2026 draft season · RB
Jeanty versus Hampton is the young-back question of the 2026 season, and it turns on two things: which offense clears the most light boxes, and which back has earned genuine third-down duty. Jeanty entered the league with the most celebrated contact balance and forcing-missed-tackle record of his class and plays behind one of the better lines; Hampton landed in a run-first offense that has fed its lead back heavily. Our value-over-replacement board currently favors Jeanty, largely on receiving-role trust — the live order is on the running back rankings page, and the underlying figures are part of the subscription at $5/month or $40/year.
Las Vegas built its offense around Jeanty from the moment he arrived, and his snap share has grown with the passing-down role rather than despite it. A back whose coaches trust him in protection keeps the field on third downs, and that is where a young back's week is rescued when the boxes are heavy.
Hampton has the more classic size-and-speed profile and a coaching staff that wants to run, but he has split some passing work and short-yardage snaps, which caps the weekly range until those jobs consolidate.
Both situations are among the better running-back landings of their class, which is unusual — usually at least one headline rookie lands somewhere his talent cannot reach. The differentiator is scoring environment: drives that stall outside field-goal range produce no fantasy points regardless of efficiency.
Jeanty's game is contact balance and slipperiness in tight spaces; Hampton's is straight-line burst and size. Both age reasonably. The practical difference for a drafter is that Jeanty's profile has already translated to targets, while Hampton's target share is still a projection of coaching intent rather than a settled fact.
This page is deliberately qualitative: no projected points, ranks or value-over-replacement figures appear here. Subscribers see the full RB board, every scoring format and the weekly refresh — $5/month or $40/year.
Our value-over-replacement board currently has Jeanty ahead, chiefly because his third-down role is established rather than anticipated. The live top of the running back order is published on the running back rankings page.
Both are young enough to be core dynasty assets. Jeanty's receiving role is the more durable dynasty skill; Hampton's size profile tends to hold a lead role longer if his offense keeps committing to the run.
Projections and value-over-replacement figures are subscriber-only. A subscription is $5/month or $40/year and includes every format and the weekly boards.