We’ll have you covered as you prepare for your 2025 dynasty rookie drafts. In order to dominate your dynasty rookie draft, check out our expert consensus dynasty rookie draft rankings. And sync your dynasty league to practice with fast and free dynasty rookie mock drafts. We dive into dynasty rookie draft picks our analysts are higher or lower on compared to our expert consensus rankings. Here are a few dynasty rookie running backs our experts love to draft.

• 2025 NFL Draft Guide
• 2025 NFL Draft Scouting Reports
• 2025 NFL Mock Drafts
• Dynasty Mock Draft Simulator

Dynasty Rookie Draft Advice: Running Backs Experts Love

RJ Harvey (UCF)

Harvey is a tough runner. His leg drive allows him to pinball off defenders and pick up tough yards. He sheds arm tackles well, especially in the second level, and is a better short-yardage runner than you’d expect from a player his size. Harvey’s lateral agility and burst improved toward the end of the 2024 season. After watching some of his early-season games, I questioned his long speed, initial burst, and lateral agility. All of those improved as the 2024 season moved along. While he might not be a home run hitter in the NFL (he gets caught from behind plenty), he should have the ability to break off chunk runs. He has a good feel for when to press and flow with outside-zone runs. He can get tentative at the line with some inside zone and interior runs. His vision isn’t horrible by any stretch of the imagination, but when the picture is muddier, his feet can get choppy. At times, he needs to be more willing to bounce runs. Harvey’s grit shows in pass protection. He’s a willing and able blocker who is willing to stick his nose in there and get physical. His strong lower half serves him well here. As a receiving option, he is nothing more than a dump-off option at this juncture. He was tasked with only leaking out the backfield for check-downs in college. He does have moments as a receiver where he has concentration drops when he gets ahead of himself and worries too much about what he is about to do with the ball in his hands before securing the pass.

-Derek Brown

Kaleb Johnson (Iowa)

Johnson is a fluid mover. He glides across the field with good bend around the edge. Some have questioned Johnson’s speed, but I have no worries about his raw speed. Johnson hits the gas as soon as he sees a sliver of daylight and can hit dingers. Johnson has a great feel for pressing and flowing through a run in sync with his offensive line. He can stop on a dime in the second level, pivoting and then hitting the gas again as he blows past a defender. He can make people miss in a phone booth. Johnson can stiff-arm a defender into the ground, but he isn’t a dominating physical runner. He excels with vision, footwork, bend, and speed. He isn’t a pile-pushing physical presence as a rusher, but he does keep his legs moving through contact. Johnson is still a work in progress in pass pro, but he has all the tools to become a serviceable option in this realm. His hands are strong like magnets. Once he gets his mitts on a rusher, he isn’t letting go of them. He needs to improve his pass-blocking technique by utilizing his lower half and setting up lower, but the raw intangibles are there. Johnson was utilized as a receiving option in a limited capacity. He was a trustworthy option, though, with only two drops in his collegiate career. He was mostly used as a check-down option running flat or swing routes from the backfield. He did get the occasional angle route or outside alignment with a slant route. His loose hips and short-area agility give hope that he offers more in the NFL as a receiver than he showed in college.

-Derek Brown

DJ Giddens (Kansas State)

D.J. Giddens isn’t lightning-fast, but he’s such a smart runner. Giddens has good vision and patience. He’s a smooth mover who changes direction without gearing down. Giddens sets up linebackers with feints and dekes, then cuts sharply in the opposite direction once those LBs commit. Giddens also has good contact balance, which – let’s face it – you need to have if you’re an NFL running back with ordinary speed.

-Pat Fitzmaurice