Welcome to Week 2 of the 2025 Footballguys Roundtable. Our intrepid panel of fantasy pundits discusses and debates four topics every week. We split the conversation into separate features.
This week's roundtable features these four topics:
- Jacksonville Jaguars Backfield
- Undrafted and Late-Round Week 1 Performers
- Rookie RB ADP vs. Reality
- Thrilling and Horrifying Week 1 Performers
Let's roll.
Matt Waldman: Consider these eight rookie RBs (ADPs in parentheses)...
- Ashton Jeanty (12)
- TreVeyon Henderson (45)
- Jacory Croskey-Merritt (114)
- Dylan Sampson (164)
- Omarion Hampton (33)
- RJ Harvey (62)
- Quinshon Judkins (113)
- Bhayshul Tuten (143)
Answer the following:
- Who will fantasy GMs want the most in September?
- Who will fantasy GMs want most in December?
- Whose ADP will be the most overvalued?
Let's begin with September.
Jeff Blaylock: Jeanty is the clear choice if the question were about August, but I'm not sure if he's the slam-dunk answer now. Croskey-Merritt feels like the best flavor of the month to highlight here. Now that presumptive RB1 Brian Robinson Jr has been dumped and Chris Rodriguez Jr. left off the Week 1 active roster, expectations are unreasonably high for the seventh-round draft pick. His deficiencies as a blocker will restrain his fantasy production.
Mike Kashuba: Sleepers still exist! Dylan Sampson and Jacory Croskey-Merritt flew under the radar for most of fantasy draft season, except for some late steam for Croskey-Merritt.
Now, both seem to be integral parts of their offenses, and managers who adopted a zero-RB draft strategy have some solid options. Sampson showed enough that he can be the passing-down back when Quinshon Judkins returns to the team, and until that happens, he showed enough he should get more work on the ground.
The rushing stats may say otherwise with Sampson, but I trust what I saw. With Judkins still pending an investigation from the NFL, his timeline to return is murky, and Sampson will benefit.
Omarion Hampton's Week 1 performance was a Rorschach test for fans. If you liked Hampton before the Chiefs game, his volume and role were cause for excitement, and he's going to dominate. If you were worried about his vision and creativity as a runner, you see why Najee Harris might be a bigger part of this offense, and Hampton will be a fantasy bust.
Waldman: Mike, the Rorschach test is exactly what I thought when I was sharing posts on X about Hampton. Great call.
Kashuba: Yeah, right? The truth is likely somewhere in between, where Hampton will still get enough touches to have a relatively safe floor, but may concede some volume to Harris down the road.
In the short term, Hampton will have multiple weeks to assert his dominance in the backfield. The Chiefs held Saquon Barkley to a pretty forgettable Super Bowl performance, and likely gameplanned to try and slow down the infamous Greg Roman / Jim Harbaugh school of establishing the run. Not every team will have the same commitment to stopping the run, and Hampton has smoother waters on the horizon.
Will Grant: I'm a bit biased here because I have Ashton Jeanty on two of my three fantasy teams this season, but Jeanty feels like the rookie running back you want to start the season. Your best indicator of value from a rookie runner is how often they handle the ball.
Jeanty finished with 19 carries and 2 receptions this week, with the next closest back having just 3 carries. His production efficiency was terrible, but that, too, should improve with reps.
His fantasy day was saved by recording the Raiders' only rushing score of the game, and you'd expect that to happen pretty often if he's handling 80 percent of the offensive rushing attempts. Give him a little time, and he should pan out into a decent fantasy back this year.
Dave Kluge: Ashton Jeanty had 88% of the backfield touches in his NFL debut. Sure, he wasn't very efficient, and he's got some tough matchups coming up this month, but that type of usage is hard to find in today's NFL. He's a plug-and-play starter that I want the most in September.
Joseph Haggan: I agree with Dave on Jeanty. The Raiders showed no desire to involve any other back, except for a quick breather for Jeanty.
Jeff Haseley: Dylan Sampson's time as the Browns' top option at running back is fading. Once Quinshon Judkins is up to speed, Sampson will be relegated to being mostly a pass-catching back. He's a short-term value.
David Zacharias: This depends on which part of September we're talking about. September 1st? Ashton Jeanty by a mile. He was a top-5 redraft running back and the 1.01 rookie pick.
After Week 1? Fantasy GMs are delighted at the value Jacory Croskey-Merritt is returning (RB17 in Week 1) on their investment.
Mid-September? The answer is Dylan Sampson, based on his prodigious usage in Week 1: 20 touches (including 8 catches for 64 yards) - good for overall RB9, despite the lack of a rushing touchdown.
But when Quinshon Judkins rejoins the Browns and demonstrates he is in game shape around the third week of September, Sampson's share of the running back touches will substantially decline.