RBs to draft in 2023 best ball leagues

The 2023 NFL season is right around the corner and that means fantasy football draft season is upon us. If you’re here, you’re probably seeking out draft advice for your best ball league. Well, you’ve come to the right place!

As a quick refresher, best ball is really simple. You draft a roster of players and the highest-scoring players are your starting lineup for the week. That means there’s no strategizing about who to start and who to bench. Your best-performing players get counted toward your point total. It’s that simple!

Below, we’ll go over some of the top names at running back you should be considering during your best ball drafts.

Derrick Henry, Tennessee Titans

After his 2021 campaign was derailed by a foot injury, King Henry returned to form last year and just missed out on claiming a third rushing title for his career. Henry broke off 1,538 rushing yards, 398 receiving yards, and 13 touchdowns in 2022, good for 16.9 fantasy points per game.

There were brief trade rumors involving him earlier in the offseason, but it looks like he’ll be the workhorse for the Titans' offense once again. As long as the 29-year-old doesn’t show signs of regression, he should be a monster in best ball once again.

Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons

The fantasy hype surrounding rookie running back Bijan Robinson is already spiking and he could very well take the league by storm this year. B-Rob won the Doak Walker Award with a 1,500+ yard season at Texas last year and his impressive combine numbers boosted him into being a top 10 pick.

Second-year quarterback Desmond Ridder will most likely be the Day 1 starter in Atlanta and while the organization expects him to take a jump this season, they will most likely lean on their run game to carry them through. Head coach Arthur Smith will most likely use Robinson as he did with Derrick Henry as the Titans’ OC and that means plenty of touches for the dynamic rookie. Definitely consider him with one of your top picks in best ball.

Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers

CMAC was traded from Carolina to San Francisco in the middle of last season and paid immediate dividends as the Niners pushed their way back to the NFC Championship Game. He showed off his versatility with 1,139 rushing yards, 741 receiving yards, and 13 total touchdowns. That earned him the second-most cumulative fantasy points for running backs with 271.4 on the year.

As long as McCaffrey stays healthy, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan will cook up several creative methods to get the ball into his hands. That should make him a best ball juggernaut once again.

Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts

Ankle injuries limited Taylor last year, but he still proved productive during his outings. Through 11 games, he provided 861 rushing yards and four touchdowns and that was good enough for him to still finish the season as the 36th-ranked fantasy running back.

With the Colts potentially throwing first-round pick Anthony Richardson into the fire as the starting quarterback, they’ll need Taylor to carry the load and ease the pressure off the rookie. If he stays healthy, he return to form as one of the premier workhorse running backs in fantasy.

Josh Jacobs, Las Vegas Raiders

Jacobs won the NFL rushing crown last season and that was a boon for best ball managers all season long. He broke off 1,653 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground and caught 53 receptions for 400 receiving yards, earning fantasy managers 16.2 fantasy points per game. That earned him the status as the top fantasy running back in the league with 275.5 cumulative points.

The giant elephant in the room is that Jacobs and the Raiders failed to come to an agreement for a long-term contract and as of this writing, there’s a possibility of him skipping training camp. If he signs his franchise tag tender, he poses to be a centerpiece of the Raiders’ offense once again. In that scenario, you’ll want to target him with one of the top picks in your draft.