Many fantasy managers are experiencing rookie panic, particularly with running backs. Ashton Jeanty, Omarion Hampton, TreVeyon Henderson, RJ Harvey and Kaleb Johnson were all drafted as top-30 fantasy RBs this season, yet are failing to produce early. Team environment, usage and pass protection issues have all been contributing factors to varying degrees, and it’s still far too early to call these backs fantasy busts (aside from Johnson, maybe).

Patience is often required with rookies, but this group is off to a painfully slow start. Still, rookie running backs typically perform far better during the second half and have been good bets historically. Here are the biggest questions entering Week 3.

Can Ashton Jeanty still live up to his ADP?

day 1+2 rookie RBs through two weeks

ashton jeanty – RB28
omarion hampton – RB44
treveyon henderson – RB36
quinshon judkins – RB47
rj harvey – RB43
kaleb johnson – RB90 (-0.1 points)

good stuff

— nick ercolano (@nickercolano) September 16, 2025

Jeanty was drafted in the first round and as fantasy’s RB6, but he’s been the RB27 over the first two weeks — tied with Tyler Allgeier. Patience is typically required with rookies, but Jeanty’s off to an inauspicious start to his NFL career. Concerns over his college competition have been magnified with Jeanty looking like “just a guy” and struggling mightily in pass protection. Rush yards over expected can generally be ignored since it’s team dependent and not sticky, but Jeanty ranks 49th out of 50 qualified backs. The rookie lost passing down work to Zamir White and two-minute snaps to Dylan Laube in Week 2.

The Raiders’ poor run blocking also deserves plenty of the blame — Jeanty ranks last among all RBs in yards before contact per attempt. Las Vegas RBs have experienced first contact behind the line of scrimmage on an NFL-high 40% of their runs. Horrible run blocking and a rookie “still getting used to the speed” of the NFL isn’t the best combination. Jeanty falls into the RB12-15 range (along with Breece Hall, Chase Brown and Kyren Williams), with Jonathan Taylor, Josh Jacobs, Bucky Irving, De’Von Achane and James Cook all easily surpassing him. There’s full-blown bust potential here as well.

How buried is TreVeyon Henderson?

Pass protection was considered a strength of Henderson’s in college, but he’s losing work to Antonio Gibson after committing three holding penalties (one came on special teams) last week. The big reception Rhamondre Stevenson pulled down was originally designed for Henderson. The rookie was never benched, but his current role is a big concern, especially with Stevenson looking so good last week.

Henderson is the RB9 in fantasy points per touch despite his disastrous start, and it’s good news the Patriots started using far more motion in Week 2. Henderson’s higher ADP than James Cook in NFFC leagues (PPR) looks egregious in hindsight, but the rookie remains plenty capable of still paying off down the road.

Henderson’s massive upside remains, but he’s a thin fantasy start right now while losing work to two other backs. Backing up the rookie with the veteran Stevenson (the same with RJ Harvey and J.K. Dobbins) was the move this year.

Omarion Hampton concerns?

Hampton lost more work to a healthier Najee Harris in Week 2, and fantasy managers are panicking. Hampton retained passing down and short-yardage work, but there’s now added concern given a late lost fumble (it was later credited to Justin Herbert). Hampton nearly had a touchdown while being tackled at the one-yard line in Week 2, but he’s generally failed to impress over his first two games.

He’s also dealing with environment issues. Los Angeles has by far the league’s highest pass rate over expectation but is failing to produce many plays like last season. Moreover, Hampton’s first-read target share (4.4%) ranks No. 31 among running backs. Remember, a Greg Roman backfield has never ranked top 10 in PPR scoring.

Hampton has the sixth-most carries in the red zone among running backs (and the fifth most inside the 10), more than Bijan Robinson, Saquon Barkley and Kyren Williams. The rookie will be better moving forward, and the Chargers’ schedule eases up over the coming weeks. Hampton’s going to struggle to live up to his early 30s ADP, but he should still be treated as a top 20 RB rest of season.

Has Cam Skattebo already taken over New York’s backfield?

Not all rookie RBs are trending down, as Skattebo saw more snaps and opportunities than Tyrone Tracy last week, especially in the second half. The rookie ran just one fewer route than Tracy and saw all five RB rush attempts in the red zone. Skattebo has thrived in pass protection. Meanwhile, Tracy’s move to kickoff returns suggests a reduced offensive role, so last week’s backfield usage may continue.

It should be noted the rookie’s 24-yard run (and ensuing goal-line TD) were aided by an RPO play with Jaxson Dart, as Skattebo has managed just 18 yards on his other 12 carries to start his NFL career. Moreover, Russell Wilson leads all quarterbacks in pass attempts inside the five-yard line (six), so the Giants have been pass-happy in the scoring area.

Skattebo may struggle to be more than an RB3 in fantasy behind New York’s offensive line, but he’s taken over his team’s backfield much sooner than other higher drafted rookie RBs despite missing significant preseason time with a hamstring injury.

Is Bhayshul Tuten a potential fantasy league-winner?

Spoiler alert: Yes. Tuten fumbled early in camp this summer, but he’s impressed Jacksonville’s coaching staff enough to trade Tank Bigsby. Travis Etienne remains Jacksonville’s clear RB1, but his YPC has declined dramatically after September over the past two years. Meanwhile, Tuten stood out while seeing more opportunities last week (including a 33% target per route run rate). Tuten is the RB2 in fantasy points per touch and will continue to benefit from playing in Liam Coen’s system.

The Jaguars will feed the rookie screens and rank sixth in yards before contact per RB run. Only the Washington Commanders have seen a lower percentage of RB runs where first contact came behind the line of scrimmage. Coen helped produce the third-most RB fantasy points in Tampa Bay last season, and Tuten’s path for more touches has opened.

Tuten could’ve been drafted significantly higher given his college production, age and athleticism. He’s a home-run pick in dynasty leagues and eventually a “league winner” in 2025.

How big of a threat is Blake Corum to Kyren Williams?

Blake Corum saw most of his production (including a goal-line touchdown) during a clock-killing fourth quarter drive last week, but his snap share also shot up to 30%. Williams remains the heavy favorite for work, but Sean McVay said he expects a 65/35 ratio moving forward. Williams derives a huge amount of his fantasy value from scoring short touchdowns, so goal-line opportunities will prove huge.

Williams finished with the same number of touches (19) as he had in Week 1 despite Corum seeing more snaps. He was also tackled at the one-yard line during the game’s final drive before Matthew Stafford kneeled twice. Williams led the NFL in snaps (888) last season, so a bigger split makes sense. But McVay loves Williams, so he should still be considered ~RB12.

Is Brian Thomas a buy low?

Thomas has been fantasy’s WR51 after being drafted as the WR9. The Jaguars’ passing offense has looked shaky to start the season, especially when Thomas and Travis Hunter have been targeted. A slow start can be explained by learning a new system (evidenced by five illegal shift penalties last week), and it’s encouraging to see Jacksonville among the league leaders in motion rates. The Jaguars also own the second-best WR fantasy usage through two weeks.

Thomas has the ninth-most expected fantasy points in the league, including running backs. Opportunity or role hasn’t been a problem, but performance has. Thomas suffered a bad drop and shied from contact last week, but it was later revealed he was dealing with a wrist injury. Thomas practiced in full Wednesday, and Hunter doesn’t look like a major threat.

Thomas got 2.45 yards per route run last season while the rest of Jacksonville’s WRs managed just 1.06! He’s better than this. We need Trevor Lawrence to get more comfortable, but BTJ is worth targeting in trades.

Can Jake Browning effectively replace Joe Burrow?

Fantasy managers of Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Chase Brown are undoubtedly worried about Burrow likely being out for the season with a turf toe injury. Browning averaged 266.9 passing yards over seven starts when filling in for Burrow as a rookie in 2023. He was the QB6 in fantasy points per dropback over that span and has a healthy 7.9 YPA mark over 275 career pass attempts. Browning was worth 100% of free agent budgets in most SuperFlex leagues.

Chase’s production took a dramatic hit over those seven games in 2023, although he still had a significantly higher target per route run rate than Higgins (20.8% vs. 15.3%). Tyler Boyd is now gone, and Chase was playing through a shoulder injury late that season. Moreover, Browning targeted Chase on 34.4% of his routes in Week 2, when he finished as the WR2 in expected fantasy points despite Burrow leaving midway through the second quarter. Chase falls behind CeeDee Lamb, Puka Nacua and Malik Nabers, but he’s still my WR4 rest of season.

Higgins is a bigger concern since Browning has targeted him on just ~15.5% of his routes over the near eight-game sample. While Chase went for 11/10/128/0 after Browning entered last week, Higgins recorded just one catch (it went for a score) on five targets. Higgins drops to WR3 territory.

Joe Mixon saw a fantasy bump with Browning back in 2023, but that’s unlikely for Brown, who won’t benefit from as many screens. Brown will see fewer positive game-scripts and will suffer from the Bengals producing fewer plays and points. Moreover, Cincinnati’s upcoming schedule looks brutal (@Min, @Den, Det, @GB, Pit). Brown downgrades (~RB12) only so much given the current running back landscape.

How high should Rome Odunze be ranked?

Odunze is the WR3 in expected fantasy points through two weeks, as he’s clearly surpassed DJ Moore in Chicago. Caleb Williams still has numerous issues to resolve, but Odunze owns the No. 2 WR Utilization Score so far this season. He’s being used as a true alpha in a Ben Johnson system that can’t run the ball.

Odunze is one of fantasy’s biggest early-season risers and belongs right after Tier 1 receivers, which now includes Jaxon Smith-Njigba. The updated Tier 2 is Ladd McConkey, Davante Adams, Zay Flowers, Mike Evans, A.J. Brown and Odunze, who arguably belongs on top. Odunze is a clear top 15 fantasy WR moving forward.

Is Troy Franklin for real?

Troy Franklin is a star in the making 💫 #BroncosCountry pic.twitter.com/pUzs2NAnZn

— SleeperBroncos (@SleeperBroncos) September 15, 2025

Marvin Mims’ expected breakout has suddenly turned into Franklin’s. Fantasy managers have the right to remain skeptical given Sean Payton’s history of erratic WR usage, but Franklin was a huge waiver wire get this week in many leagues if his new role is here to stay. Franklin saw a 38% first-read target share while also leading Denver in route participation (88%) last week. He benefitted from multiple RPOs and three designed screens. Meanwhile, Courtland Sutton is among the bottom of the league in yards per target to open 2025. Franklin had monster production during his final year in college and declared early.

Sutton was given a $92 million contract during the offseason, so he should remain Denver’s clear WR1. But getting designs and slot work in a Payton system can pay off if Franklin has truly solidified the WR2 role. His floor is low, but Franklin has real upside.

(Photo of Ashton Jeanty: Brian Fluharty / Imagn Images)