- Kimani Vidal makes the most of his opportunities: In two of his three starts with the Los Angeles Chargers this season, Vidal scored 22.8 and 19.7 fantasy points while rushing for more than 125 yards and a touchdown in both games. He saw a career-high 23 carries last weekend.
- JK Dobbins fantasy managers have nothing to worry about RJ Harvey: In a great Week 8 game against the Dallas Cowboys, RJ Harvey, not Dobbins, had a big fantasy performance as he stole all three backfield touchdowns. However, Harvey’s playing time and touches have remained minimal, and Dobbins still has a lot of control over the team’s red zone work.
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Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
Below are the top running back picks from Week 8 that could have a significant impact on fantasy points in Week 9 and beyond.
Kimani Vidal gets workhorse volume Los Angeles Chargersbackfield
Kimani Vidal impressed after taking over the lead role in the Los Angeles Chargers’ backfield in Week 6 with both Omarion Hampton (on short-term injured reserve) and Najee Harris (out for the season) injured. In two of his three starts this season, Vidal has scored 22.8 and 19.7 fantasy points while rushing for more than 125 yards and a touchdown in both games. His only disappointing game as a starter came in Week 7 in a blowout loss to the Indianapolis Colts, where he saw just nine carries in the game.
Last week, Vidal set career-highs in both playing time (74% of snaps) and carries (23). He hasn’t disappointed as the Chargers regained their lead, averaging more than 5.2 yards per carry as a starter this season. His usage should remain high as long as Omarion Hampton is on the sidelines and he gets a very juicy matchup this weekend against the Tennessee Titans, who have allowed the most touchdowns and third-most fantasy points per game to the running back position this season.
Upcoming matchups: at Titansvs Steelersbee Jaguars
Tyrone Tracy Jr. gets the starting gig back after the devastating Cam Tax House injury
With Cam Skattebo unfortunately going down this season due to a dislocated ankle, Tyrone Tracy Jr. now leading the charge for the New York Giants moving on after losing his starting job to Skattebo earlier this year. Last season as a rookie, Tracy averaged 13.1 fantasy points per game in 12 starts. In the eight games he had at least fifteen ball contacts and his average rose to fifteen points per game. Not only will Tracy’s volume on the ground increase, but he should also be on the field for a lot of passing downs and see a good number of targets moving forward. Skattebo ranks second on the Giants in receptions this season, behind only Wan’Dale Robinson. Tracy, a former collegiate wide receiver, has the receiving chops to take over that role. Tracy has some favorable matchups against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 9, who have allowed the third-most receptions to running backs in 2025, and then against the Chicago Bears in Week 10, who have allowed the 10th-most points per game to RBs this year.
Upcoming matches: vs. 49ersbee Bearsvs Packers
RJ Harvey stole three touchdowns from J. K. Dobbinsbut his snaps remain limited
Denver Bronco’s second-round rookie running back RJ Harvey had a career fantasy day in Week 8 with 24.1 points, behind three touchdowns, two rushing and one receiving, against the terrible Dallas Cowboys defense. However, he still played on just 26% of the Broncos’ offensive snaps and saw just eight touches in Week 8. Harvey has seen the field for less than 30% of the team’s snaps in each of the last four games and has had double-digit touches in just one game all year (in a blowout win against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 4). His backfield teammate, JK Dobbins, on the other hand, has consistently played the majority of the team’s snaps each week and has had more than 14 touches in all but one game this season.
It’s frustrating for Dobbins’ fantasy managers that he hasn’t found the end zone in the last three games after scoring four touchdowns in the first five games of the season, but there’s no need to worry about him losing his goal-line job to Harvey. Dobbins beat Harvey big time in the red zone in Week 8 and had two goal-line handoffs to Harvey’s. Harvey’s only goal-line goal came on an unconventional wild play, with the snap going straight to him on third-and-1. Harvey’s other rushing touchdown came from 40 yards out.
Dobbins is still the fantasy starting spot in the Broncos’ backfield, and Harvey should not be trusted in lineups until his usage increases.
Upcoming matchups: at Texansvs Robbersvs Leaders
Tyjae Spears leads the Tennessee titans backfield in snaps in week 8
In the Tennessee Titans’ final game, Tyjae Spears saw a season-high 12 touches and scored 17.2 fantasy points while leading the backfield with 52% playing time. Tony Pollard was still very much involved in the offense in Week 8. He was on the field for 46.5% of Tennessee’s offensive plays and also received 12 touches. However, it was the first time this season that Pollard did not outpoint Spears in a match. Additionally, the team gave Spears the only goal-line goal in the game, which he successfully converted into a three-yard touchdown.
This is a trend to keep a close eye on as Spears was injured early in the season and is slowly getting more playing time and a bigger workload. Pollard was inefficient this year, averaging just 3.9 yards per carry, while Spears found success averaging 5.5 yards on the ground. Spears provides the Titans’ offense with a much-needed spark and burst that they struggle to find in their other weapons. While there are risks involved, Spears is a viable RB2 or flex play against the Chargers this weekend…but Pollard shouldn’t be starting fantasy lineups in the future.
Upcoming matches: vs. Chargersbye, vs. Texansvs Seahawks
Chase Brown And Samaje Perine come to life Joe Flacco bottom center
Last week, during a big offensive performance against the New York Jets, Chase Brown and Samaje Perine shared backfield snaps and touches. Brown played on 54% of the Bengals’ offensive snaps with 15 touches for 105 yards and two touchdowns (25.5 fantasy points), while Perine was on the field for 42% of the snaps with 10 touches, 100 yards and a rushing touchdown (17 fantasy points). Chase led the team with 12 carries, but Perine led with 94 rushing yards on nine carries. Perine played on 100% of the team’s third down snaps in Week 8, while Brown was most heavily utilized in the red zone and saw the only goal-line backfield in the game.
Brown has come alive lately as Joe Flacco swung the ball for the Bengals. He has 100 and 105 scrimmage yards in the two games, while averaging 7.9 yards on the ground during that span after averaging just 50.7 scrimmage yards per game and 2.7 yards per carry in Weeks 1-6. Brown gets a nice matchup in Week 9 against the Chicago Bears, who have allowed the 10th most points per game to running backs in 2025. Brown is a great fantasy starter moving forward as long as Flacco doesn’t miss time with a recently reported shoulder injury, and Perine is a viable flex player in full PPR leagues with his high volume at third.
Upcoming matches: vs. Bearsbye, up Steelersvs Patriots
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