• Jeanty stands alone on the high: Ashton Jeanty‘s expertise and manufacturing at Boise State permit him to garner practically each superlative regardless of a loaded RB class.
• A category with many types: Powerful runners, explosive athletes, and dynamic receivers can be found for all groups deep into Day 3 of draft weekend.
• 2025 NFL Draft season is right here: Try PFF’s best-in-class Mock Draft Simulator and study 2025’s high prospects whereas buying and selling and drafting in your favourite NFL workforce.
Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes
The 2025 NFL Draft class options an unimaginable operating again class with top-end expertise and depth that hasn’t been seen in fairly some time. It’s a far cry from the shortage of such depth we noticed in final yr’s class, as so many of school soccer’s greatest rushers returned to highschool for one more yr of seasoning.
Not solely are there gifted gamers, however there are a lot of several types of gamers who will deliver broad attraction, even to groups who might not seem to want assist on the place. There are loads of angles to take with regard to the evaluation of this class, beginning on the very high with a record-setting participant with particular expertise.
In a stacked class, Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty stands alone on the high
A comparability of so many traits can be utilized to judge this operating again class, however even with the quantity of expertise to select from this yr, Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty is clearly one of the best amongst the group. His mixture of velocity, power, imaginative and prescient, tackle-breaking means and receiving prowess makes him worthy of a top-10 choice.
Ashton Jeanty dashing ranks in PFF History (since 2014):
| Rushing Grade | 99.9 | 1st |
| Missed tackles compelled | 284 | 1st |
| Yards after contact | 3,557 | 2nd |
| YCO per Attempt | 4.8 | sixth |
The eye check and a sweep of the analytics each show Jeanty as an elite expertise on the extent of Bijan Robinson, Saquon Barkley and different elite operating backs who’ve been chosen within the first spherical over the previous decade.
There shouldn’t be a query concerning the degree of competitors he performed within the Mountain West, both. He dominated that degree at a hardly ever seen charge whereas racking up manufacturing in opposition to Power Four squads like Washington, UCF, UCLA, Oregon and Penn State all through his profession. Jeanty flashed his means as a receiver as properly, posting a 91.6 receiving grade in 2023.
Jeanty’s all-around expertise is particular and could possibly be much more efficient behind an NFL offensive line and inside knowledgeable passing sport that truly threatens a protection. The New England Patriots, Las Vegas Raiders and Chicago Bears ought to all put heavy consideration into deciding on him within the high 10.
A category filled with deal with breakers
The greatest operating backs within the NFL are those who can shake off tacklers in one-on-one conditions. Saquon Barkley, Derrick Henry, Josh Jacobs and Bijan Robinson have confirmed that this ability makes an enormous distinction for tallying manufacturing past what the offensive line supplies.
Many of school soccer’s greatest deal with breakers are amongst this yr’s operating again class.
MTF per try for 2025 Draft class since 2022
College operating backs who can ascend above the 0.3 missed tackles compelled per try – averaging three missed tackles per 10 makes an attempt – mark for a sustained period of time are those to search for. Several gamers on this draft sit above that threshold throughout the previous three seasons, together with Virginia Tech’s Bhayshul Tuten, who sits simply barely behind Jeanty’s class-leading 0.38 mark.
Several different wonderful gamers – DJ Giddens, Damien Martinez, Quinshon Judkins and Kaleb Johnson – sit slightly below this cutoff over this three-year interval, additional suggesting that that is an especially deep group of deal with breakers heading into the NFL.
Yards after contact machines
Some operating backs dance round tacklers, whereas others run immediately by them. Predictably, Jeanty sits atop the yards after contact leaderboards, together with a record-shattering whole of 1,970 in 2024. However, a number of gamers on this class seem totally prepared for the physicality of the NFL.
Yards after Contact per try for 2025 draft class since 2022:
Racking up over 4 yards per try after contact is extraordinarily productive for any workforce’s dashing offense. Jeanty stands alone on the high once more, nevertheless it’s not shocking to see North Carolina’s Omarion Hampton and Miami’s Damien Martinez close to the highest of this leaderboard as properly. Arizona State’s Cam Skattebo, possibly the hardest runner within the class, isn’t far behind.
If a workforce is looking for a robust participant, one who could also be robust to deal with within the chilly postseason climate, they’ll have loads of choices all through this draft class.
Home run hitters
When you look at the success of elite backs like Derrick Henry and Saquon Barkley, they flip productive runs into explosive runs usually. Postseason included, these had been the 2 leaders in 10-plus yard runs this previous season. Both had excellent years, together with Barkley successful a Super Bowl in Philadelphia.
Several operating backs on this yr’s class spent their careers, notably 2024, gashing defenses with their explosive dashing means and velocity.
FBS explosive run ranks (2024):
Many of school soccer’s most explosive runners will likely be accessible on this yr’s class. RJ Harvey will get it performed with excellent velocity and imaginative and prescient. Hampton and Skattebo make it occur with brute drive, although Hampton definitely has a pleasant high gear for his measurement.
The above chart doesn’t even embody decrease quantity speedsters like TreVeyon Henderson or Jaydon Blue, who each made environment friendly use of their touches in deep operating again items. There definitely isn’t a scarcity of residence run hitters on this operating again class.
Dynamic Receivers
Truly dynamic operating backs can even add an explosive component to the passing sport. There will likely be a plethora of dynamic cross catchers who’ve confirmed it on the school degree and will likely be accessible to groups all through this draft.
Receiving Grades amongst 2025 HBs since 2023:
The depth of this class exhibits once more as we see some names we hadn’t within the earlier charts. Brashard Smith, a former huge receiver, is somebody who ought to intrigue groups within the center rounds together with his means to run routes from wherever on the sphere. Syracuse’s LeQuint Allen led all FBS operating backs in receptions in 2024, simply as Tampa Bay Buccaneers standout Bucky Irving did at Oregon in 2023,.
Not solely is that this operating again class full of dynamic rushers, but in addition with terrific receivers who needs to be productive on passing downs. Teams who might not have operating again as a major want will most likely choose a participant or two from this class simply so as to add expertise and depth to their rosters. The operating again renaissance is formally right here.