A good running back and rushing attack can amplify the big play ability of an NFL offense.
The NFL has shifted to a more passing league but running backs are arguably more crucial now than ever.
Not only are running backs essential inside the red zone but they’ve also become a huge part of the passing game, both as pass protectors and receivers.
Below, we will rank the top 20 NFL running backs and predict which RB’s will have the best 2022 season.
Projecting the Top-20 NFL Running Backs Before the 2022 Regular Season
While the NFL has shifted to a more passing league, a running back is still critical to a team.
Whether it is getting a first down on third and short, a running back being used in the passing game, a good pass blocking back, or punching the ball into the end zone, a running back is crucial to a team.
Several of the NFL’s top running backs find themselves in good situations once again in 2022.
Indianapolis Colts’ running back Jonathan Taylor was last year’s best running back and garnered MVP consideration as a result.
Meanwhile, Tennessee Titans’ star Derrick Henry still finished among the top 10 in rushing yards, despite playing just eight games last season.
Always dangerous as a runner, Nick Chubb averaged 5.52 yards per rush attempt as part of the Cleveland Browns’ backfield last season.
Despite playing behind a terrible offensive line and a poor QB under center, Najee Harris still had 1,200 rushing yards and will look to take a leap forward in his second year as a pro.
Two of the most explosive running backs in the NFL, Alvin Kamara and Austin Ekeler are among the best dual-threat RBs in the league. Both Kamara and Ekeler put as much fear in top NFL defenses for the ability to catch passes out of the backfield as they do running the football.
Read on to learn where the best NFL running backs will stack up in 2022.
Ranking the Top 20 NFL Running Backs in 2022 (11-20)
With the 2022 season just over a month away, we’ll go over one of the most important positions on offense.
Below, we’ll take a look at the top 20 NFL Running Backs and predict which RBs will have the best 2022 season.
20. Elijah Mitchell
19. J.K. Dobbins
18. Ezekiel Elliott
17. Cam Akers
16. Saquon Barkley
15. David Montgomery
14. Antonio Gibson
13. James Conner
12. Javonte Williams
11. D’Andre Swift
D’Andre Swift’s injury history is the reason he is not listed among the top 10.
Swift is a very productive runner and will be working behind a much improved offensive line in 2022. If he can stay on the field, Swift will have a top-10 season but that’s asking a lot from an injury-prone back in the NFL’s expanded 17-game schedule.
Meanwhile, Cowboys’ running back Ezekiel Elliott has been on the decline with backup Tony Pollard looking better last year.
Javonte Williams should take control of the backfield in Denver and see a lot more playing time than veteran Melvin Gordon. With Russell Wilson under center, Williams could have a huge season, especially in the passing game.
Predicting the Top-10 Running Backs in the NFL in 2022
Now, we get to the best of the best in our running back rankings.
Javonte Williams and D’Andre Swift just missed out on cracking the top-10 but not due to their overall ability. Williams split time 50-50 last year with Melvin Gordon and Swift can not stay healthy.
If Williams gets the majority of the playing time and if Swift can stay on the field, they will both have huge seasons in the backfield this year.
Find out who beat them out for a spot in our top-10 list below.
10. Aaron Jones — RB, Green Bay Packers
Aaron Jones does split time with AJ Dillon. Dillon had four more rushing yards than Jones last season.
However, Dillon does not play on third down and Jones had 52 catches for 391 receiving yards and six receiving TDs.
With Davante Adams traded to the Raiders, Jones will be even busier with the Green Bay Packers this upcoming season.
Adams was one of the top wide receivers in the NFL last season and will leave a big hole to fill in the Packers’ offense.
More involvement in the passing game and even more rushing attempts will be in store for Jones in 2022.
Jones averaged 4.7 yards per rush attempt last season behind a good offensive line.
Another good season is on tap for Jones, as he will see his volume increase with the departure of Adams.
9. Alvin Kamara — RB, New Orleans Saints
Alvin Kamara has been one of the best running backs since his rookie season with the New Orleans Saints in 2017.
In 13 games played last year, Kamara had 898 rushing yards, four rushing TDs, 47 receptions, 439 receiving yards, and five receiving TDs.
A dip in performance is expected in 2022 with Jameis Winston under center and former offensive wiz Sean Payton no longer calling the offensive plays.
New Orleans’ offense will not be as good as usual but Kamara will still produce numbers, if not on volume alone.
While Kamara will be a solid back, he will not produce at a top-five level in 2022, which is what we are accustomed to seeing from the Saints’ back.
8. Joe Mixon — RB, Cincinnati Bengals
Joe Mixon had himself a very impressive 2021 season.
He had 1,205 rushing yards, 13 rushing TDs, 42 receptions, 314 receiving yards, and three receiving TDs.
Mixon ranked third in rushing yards and rushing TDs last season.
This was all behind one of the worst offensive lines in the league.
The Bengals spent their offseason bolstering their offensive line, which will help Mixon tremendously.
It also helps to have Joe Burrow under center and Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins on the outside.
Burrow’s emergence as one of the best NFL quarterbacks has only made Mixon more dangerous in the ground game.
Teams cannot load up the box against the Bengals, which creates a lot of running room for Mixon.
Joe Mixon will work his way to a top-10 performance.
7. Dalvin Cook — RB, Minnesota Vikings
When Dalvin Cook is healthy, he is one of the very best running backs in the league.
However, the Vikings running back has not played a full season in his career. The most games Cook has played in a season in his career is 14 games.
In 13 games last year, Cook had 1,159 rushing yards, six rushing TDs, 34 receptions, and 224 receiving yards.
Six rushing TDs is an outlier for Cook. In 2019, Cook had 13 rushing TDs and in 2020, he had 16 rushing TDs.
Cook is in a very good offense, behind a very good zone-blocking offensive line.
If Cook can stay healthy for an entire season, he would easily have a top 3-5 performance among running backs.
The Vikings hope Cook can stay healthy.
Cook will have a huge 2022 season, with him scoring double-digit rushing TDs.
6. Austin Ekeler — RB, Los Angeles Chargers
L.A. Chargers‘ Austin Ekeler is one of the best dual-threat running backs in the league.
He recorded 911 rushing yards, 12 rushing TDs, 70 catches, 647 receiving yards, and eight receiving TDs.
That is over 1,500 total yards and 20 total TDs for Ekeler last year.
Just three running backs have recorded at least 75 conversions, first downs, and TDs as a rusher or receiver over the last three seasons. Ekeler is one of them.
Ekeler is one of the busiest running backs in the league and he will look to build off his impressive 2021 season.
In a dynamic offense, led by star QB Justin Herbert, Ekeler is primed to have another huge year.
Who Will Be The Top-Five NFL Running Backs in the 2022 Season?
Austin Ekeler, Dalvin Cook, and Alvin Kamara are elite backs but just missed out on cracking the top five list.
Najee Harris kicks off the top five list. The running back listed as number one was at a ridiculous pace last season till he suffered a season-ending injury.
Check out our list of the top-five Running Backs in the NFL ahead of the 2022 season below.
5. Najee Harris — RB, Pittsburgh Steelers
In his rookie season last year, Pittsburgh Steelers‘ running back Najee Harris finished with 1,200 rushing yards and seven rushing TDs. He also added 74 receptions, 467 receiving yards, and three receiving TDs through the air.
This was all done behind a bottom-five-level offensive line and QB play.
While Mitch Trubisky and/or Kenny Pickett are not regarded as great QBs, they are an upgrade over washed-up Ben Roethlisberger.
The Steelers also have Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, and George Pickens at wide receiver, which should help defenses from keying in on Harris.
Harris forced more combined missed tackles as a receiver and rusher (92) than any other player in the NFL last year.
He lead the NFL with 381 touches last season.
Harris is a very high-volume running back and will improve in his second season.
The offensive line and QB will be improved this season and Harris will have a top-five level performance in 2022.
4. Nick Chubb — RB, Cleveland Browns
Nick Chubb does not get the same workload as a lot of other running backs on the top 10 list but when Chubb is on the field, he is very productive.
He was second in the league in rushing yards last year.
Chubb has averaged 5.0 yards per rush attempt or better in each of his first four seasons in the NFL.
He is highly regarded as the best pure runner in the league since he was drafted in 2018.
The Quarterback situation makes Chubb’s season look even better.
Jacoby Brissett could be starting under center for the Cleveland Browns for a minimum of six games with Deshaun Watson’s suspension looming.
Chubb’s volume during Watson’s suspension will be much higher than we are used to seeing.
Cleveland’s success this year will depend on Chubb and behind an excellent offensive line, Chubb will be very productive.
This could be Chubb’s best year of his career and he will have a monster 2022 season.
3. Christian McCaffrey — RB, Carolina Panthers
When on the field, Christian McCaffrey is the most productive running back in the NFL.
Unfortunately, staying on the field has proven difficult for the Carolina Panthers‘ star.
McCaffrey played just seven games last year and three games in 2020.
He has not been able to stay on the field the last two seasons.
The last time McCaffrey played a full season was in 2019. He had 1,387 rushing yards, 15 rushing TDs, 116 receptions, 1,005 receiving yards, and four receiving TDs.
In just seven games last year, McCaffrey had 442 rushing yards and 343 receiving yards.
The only reason he is not listed as number one is he cannot be trusted to stay healthy.
If McCaffrey can play a full season, or at least 13-15 games, he will have the best running back season out of any back in 2022.
2. Jonathan Taylor — RB, Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts Jonathan Taylor was the best running back in 2021.
He led the league in rushing yards and rushing TDs with 1,811 rushing yards and 18 rushing TDs.
Taylor averaged 5.5 yards per rushing attempt last year.
He added 40 receptions for 360 receiving yards and two receiving TDs.
Taylor earned some MVP consideration last year.
The Colts have a very good offensive line, so Taylor will pick up from last season.
His numbers may dip a bit but he will still have a ton of rushing yards and TDs this season.
Taylor will have a huge 2022 year, but the only reason Taylor led the league in rushing yards and rushing TDs was that the man listed number one did not play after Halloween last year.
The Best NFL Running Back in 2022 Will Be…
1. Derrick Henry — RB, Tennessee Titans
King Henry will be back this year to reclaim his throne as the best running back in the NFL.
He was on a ridiculous pace last year before getting injured on Halloween and played just eight games last season.
Henry had 219 rushing attempts for 937 rushing yards and 10 rushing TDs. One would assume based on these numbers, that if Henry played a full year, he would have ended up with more rushing yards and rushing TDs than Taylor last year.
Despite playing just eight games, Henry still finished ninth in rushing yards and tied for fifth in rushing TDs.
The Titans traded star wideout A.J. Brown, so they will rely even more on Henry.
Henry had over 2,000 rushing yards in 2020, along with 17 rushing TDs. In 2019, Henry had 1,540 rushing yards and 16 rushing TDs.
He is a monster and is very difficult to bring him down.
BetOnline has Derrick Henry as a +450 odds to lead the league in rushing yards, trailing just Jonathan Taylor, at +400 odds.
If Henry can play the full season, he will finish with the most rushing yards in 2022.
Derrick Henry will have the best 2022 season out of any running back in the NFL.
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