with Mattison as your RB2 will feel good.

19. James Conner:

Conner had more rushing yards than he had in his pro bowl season in 2021, but took 8 fewer trips into the end zone. He was injured in weeks 6-8 & 18, but if you look at the sample size of weeks 9-17, you’ll see that Conner was the RB5 in that span. He appears to have plenty left in the tank and has the backfield to himself, but Conner will likely be in a bad offense this season, which scares me a little.

20. Aaron Jones:

Jones was the RB9 overall last season, but averaged less points per game than James Conner last year and will be in a worse offense with Jordan Love now under center.

21. Kenneth Walker:

Walker finished as RB16 last year, finishing just under James Conner and Aaron Jones (guys I have ranked above him) in points per game. There’s no denying his talent, as he led the NFL with 21 twenty plus yard carries. However, as excited as I was about him heading into this offseason, Seattle drafted UCLA standout, Zach Charbonnet, which has me believing that this backfield will be a jumbled up, confusing committee of talented young backs.

22. Cam Akers:

Last season was a roller coaster for Akers, as he seemed to all but lose his job to Darrell Henderson, as he eventually even asked for a trade and sat out multiple games. However, after week 12, Sean McVay finally decided to finally turn Akers loose, and in that span (weeks 13-18) he was the RB4 for fantasy. I’m hesitant to trust him fully with rookie Zach Evans looming in the shadows, but if Akers really does have this backfield to himself and gets the workload he deserves, then he has a shot to be a top 15 back next season.

23. Dameon Pierce:

After carrying the majority of the Texans offense from weeks 1 to 14, Pierce was the RB15 during that time, but he eventually broke down, as an ankle injury gave him the final month of the season off. The Texans brought in Devin Singletary to help relieve some of the workload this season and the Texans shouldn’t exactly be firing on all cylinders this year, but they wasn’t last season either. Pierce ran like a top 15 back in the league his rookie year & I don’t see Singletary’s presence changing that all too much.

24. JK Dobbins:

Dobbins was RB21 in half point scoring in 2020, posting top ten numbers after the teams bye from weeks eight on, but a gruesome injury kept him sidelined through all of 2021 and he missed a majority of the games last year. However, from weeks 14-17 (a small sample size, I know) last season, Dobbins was RB14 in that time frame. He will be In a committee with not only Gus Edwards, but his QB as well in Lamar Jackson and the team is projected to throw the ball more this season which scares me, but there’s no doubting Dobbins and his talent level when on the field. There’s hope he can still be a great RB and could be a steal in your drafts and a buy low trade candidate in dynasty currently.

25. Miles Sanders:

Sanders finished last year as RB13 in one of the best offenses in the league, but now will be the lead back in one of the leagues worst, signing a deal to play for the Panthers. We saw some success last year with D’Onta Foreman in Carolina, but with a new coaching staff, it’s hard to tell just how much volume Sanders will receive. However, with a rookie in at QB and experience playing under Frank Reich, I think he’ll be just fine and become a reliable flex option.

26. Rachaad White:

White was a rookie I was all hot and bothered about last offseason and he showed some real promise last year in both the air and on the ground. In fact, from weeks 12-18 after the bye, he saw much more opportunities, despite sharing with Leonard Fournette in the backfield and was RB25 in that timeframe. He should be the go-to guy in the room this year, although Tampa Bay should have a rough season all-together. However, his pass catching ability should allow him to play on all three downs and not be totally game script dependent.

27. Jerick McKinnon:

Many people question who’s going to step up as the Chiefs lead pass catcher outside of Travis Kelce this season and have brought up names like Kadarius Toney, Skyy Moore and rookie Rashee Rice, but the answer is actually pretty simple. It’s Jerick McKinnon, who had 43 receptions for 396 yards and 8 touchdowns from weeks 9-18, after the Chiefs bye last season. That strong finish was good for RB6 during that span. I understand Isiah Pacheco (RB20 from weeks 9-18) will get the bulk of the Carries this year, but McKinnon offers the highest upside out of the backfield, as Pacheco would need James Conner’s level of touchdown production in 2021 to be a reliable flex option in fantasy with McKinnon and Edwards-Helaire sharing a backfield with him. Scoop up McKinnon late in your drafts (will be drafted after Pacheco) and win your fantasy leagues.

28. Rashaad Penny:

I understand the Eagles traded for Deandre Swift in the draft, but it cost them very little draft capital and they showed who they preferred this offseason when they went out and signed Penny in free agency. Penny will have the majority of the Miles Sanders role that saw him finish last season as RB13 and Swift will replace Kenneth Gainwell as the teams change of pace/pass catching back. If you couldn’t tell, we’re now firmly in the committee portion of my rankings. Although I suggest you grab two of the guys in my top 15 with secure roles, don’t forget about these committee backfields. They hold immense value near the end of your drafts. Take a shot or two at one of these committee backfields and the payoff is HUGE if you hit on one late in your drafts.

29. David Montgomery:

Last season in this very same role, Jamal Williams was fantasy football’s RB8, which could make this ranking look silly if Montgomery produces similarly. He’s sharing a backfield with Gibbs, but at under 200 pounds, he’s more of a pass catching back. Expect Montgomery to get a lot of opportunities in a good offense and target him late in your fantasy drafts.

30. Antonio Gibson:

I’m willing to get hurt again. Before the arrival of Eric Bieniemy and offseason hype pieces of head coach Ron Rivera stating he’d like to get Gibson more touches, things were looking gloomy for Gibson, as it appeared he was losing his starting job to Brian Robinson. However, if he really does get unlocked, Gibson’s talent level should allow for him to finish as a top 30 back this season. I understand Robinson will steal some early down and goal line work, but Gibson will get the higher quality touches and I’m just not all that threatened by Robinson’s three career touchdowns.

Darkhorse last round dart throws:

Pierre Strong: With Damien Harris gone and the Patriots long history of a committee approach to their backfield l, you know there’s going to be another RB outside of Rhamomdre Stevenson that will see some quality work this season.

Clyde Edwards-Helaire: I know this sounds crazy, but he’s a former first round pick in one of the leagues best offenses. Take him with your last pick and see what his usage is like in week one, not to mention what his value is like if there was to be an injury. We all didn’t expect the McKinnon rise last season, which could happen with CEH this year.

Ronald Jones: The former Tampa Bay Buccaneer and Kansas City Chief signed with the Cowboys this offseason and could potentially play in the Ezekiel Elliot role that saw Zeke finish as RB22 in PPR leagues last year. Even if Tony Pollard gets more of a workload and Jones isn’t Zeke, a top 30 finish from Jones isn’t necessarily out of the question for me.

Roschon Johnson: The rookie RB out of Texas was a favorite of many after the combine festivities, and only has to beat out D’Onta Foreman and Khalil Herbert to become the teams lead back this season.

Psalm 46:1

“¹God is our refuge and strength,
always ready to help in times of trouble.”