2025 Finest NFL Operating Backs: Saquon Barkley, Derrick Henry Lead High 10 Rankings

Final season, the working again place noticed a spike in manufacturing and significance as groups with top-end expertise, such because the Philadelphia Eagles with Saquon Barkley and the Baltimore Ravens with Derrick Henry, made important playoff runs. 

So, coming into the 2025 season, which ball-carriers could have the best influence on their group, and this NFL season? The FOX Sports activities NFL Employees helps to venture that as they ranked the ten finest working backs getting into the 2025 season.

(Photograph by Mitchell Leff/Getty Photographs)

Ralph Vacchiano: Put the NFL’s finest working again behind the NFL’s finest offensive line and also you get precisely what you’d anticipate: Saquon Barkley’s exceptional 2024 season, which included 2,005 yards in 16 video games (a ridiculous 125.3 yards per recreation) and 13 touchdowns. That included 11 video games wherein he rushed for greater than 100 yards and one wherein he hit 255. And he added three extra 100-yard video games within the playoffs (together with 205 within the divisional spherical towards the Rams). It was ridiculous. And so long as Barkley is wholesome, he’ll probably be simply as harmful. The one factor to fret about is he ran the ball 436 instances in 20 video games final season and touched the ball 482 instances. That beats his career-high by greater than 100 touches. He’s 28 years previous now and that’s a number of pounding for even his physique to take.

2024 rank third (+2)

(Photograph by Kathryn Riley/Getty Photographs)

Ben Arthur: It seems that the idea that Henry was beginning to hit the inevitable decline in 2023 was only a product of the Titans’ offensive line. In his first 12 months with the Ravens, he registered his second profession 1,900-yard dashing season. The 31-year-old Henry will fall off ultimately, in fact. However with how nicely he takes care of his physique and the standard of Baltimore’s offensive line, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him carry out at a Professional Bowl degree for not less than two extra years.

2024 rank: 2nd (no change)

(Photograph by Brooke Sutton/Getty Photographs)

Carmen Vitali: It doesn’t get extra dynamic than Gibbs. He could also be a working again however he’s the rationale the Detroit Lions’ offense is so versatile. Gibbs can go in movement and catch the ball out of the backfield, he’s shifty in between tackles and deadly along with his pace on the skin. There’s a case to be made that Gibbs is steadily making his method to being the highest working again within the NFL.

2024 rank seventh (+4)

. (Photograph by Todd Kirkland/Getty Photographs)

Arthur: Alongside the Lions’ Jahmyr Gibbs, Robinson is shaping to be the preeminent, do-it-all working again of the NFL’s new wave of stars — doubling as a high-volume ball provider and move catcher out of the backfield. In 2024, his second season, Robinson trailed solely Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry in dashing yards. He ranked fourth in scrimmage yards. Barkley himself believes no different again can reduce like Robinson, who occurred to work out with Christian McCaffrey this previous offseason. Already a star, Robinson could possibly be a family identify by the top of 2025.

2024 rank: 4th (no change)

(Photograph by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Photographs)

Eric D. Williams: The engine of the offense, San Francisco struggled with McCaffrey hampered final season because of an Achilles and knee damage. Now wholesome, a rejuvenated McCaffrey ought to rev up the 49ers offensively this season. The one method to go is up statistically for the Stanford product. McCaffrey completed with simply 202 dashing yards sand 146 receiving yards in 2024 – all profession lows for his eight years within the league. Nevertheless, all we have to do is look again to 2023 for what is feasible for McCaffrey, when he led the league in scrimmage yards (2023) and complete touchdowns (21).

2024 rank: 1st (+4)

(Photograph by Cooper Neill/Getty Photographs)

Vitali: With accidents to Jordan Love final season and a rotating forged of receivers in Inexperienced Bay, Jacobs was the fixed for the Packers’ offense. He had the second-best season of his profession with over 1,300 dashing yards and set a brand new profession excessive in single season touchdowns for himself with 15. With three Professional Bowl nods and an All-Professional below his belt, Jacobs belongs within the dialog among the many league’s finest runners.

2024 rank: ninth (+3)

Photograph by Luke Hales/Getty Photographs)

Arthur: Taylor hasn’t been capable of recreate the “excessive” of his 2021 marketing campaign, when he received the dashing triple crown. However he’s nonetheless on the quick listing of elite working backs within the NFL. The league obtained a reminder of that this previous season, when he put up 1,431 dashing yards (fourth) and 11 dashing touchdowns (eleventh). Well being-enabling, Taylor’s manufacturing could possibly be proper again close to the highest of the league contemplating the Colts’ uncertainty at quarterback.

2024 rank: sixth (-1)

(Photograph by Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire by way of Getty Photographs)

Greg Auman: How good was Irving’s rookie season in Tampa? Out of 109 instances in NFL historical past the place a rookie has had 200+ carries, his common of 5.4 yards per carry is third-best ever, behind Adrian Peterson (2007) and Clinton Portis (2002). Throughout the league, during the last eight video games of 2024, his common of 5.7 yards per carry was second-best behind Saquon Barkley in yards/carry. How a lot better can he be with a full season as a featured again? His emergence was an enormous a part of the Bucs going from the worst run recreation within the NFL in 2023 to high 5 in yards and yards per carry.

2024 rank: unranked

(Photograph by Bruce Yeung/Getty Photographs)

Williams: Give the hard-working Williams his flowers. Williams totaled profession highs in dashing yards (1,299) and dashing touchdowns (14) final season, ending with over 1,000 yards for a second 12 months in a row to grow to be the primary working again for the Rams to perform that feat since Todd Gurly (2017-18). That’s fairly good firm, and one of many causes the Rams selected to signal the Notre Dame product to a three-year, $33 million contract extension throughout coaching camp. His 843 snaps on offense final season have been essentially the most by any working again within the NFL. Nevertheless, Williams additionally could possibly be sharing the workload within the backfield this 12 months. Now in his second season, Michigan product Blake Corum appears to be like extra comfy in Sean McVay’s offense and has a nostril for the top zone in purpose line conditions.

2024 rank: eighth (-1)

Photograph by Carmen Mandato/Getty Photographs)

Henry McKenna: Within the passing assault, the Payments say that “everybody eats.” In Buffalo’s dashing assault? It’s James Prepare dinner. For the final two seasons, Prepare dinner has eclipsed 1,000 yards and, in 2024, he put up 16 dashing touchdowns. He won’t be the largest or quickest working again, however he makes use of his imaginative and prescient and fast ft to get himself by the sizable holes from Buffalo’s offensive line. When he entered the NFL, he appeared like he may be a change-of-pace again. However he’s now an everydown participant who is part of his group’s id.

2024 rank: unranked

Honorable mentions:

2025 NFL Positional Rankings

2025-26 NFL Offensive Participant of the 12 months Odds

Saquon Barkley, Eagles: +650 (guess $10 to win $75 complete)Ja’Marr Chase, Bengals: +950 (guess $10 to win $105 complete)Jahmyr Gibbs, Lions: +950 (guess $10 to win $105 complete)Bijan Robinson, Falcons: +1600 (guess $10 to win $170 complete)Nico Collins, Texans: +1700 (guess $10 to win $180 complete)Justin Jefferson, Vikings: +1700 (guess $10 to win $180 complete)Derrick Henry, Ravens: +1800 (guess $10 to win $190 complete)Puka Nacua, Rams: +2000 (guess $10 to win $210 complete)CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys: +2000 (guess $10 to win $210 complete)Christian McCaffrey, 49ers: +2200 (guess $10 to win $230 complete)Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions: +3000 (guess $10 to win $310 complete)Tyreek Hill, Dolphins: +3000 (guess $10 to win $310 complete)Malik Nabers, Giants: +3000 (guess $10 to win $310 complete)Brian Thomas Jr., Jaguars: +3500 (guess $10 to win $360 complete)Lamar Jackson, Ravens: +4000 (guess $10 to win $410 complete)

These rankings have been compiled by:

Ben Arthur (@benyarthur)Greg Auman (@gregauman)Henry McKenna (@McKennAnalysis)Eric D. Williams (@eric_d_williams)Ralph Vacchiano (@RalphVacchiano)Carmen Vitali (@CarmieV)

Take a look at all of our Each day Rankers.

Need nice tales delivered proper to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports activities account, and observe leagues, groups and gamers to obtain a personalised e-newsletter day by day!