NFL Player News

The Rams selected Hunter in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 117th overall.

Hunter began his first two seasons at Auburn as the backup to Tank Bigsby before claiming the lead role in 2023, rushing for 2,110 yards and 15 touchdowns on 346 carries over his final two seasons with the Tigers. Coming from a weightlifting background, Hunter doesn't lack for strength, and he projects as a downhill runner who can be difficult to bring down when he gets rolling. He joins an already young backfield that sports draft picks in each of the last few seasons at the top -- Kyren Williams (2022) as the starter and Blake Corum (2024) as the top backup -- and he'll likely fit in alongside Corum vying for reserve snaps behind Williams.

The Texans selected Marks in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 116th overall.

The Texans traded a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 third-round pick in exchange for this pick and a 2025 seventh-round pick. Marks led Mississippi State in rushing yards during the 2022 and 2023 seasons before heading to USC for his fifth year. The Georgia native earned Second Team All-Big Ten honors at USC by recording 1,133 yards (5.7 YPC) and nine touchdowns in addition to 47 receptions for 321 yards. Marks measured in at 5-foot-10, 207 pounds at the NFL Combine while adding a 4.54 40-yard dash to his resume. While he'll turn 25 years old during his rookie season, Marks is a sturdy runner and will look to earn a role as a pass catcher, although he'll face stiff competition from Dameon Pierce, Dare Ogunbowale and J.J. Taylor for those duties behind lead back Joe Mixon.

The Panthers selected Etienne in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 114th overall.

This selection didn't necessarily fill a need for the Panthers, as they already signed Rico Dowdle this offseason to complement Chuba Hubbard and Jonathon Brooks (knee) on the running back depth chart. However, Etienne does add a pass-catching threat to the Panthers' backfield and is expected to be an adequate blocker, traits he was able to showcase in his final collegiate season at Georgia. His ability to see the field during his rookie year is likely to depend on Brooks' recovery, giving him limited fantasy appeal in 2025 for the time being.

The Giants selected Skattebo in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 105th overall.

Skattebo was a two-year starter at Arizona State after spending the first two years of his collegiate career with Sacramento State. He broke out in 2024 with 1,711 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns on 293 carries while adding 45 catches for 605 yards and three scores, and he played an integral role in the Sun Devils winning the Big 12 Championship and earning a spot in the College Football Playoff. There are some questions around Skattebo's pass protection and downhill speed, but his physicality and versatility as a receiver out of the backfield should give him an opportunity to see some snaps on passing downs right out of the gate. Skattebo joins a Giants backfield headlined by 2024 fifth-round pick Tyrone Tracy and veteran Devin Singletary.

The Jaguars selected Tuten in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 104th overall.

Tuten was lightly recruited coming out of high school but emerged as a key contributor at Virginia Tech during his final two years in college, combining to score 25 touchdowns while handling 356 total carries. He then helped his draft stock further by running an impressive 4.32 40-yard dash at the combine while also showing a lot of burst in short-area drills. Tuten's landing spot isn't likely to lead to production early in the 2025 season, as both Travis Etienne and Tank Bigsby are in the mix, but this will be a situation worth monitoring with a new coaching staff making decisions.

Ford (ankle) is atop the depth chart at running back, but that could change given the Browns' selection of Ohio State running back Quinshon Judkins with the 36th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Zac Jackson and Lauren Smith of The Athletic report.

Ford enters the final year of his rookie deal and has been a competent complementary player behind Nick Chubb the last three seasons. Drafting Judkins suggests the team will not bring Chubb back, and the rookie Buckeyes running back is talented enough to earn carries immediately. At the very least, Judkins will be part of the backfield from Day 1 and could take over as the primary back early in the season -- the same path Chubb took to become one of the game's best backs prior to a serious knee injury in 2023. Think of Ford as atop the depth chart with an asterisk.

The Steelers selected Johnson in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 83rd overall.

Johnson (6-foot-1, 224 pounds) is a bigger back who clearly fills the void left by Najee Harris, who signed with the Chargers in free agency. Johnson really broke out in 2024, his third season at Iowa, after showing some flickers of promise in his first two seasons. Johnson's box score was notable in 2024, producing 1,537 yards (6.4 YPC) and 21 touchdowns in 12 games, and now he'll compete for snaps against Jaylen Warren. Warren doesn't necessarily need the help -- Warren took workhorse workloads at Utah State and Oklahoma State in college -- but the Steelers will probably give Johnson every chance to at least work into a timeshare with Warren in 2025.

The Broncos selected Harvey in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 60th overall.

The landing spot and draft capital are going to transform Harvey from a sleeper to a mainstream fantasy target. Denver was in need of a running back after it struggled in that facet last year and also lost Javonte Williams. Harvey had to battle plenty of competition for carries during his time at UCF but always won out. He took on 225 or more carries in each of his last two seasons and ran for 16 and 22 touchdowns in those years, respectively, while maintaining a yards-per-carry figure north of 6.0. At 5-foot-8 and 205 pounds, Harvey has a dense build similar to that of D'Andre Swift's coming out of college. His 4.4 speed at the combine and impressive broad jump (127 inches) verified him as a plus-athlete. Harvey has something of an incomplete grade as a pass catcher with just 61 catches over his last three seasons, but he did damage with his receptions at 11.8 YPR. He should immediately compete for a big role out of the Denver backfield and will be one of the more buzzy rookie running backs in fantasy draft season.

The Patriots selected Henderson in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 38th overall.

Henderson is the fourth running back off the board and the second Ohio State back to be selected early in the second round after Quinshon Judkins went to Cleveland at 36th overall. A four-year player in Columbus, Henderson was an instant impact performer who rushed for 15 touchdowns as a true freshman. He battled through some injuries as a sophomore and junior and split work with Judkins during Ohio State's championship run in 2024. Henderson checks in at 5-foot-10 and 202 pounds with 4.43 speed that shows up on film with a number of long runs that earned him a label as a home-run hitter. His 75-yard touchdown catch against Texas in the College Football Playoff is a good snapshot of his ability to find space and turn on the jets. Paired with Rhamondre Stevenson, the Patriots now have a great 1-2 punch in the backfield.

The Browns selected Judkins in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 36th overall.

Judkins (6-feet, 221 pounds) was a highly productive runner at both Ohio State (2024) and Mississippi (2022-2023), demonstrating uncommon explosiveness and three-down ability for a power running back. Judkins boosted his stock at the NFL Scouting Combine, where he demonstrated surprising speed with a 4.48-second 40-yard dash as well as a 38.5-inch vertical jump and 132-inch broad jump. Explosiveness like that paired with Judkins' power could give him uniquely high upside as an NFL runner in both volume and efficiency. Judkins probably won't be a league-leading receiver at running back, but he should have 40- or 50-catch upside in addition to league-leader potential as a rusher. Jerome Ford is highly qualified as a passing down back and is too good to send to the bench, but he's also in the final year of his rookie contract.