Your fantasy football draft is mostly through, and the depths of the big board are now being explored. Who will be our diamond in the rough? The player who can win us the league and in keeper formats, a player who can fuel our successes for years to come. When evaluating risk over reward, these 3 running backs prove to be prime late-round targets. Let’s go to dinner…
Jordan Mason
Current ADP: RB38/115th Overall
Mason has hardly any risk compared to his counterparts at ADP. The Vikings are going to pound the rock with Mason. Despite being the RB2 to Aaron Jones, Kevin O’Connell will work with the duo as a committee. In 2025, Mason’s efficiency metrics were better than Jones’s, both in yards per carry (4.8 to 4.2), 10+ Yard Run Rate (13.8% to 9.1%), Touchdowns per Game (0.38 to 0.17), and Broken Tackles per Game (0.81 to 0.42).
At four years younger, Mason is in the prime of his career while Jones is on the outs with his. On my Age Risk Scale, Jones ranks on the highest end. He also rates above average in injury risk with a whopping 5 career hamstring strains and 4 career MCL sprains.
MarShawn Lloyd
Current ADP: RB49/128th Overall
I am much more concerned about his handcuff role than his general skill set. Josh Jacobs has just been charged with two misdemeanors and faces a potential multi-game suspension. Not only that, but Jacobs is among my higher-risk injury players in all of fantasy football.
Draftsharks.com rates Jacobs as a “High” injury risk, projecting him to miss 1.3 football games. Over Jacobs’ 9-year NFL career, he has endured 11 unique injuries, and four of his last six injuries were Grade 1 in severity.
The Packers are the NFL’s 4th-rated offense. They will work Lloyd into a role which I project to command 15-20% of the rushing offense. If Jacobs misses any time, Lloyd is a sure-fire RB2 and my Fantasy Football Handcuff of the Year.
Jonah Coleman
Current ADP: RB51/130th Overall
Let’s review Coleman’s true expectations. He is the RB3, but not quite in the fashion some may think…
The Broncos went out and drafted Coleman. Why? They likely do not see RJ Harvey as a high-workload running back in the seemingly inevitable case that JK Dobbins misses time. Dobbins has never played a full NFL season and is my highest-risk running back in 2026 fantasy football.
Sean Payton wanted a player who fit his scheme. Coleman is just that and among countless comments of praise, I take note of this one from Payton:, “I’ve said this a number of times: You don’t feel a young player. That’s a really good trait. He’s smart, he has a really good contact balance.”
Just about every other fantasy analyst agrees with the sentiment that Harvey is not a pure handcuff to Dobbins. Instead, it will be a favorable one to Coleman, for he can easily exceed 15 rushing attempts per game. In complement, Harvey will play an Alvin Kamara-esque role. Harvey is still very viable, having scored 12 touchdowns as a rookie, 7 of them through the air.
So, Coleman can be a high-usage back for multiple weeks. Where Dobbins did miss time, Coleman has RB2 upside and will be very low risk given the team’s confidence and anticipated role within the offense. Even when Dobbins stays healthy, it would not surprise me to see Coleman steal a ton of snaps as the younger, fresher scheme-fit.
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