Note: Favorite RB available in Round 6 OR later.
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So this is the year you want to attempt the Zero RB draft strategy? Hard for me to blame you. After 2024’s “year of the wide receiver,” 2025 could be labeled “the wide receiver’s strike back.” Drafters are able to start out their drafts with dangerous WR/WR starts such as CeeDee Lamb AND A.J. Brown or Brian Thomas Jr. AND Amon-Ra St.Brown. And that doesn’t even factor in the allure and upside with Brock Bowers - a potential game change TE capable of a 20 PPG season.
The fun doesn’t stop in the first two rounds.
Appealing QBs (Daniels, Allen, Jackson, Hurts, Burrow) Tight Ends and more and more wideouts litter the first five rounds of drafts. But how are drafters able to then pivot and catch up with their league mates at the running back position? The Fantasy Brain Trust will attempt to figure that out.
This Week’s Topic: Who is Fantasy Football’s top Zero RB running back target?
ADP Data from FFPC Big Gorilla $350 entry redraft leagues. All ADP Data courtesy of FantasyMojo.com, supporting every FFPC Format including Dynasty, Redraft, and Best Ball.
Fantasy Points Brain Trust: Favorite Zero RB Target
Tony Pollard, Tennessee Titans
ADP: 6th or 7th Round in FFPC
What a difference a week makes. Life comes at you fast, and it comes at you even faster in fantasy football. Tony Pollard went from a player I was neutral on to a player I now want to be adding shares of. Tyjae Spears — who would have appeared in this article as one of my Zero RB targets—suffered a high ankle sprain. Pollard went from being in a 60/40 committee to holding a bell-cow role early in the season.
His ADP will rise, but not enough to make him unattractive at his current cost. There is simply not enough enthusiasm about the Titans’ offense. Pollard averaged over 20.7 touches per game in Tennessee’s first eight games last season—numbers similar to what he should see again this year. He should also take on a more valuable role as a receiver out of the backfield—a Spears specialty. Pollard had 55 catches in 2023 and should hit that 50+ mark once again.
With rookie Cam Ward taking over at quarterback, the Titans’ offense should improve from the dreadful days of Will Levis. Ward is an upgrade in every way, but even with the strong-armed rookie under center, Pollard will remain a focal point of what should be a highly consolidated offense—now even more so with Spears missing time.
After consecutive seasons finishing as a low-end RB2, Pollard should put up top-15 numbers in the early portion of the season—exactly what Zero RB managers need for their builds to succeed. No one in your league will get excited or say “nice pick” when you draft Tony Pollard, but it’s the sort of selection that can propel your team to a red-hot start.
- Theo Gremminger
BONUS: Jordan Mason, Minnesota Vikings
ADP: 8th Round in FFPC
One of the biggest drivers in fantasy scoring is touchdowns. As nuanced and detail-oriented as we get in draft planning and advanced metrics, six points is six points.
With Jordan Mason, it’s hard not to get excited about the potential for a double-digit touchdown season. I’ve written about Mason in previous Brain Trust articles — and for good reason. He’s an ideal fit for a Minnesota offense that could take a massive step forward in 2025 under second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy.
The threat of Aaron Jones is real, but even with a healthy Jones, Mason should carve out a consistent weekly role — including probable goal-line carries. Keeping Jones fresh means a heavy dose of Mason. And if Jones were to miss any time, Mason would instantly become a weekly RB1.
We’ve already seen what Mason can do with a full workload: RB5 in Week 1, RB11 in Week 2, RB24 in Week 3, and RB5 in Week 4 last season. Expect more weeks like that in 2025 — potentially a lot more.
- Theo Gremminger
BONUS: Braelon Allen, New York Jets
ADP: 11th Round in FFPC
Flag plant time: Allen should be drafted everywhere, even with his rising ADP. He’s stepping into the David Montgomery role in Tanner Engstrand’s offense — a highly valuable spot in a scheme that will relentlessly run the football.
Justin Fields’ mobility could open up massive running lanes and big-play opportunities for the 21-year-old, 240-pound battering ram. Allen’s youth, combined with the dysfunction of last season’s Jets, can explain away many of his efficiency metrics.
Go back to Allen’s collegiate profile and you’ll find a player who started in the Big Ten and thrived as a 17-year-old. In three seasons at Wisconsin, Allen rushed for 3,494 yards (99.8 yards per game) and scored 35 rushing touchdowns.
He’s an easy pick for a Year Two breakout — and a no-brainer addition for any Zero RB build.
- Theo Gremminger
Isiah Pacheco, Kansas City Chiefs
ADP: 6th Round in FFPC
Pacheco was a shell of himself when he returned to the lineup last season after fracturing his fibula in mid-September. Pacheco averaged 4.36 YPC and 2.60 YACO/ATT with an explosive run rate of 4.5% in 18 games (postseason included) during the 2023 season. He averaged just 3.61 YPC and 1.75 YACO/ATT with an explosive run rate of 1.0% in 10 games (postseason included) last season. The Chiefs still decided to do little at the position this off-season. They handed Elijah Mitchell ($1.35M) and Kareem Hunt ($850K) just $2.2M in guaranteed money combined, and drafted Brashard Smith in the last round.
The Chiefs gave Pacheco plenty of runway to regain his hold of this backfield. He said this spring that he added muscle to get back to his NFL Combine weight of 216 pounds — he ran a 4.37-second 40-yard dash at that size. Pacheco said he shed too much weight during his rehab just to get back on the field last year, and he never recaptured his pre-injury form. He’s looking to follow in Tony Pollard’s path by showing improvement with additional time removed from his tightrope surgery. He’s being drafted multiple rounds later than he was being selected last summer when he was a third-round pick, and he has some post-hype potential in what should be one of the league’s premier offenses.
- Tom Brolley
Jaylen Warren, Pittsburgh Steelers
ADP: 8th Round in FFPC
I’ve been on Warren (and well ahead of the markets in my rankings) dating back to May, in part because I wasn’t impressed by rookie Kaleb Johnson, and things are looking up for Warren halfway into August. Johnson is getting the rookie treatment, but I also think Aaron Rodgers will prefer/need an experienced back, so I think Warren should exceed 170 carries along with 50+ receptions. I can see Warren coming out hot with a top-20 showing the first two months of the season in PPR leagues. If Johnson fails to distinguish himself by midseason, Warren might also have top-20 upside for the season. One of these years, all the resources the Steelers have poured into their OL should finally pay off.
- John Hansen
Tony Pollard, Tennessee Titans
ADP: 6th Round in FFPC
Though ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler believes Tyjae Spears could be a bit more involved this year if healthy (he’s currently dealing with a high-ankle sprain), Tony Pollard remains my favorite way of anchoring a zero RB team early in the season, while waiting for the many contingent bets you should be stacking on such rosters to hit.
This is largely a bet on an improved Titans’ offense. HC Brian Callahan has created productive offenses with Jake Browning (who averaged 21.3 FPG over the final six weeks of 2023) and Mason Rudolph (with whom the Titans ranked 7th-best in passing YPG in 2024). Only Will Levis — the worst sack-eating QB in recent memory, creating negative plays that nobody could coach around — has prevented a Callahan offense from being successful. Enter No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward, who only needs to be marginally competent to send Pollard’s production skyrocketing.
Why am I so sure? Pollard’s environment-agnostic efficiency metrics (like yards after contact per attempt) returned to the top of the NFL last year, a season removed from his leg fracture and tightrope surgery. This team spent at LT and RG in free agency. And Pollard was sensational whenever this offense functioned, averaging 19.7 FPG in wins while commanding a 12.8% target share (~RB5) before his late-season ankle injury in games with Spears active. Every zero RB team needs a high-floor anchor, and Pollard provides that on top of much better upside than he’s given credit for.
