The fun of NFL training camps is to attempt to perceive which players are winning the battles to earn a place in the starting lineup. There aren’t many positions where it’s easier to ascertain how said competitions are going quite like the running back position. Although running backs have fallen on hard times when it comes to the market for their second contracts, they can still provide value offensively if they’re performing well in all facets of the game from rushing to receiving and even blocking. Just listen to Green Bay Packers Pro Bowl running back Aaron Jones.
“It’s crazy to me because running backs bring so much value,” Jones told CBS Sports on July 17 when asked about the running back market after Josh Jacobs, Saquon Barkley and Tony Pollard didn’t receive long-term deals. “You got to be able to protect, and have to pass protect just like an offensive lineman. You have to know all the offensive line calls up front, who they’re working to. You have to run the ball as well with 11 guys trying to hit you. You make it hard to take you off the field, so you’re involved in the passing game. You’re doing just as much as anyone else except for the quarterback and maybe the center [on offense]. I really don’t understand how the position got devalued, but I hope our value comes back because if you look at it, running backs make a big difference in the game. Whether it’s protecting the quarterback — being that sixth-man in protection — running the ball, or taking pressure off of the quarterback [in the passing game].”
Given their value across all components of an NFL offense, here’s a look at some of the top training camp battles revolving around running backs throughout the league and as well as educated predictions for how said battles could evolve.
The Falcons selected University of Texas running back Bijan Robinson eighth overall in the 2023 NFL Draft. That makes him the highest-drafted player at his position since the Giants took Saquon Barkley, now a two-time Pro Bowler, second overall in the 2018 NFL Draft. There’s a good reason why: Robinson is special. He became the first player in the Pro Football Focus era (since 2006) with more than 100 missed tackles forced in a single college season (104 in 2022).
That would make it seem like Robinson is guaranteed the lion’s share of the carries right away. However, to quote the great Lee Corso, “Not so fast my friend!” Tyler Allgeier, the Falcons’ 2022 fifth round pick out of BYU who racked up 1,035 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns on 210 carries, was one of the NFL’s most valuable running backs last season. Atlanta averaged 159.9 rushing yards per game last season, the third-most in the NFL, and Allgeier’s 12.1 offensive rushing expected points added (12.1) led all running backs with 100 or more carries in 2022. That means his value to the Falcons offense last season in terms of its chances to score when he ran with the football were the best among any running back with at least 100 carries in 2022.
In fact, Allgeier was noticeably ahead of five Pro Bowl rushers in this metric last season, including the NFL’s rushing yards champion Josh Jacobs.
Highest offensive rushing EPA in 2022 season*
* Minimum 100 carries
Allgeier wasn’t much of a receiving threat out of the backfield, but he made the most of his chances in that area in 2022, hauling in 16 receptions for 139 receiving yards and a touchdown on 17 targets. That may be a function of Atlanta’s lack of consistency in the passing game between quarterbacks Marcus Mariota and Desmond Ridder last season, but that could be an area where Robinson could come in right away and shine. He’ll face some stiff competition from Allgeier when it comes to being the team’s leading ball-carrier. Although, it appears this is a race Robinson is going to win without too much stress.
“Bijan, pretty damn pleased with Bijan so far,” Falcons head coach Arthur Smith said Monday after the team’s first padded practice of training camp, via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Robinson himself is pleased with his workload early on in training camp. Expect him to earn at least 60% of the carries.
“I was learning a lot,” Robinson said Monday when asked about his rookie offseason. “A lot was coming at me. I learned how to adjust … that’s why I liked what Coach Smith did with me. You learn a lot at OTAs when you are a rookie. You start understanding a lot of different things, then when it comes to camp, then it will start slowing down. He knew exactly how to handle that. He handled it really well with me. He saw his vision for what he wanted in camp.”
Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III, their second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, led all rookies in carries (228), rushing yards (1,050), and rushing touchdowns (nine) last season. However, head Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider still decided to draft another second-round running back in the 2023 NFL Draft: Zach Charbonnet. He had a productive final season at UCLA in 2022, ranking fourth in the FBS in rushing yards per game (135.9) and yards/carry (7.0).
The difference between Walker III and Charbonnet could be pass-catching ability. Walker III wasn’t much of a factor in Seattle’s aerial attack last season, catching 27 passes for 165 yards on 35 targets. Meanwhile, Charbonnet hauled in 37 passes for 321 receiving yards (tied for the seventh-most among FBS running backs last season) on 44 targets in college. Carroll went out of his way to praise Charbonnet’s receiving process post-draft back in May.
“He’s [Charbonnet] so versatile,” Carroll said in May. “He just will fit in and be a great addition, and really, we’re gonna find out how far he can take it in terms of the receiving part of it. We know he’s really good at it. But so is Kenneth, so those guys will be battling.”
Seattle also drafted a second running back in their 2023 class with their seventh-round selection and final pick, Georgia’s Kenny McIntosh, and the door has swung open for him to receive first-team reps in camp following injuries to both Walker and Charbonnet.
“We would love to have those guys [practicing],” Carroll said Sunday after practice. “We’d love to have them back out there, but they’re not ready to go.”
Walker has been dealing with a lingering groin strain, per Carroll, so the plan is to allow him to rest and heal his ailment.
“He’s [Walker] got a little groin thing that kind of bothered him getting into camp here so we’re just keeping him quiet for a bit,” Carroll said. “Because it’s a groin we’ve got to make sure. He doesn’t feel bad. It’s not a terrible injury or anything like that. We just don’t want to aggravate it now and make it something that lingers throughout camp.”
Charbonnet’s situation is a little more murky at the moment as he had pain in his shoulder pop up, so the team is running tests on him to figure out what the issue is.
“Just kind of creeped up on him [Charbonnet] really,” Carroll said. “He didn’t get hit or anything like that. It’s just all of a sudden he started to feel something so it’s just checking it out and being really cautious right now.”
McIntosh’s stock fell in the pre-draft process after he ran a 4.62 40-yard dash while measuring 6 feet tall and weighing 204 pounds. However, Carroll revealed that he’s lost 10 pounds in the time between OTAS and minicamp and training camp, leaving him looking a lot more agile.
“He’s [McIntosh] probably been one of the highlights,” Carroll said. … “He’s in great shape and he’s just razor sharp. He’s been explosive and innovative with his running and his cuts. He’s caught the ball really well. He looks really quick out here. The coaches have commented that we’re surprised at how quick he has looked. He’s 4.52 or .53 or something like that. There’s a lot of really, really good running backs that run that time. So that’s not the issue, but he has looked quicker than he did in the springtime.”
Should Walker and/or Charbonnet miss time into the preseason, perhaps McIntosh could climb up to being the RB2 in the Pacific Northwest. However, one would think Walker and Charbonnet would be given every opportunity to earn the top two running back spots when healthy with Walker having the inside track for the starting running back gig. The injuries, plus Carroll’s love of the ground game and using multiple backs make the Seahawks running backs competition a hard one to read.
In head coach Mike McDaniel’s first season as the Dolphins head coach after five years with the 49ers, he made sure to bring both Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson Jr. with him.
Mostert racked up a career-high 1,093 scrimmage yards along with five touchdowns in 2022 after returning from a knee injury that caused him to miss all but one game in 2021. Wilson, who the Dolphins added around the trade deadline, is more of the thunder to Mostert’s lightning in their backfield tandem. The 27-year-old also totaled over 1,000 yards from scrimmage, a career-high 1,045, and six scrimmage touchdowns while splitting the season between the 49ers and the Dolphins.
Both will get their touches, but Devon Achane, a third-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, will likely factor into the mix heavily. His blazing speed is evident between his 4.32 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine and his two kickoff return touchdowns in college. Achane can also contribute as a pass-catcher, accumulating 457 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns on 60 receptions across his final two seasons at Texas A&M. The Dolphins only had four picks in the 2023 draft, but they chose to make Achane their second pick of the four-man class and their first offensive player selected. McDaniel may have big plans for the rookie in 2023 despite the presence of Mostert and Wilson Jr. Mostert likely serves as the primary back with Wilson Jr. getting 45% of the carries on early downs and around the goal line. Achane probably sees his involvement climb as he gets acclimated to life in the NFL.
The last time McDaniel went on the record about his running back group was when he was asked about the potential for the team to sign Dalvin Cook on July 28. At this stage, he’s “extremely happy” with his three top running backs.
“First and foremost, I’m extremely happy with our running back group,” McDaniel said. “Extremely happy. I have great relationships with some very talented players. However, Dalvin Cook is a great player. I look at it like if it works on both sides, it makes sense for somebody. You’re adding a player to a team and an organization, and all the things they both need need to be met for it to work. He’s a free agent and he’s visiting the Jets. And that’s what I have to say.”
Ahead of the Philadelphia Eagles’ first padded practice of training camp on Tuesday, the running back reps in training camp have been near even among the three contenders to be the defending NFC champions’ RB1 following Miles Sanders offseason departure to the Carolina Panthers, according to CBS Sports’ Jeff Kerr.
Those contenders are D’Andre Swift, a 2020 second-round pick out of Georgia whom the Eagles acquired this offseason; Rashaad Penny, an injury-plagued, explosive (5.7 career yards per carry) 2018 first-round pick of the Seattle Seahawks who signed one-year, $1.4 million deal this offseason; and Kenneth Gainwell, a fifth-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Kerr has reported that, while in just shorts and helmets, Swift has “stood out in the passing game.” That checks out with his resume considering Swift is only one of five players in the entire league with more than 1,500 rushing yards (1,680) and 150 receptions (156) combined over the past three seasons. Swift has elite company in that club as he’s joined by NFL two-time defending scrimmage touchdowns leader and Chargers running back Austin Ekeler, Packers Pro Bowl running back Aaron Jones, Saints Pro Bowl running back Alvin Kamara, and Super Bowl LV champion Leonard Fournette. Swift’s 5.5 yards per touch over the course of his three-year career is tied for the fifth-most in the league with Ekeler.
Expect Swift to eventually pull away from the pack, but the goal line work could be split between the three and of course 2022 Second-Team All-Pro quarterback Jalen Hurts. Penny’s role is likely that of a change-of-pace back while Gainwell likely wins the RB2 job given his leg up on mastery of the Eagles playbook.
The Pittsburgh Steelers patched up their largest roster hole of the last few years — their offensive line — in a major way. First, Pittsburgh signed former Philadelphia Eagles offensive guard Isaac Seumalo to a three-year, $24 million deal. That’s significant because Seumalo allowed only one sack and earned a 75.2 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, a higher rating than any of the Steelers’ starting offensive linemen in 2022. Then, they tossed the New England Patriots a fourth-round pick to move up three spots in the 2023 NFL Draft, jumping from 17th overall to 14th overall in order to select Georgia’s All-SEC offensive tackle Broderick Jones. The two-time national champion didn’t allow a sack in 449 pass-blocking snaps last season.
Those two additions will allow the Steelers to find out if running back Najee Harris, their first-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, can average at least 4 yards a carry. Harris has totaled over 1,000 rushing yards in each of his first two seasons (1,200 on 307 carries in 2021 and 1,034 on 272 carries in 2022), but both his carries and targets (467 receiving yards on 74 catches with 94 targets in 2021 and 229 receiving yards on 41 receptions with 53 targets) declined in Year 2.
Why? Undrafted rookie Jaylen Warren. The Oklahoma State alum totaled 379 rushing yards on 77 carries (4.9 yards per carry) and 214 receiving yards on 28 receptions with 33 targets. Warren has received more run in the Steelers training camp, according to CBS Sports’ Bryan DeArdo. However, he believes that’s because head coach Mike Tomlin and his staff are saving Harris for the real action in the regular season.
DeArdo projects Harris to have a 60-40 or 65-35 carry share over Warren in 2023, which feels likely to happen.
The Detroit Lions doubled down on their running back room this offseason. They signed 26-year-old David Montgomery, the former Chicago Bears starter, to a three-year, $18 million deal in free agency while also drafting Alabama running back Jahmyr Gibbs, the second-best running back prospect in the 2023 NFL Draft, with the 12th overall pick. The selection of Gibbs was a big deal for the Lions because that makes him Detroit’s highest-selected running back since Pro Football Hall of Famer Barry Sanders went third overall in the 1989 NFL Draft.
He’s versatile and explosive at 5-foot-9 while weighing 200 pounds. Gibbs ran a 4.36 40-yard dash and registered a 33.5-inch vertical jump. He also led all SEC running backs in scrimmage yards per touch (7.0) in 2022. Gibbs will likely be the Lions’ primary pass-catching and third-down back as general manager Brad Holmes compared him to Christian McCaffrey and Pro Football Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk in July. Montgomery will likely be the early-down and goal line running back given his 5-foot-11, 224-pound frame. The Lions referred to Gibbs and Montgomery as “1A and 1B” in the team’s backfield after practice on Sunday as both have received first-team reps.
With David Montgomery’s exit, the starting running back gig in the Windy City is up for grabs. Khalil Herbert, the 24-year-old, third-year back, led all running backs in yards per carry in 2022, averaging 5.7 yards per rush attempt. Chicago signed 27-year-old rusher D’Onta Foreman to a one-year, $2 million deal after he ran for a career-high 914 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 203 carries with the Carolina Panthers.
Fourth-round rookie rusher Roschon Johnson may also factor into the equation as the third-down back given the skill set the 6-foot, 225-pound back utilized to earn play time behind Bijan Robinson at Texas: pass-catching and pass-blocking. He totaled 420 career receiving yards on 56 career catches, averaging 7.5 yards per catch, in college. Herbert is likely to earn a slight edge in this trio, but it would be fair to expect all three to see some time in the backfield alongside quarterback Justin Fields, whose 1,143 rushing yards in 2022 were the second-most by a quarterback in a single season.
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Author: Garrett Podell
August 1, 2023 | 11:10 am
