Updated Fantasy Football RB Rankings Week 1: Who to start, best sleepers at running back

Running back is often the most frustrating position throughout the course of an entire season. Luckily, there haven't been too many preseason injuries causing early drafters to have their seasons end before it even began. Most drafters probably feel pretty confident heading into Week 1, but many won't be feeling the same way in a matter of weeks, let alone months. 

The other frustrating aspect of the running back position is the dreaded committee. There are very few bell cow running backs anymore, so after the first couple of tiers of running backs are off the board, and it's very hard to predict which players will return optimal value on limited workloads. It also means you're usually taking up valuable bench slots with players who could be on the practice squad in a week or two. 

Remember, the rankings below are for Week 1 ONLY. If you still have drafts coming up before the season kicks off, remember to check out all of our Ultimate Cheat Sheet, which includes rankings, positional tiers, sleepers, busts, injury updates, and much more!

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Who are the best fantasy RBs Week 1?

The Week 1 schedule is a good way to illustrate just why we think the top-3 running backs are in a tier by themselves. Despite going up against traditionally tough defenses, we're sticking with Christian McCaffrey, Breece Hall, Bijan Robinson as the top running backs. 

McCaffrey has dealt with a minor calf injury during the preseason, but there is no danger of him missing Week 1. The biggest issue of concern, though, is the ongoing holdout of Trent Williams. It sounds like there's a very real chance that Williams will miss at least Week 1, if not additional weeks until this is sorted out and he's in game shape. But even so, the offense runs through CMC, and even if he's struggling to rack up yards on the ground, he can hurt you in the passing game as well. And if Purdy is under pressure, you know he'll be looking for McCaffrey in the short passing game. 

Hall will be on the other sideline during that contest, and much like CMC, we expect the Jets to run much of the offence through Hall as well. Aaron Rodgers only played four snaps in 2023 before suffering a season-ending Achilles injury, and he didn't play a snap in the preseason. Expect a heavy dose of Hall until Rodgers gets more comfortable. 

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And with Robinson, we never had the chance to see what he was truly capable of because of Arthur Smith's frustrating play calling. Expect the Falcons to do a 180 on that strategy and really let Bijan cook. Like with Rodgers, Kirk Cousins is returning from an Achilles injury for Atlanta. On top of the immense talent Robinson possesses, Cousins is likely to also ease back in a bit and lean on Bijan to carry the load early on this season. 

Who are the best fantasy RB waiver pickups Week 1?

If you have some older veterans on the end of your bench, then it might be a good idea to try to clear up some bench spots to stash some younger players who could see bigger roles later in the season. Jordan Mason is one of the top running backs to target. With Elijah Mitchell landing on IR ending his season, Mason is now the clear backup to McCaffrey. Again, McCaffrey should be fine for Week 1, but he is coming off a calf strain, and any soft tissue injuries could linger. If McCaffrey misses any time, Mason will be a major fantasy asset, and he's currently only 23% rostered in Yahoo! leagues. 

Denver's Jaleel McLaughlin is another back to target. While McLaughlin may not have as high of a ceiling if Javonte Williams goes down compared to Mason with McCaffrey, but he should also have some standalone value right off the bat. Williams starts the season as the clear No. 1, but especially after the Broncos cut Samaje Perine, McLaughlin could see additional passing game work. When running back production can be tough to come by on the waiver wire, I would expect his roster percentage of 32% to only increase. 

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Who are the best fantasy RB sleepers Week 1?

Speaking of Javonte Williams, we've been higher than consensus during drafting season, and we'll likely be higher than consensus on him for Week 1 as well. As mentioned, the departure of Perine just solidifies Williams' role in this backfield. While he was always going to be the No. 1, it's one less mouth to feed. Audric Estime is likely the new No. 3, but he's likely more of a longer-term investment for the Broncos. And with a rookie QB in Bo Nix under center, Williams will be a big piece of this offense.

Alvin Kamara is one more name who could surprise in Week 1. Kamara isn't exactly a spring chicken, but his draft stock fell more than it probably should have this year. Especially in PPR leagues, and these are PPR rankings, Kamara can still be a great RB2 and can give you RB1 numbers on any given week. Derek Carr has shown that he has no problem dumping off to Kamara if nothing is open down the field, and I'd look for that trend to continue. You never want to be too late in fading a veteran, but Kamara might still have more left in the tank. 

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What are the biggest RB injuries Week 1?

It's been known for quite some time that Browns running back Nick Chubb would miss the start of the season. After a devastating knee injury towards the end of last season, Chubb still doesn't have a definitive timeline. Because of that, Jerome Ford could end up being a fantasy asset for more than just the first few weeks of the season. 

It was confirmed earlier this week that rookie running back Jonathan Brooks would also start the year on the PUP list and miss at least the first four weeks of the season. That places Chuba Hubbard back in the fantasy discussion, and he's our No. 36 running back this week. With just Miles Sanders behind him, Hubbard will have a significant role to start the season.

Jaylen Warren is also returning from a hamstring injury for the Steelers. He's not expected to miss Week 1, but proceed with caution with any soft tissue injuries. I'd expect an even bigger workload for Najee Harris until Warren eases back into his more typical workload. 

WEEK 1 START 'EM AND SIT 'EM
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Notable changes in Week 1 Running Back rankings

Following our late-week update, there haven't been many shifts in the running back rankings. The only real change came with the uncertainty swirling around Christian McCaffrey. We knew he was dealing with a calf injury, but when his official designation came out, it also listed him as having Achilles issues. It's extremely likely this is the same injury as the two are connected, but we still haven't heard that he is 100% starting. While we think that will be the case (as you can see by his RB1 rankings), we did boost Jordan Mason up to RB59 in case McCaffrey is on some kind of pitch count. And if we get surprising news that McCaffrey is sitting, Mason could soar as high as the RB16 range, which is currently where Joe Mixon sits. 

Fantasy RB Rankings Week 1: Who to start, sit at running back

Rankings based on PPR scoring and were updated on Sept. 8 following the release of inactives. Players that have already played are in italics.