ESPN just dropped their annual “execs, coaches, and scouts” poll for the top running backs in the league, and I’m already seeing smoke curling off my screen. Bijan Robinson at #1. Jahmyr Gibbs at #2. And the entire sports media industrial complex is already drafting their think pieces about the “resurgence of the running back.”
I’m here to tell you, straight up, that the entire premise is cooked.
They’re saying Bijan is the undisputed king, the new market-setter, the guy who just broke William Andrews’ Falcons record for scrimmage yards in 2025. And Gibbs, the speed demon from Detroit, is right on his heels. They’re both 24, both getting paid, both supposedly ushering in a new era where teams actually *value* the running back position again.
I call total cap.
This isn’t a resurgence. This is a mirage, a collective hallucination brought on by a few big contracts and the desperate need for a narrative. You think because Christian McCaffrey and Saquon Barkley got paid, the entire positional market suddenly did a 180? Please. Your favorite team’s GM is still drafting a sixth-round project and hoping for Bijan production on a rookie deal.
I saw what the AFC executive said, trying to rationalize these deals: “I think the wide receiver prices have gotten so crazy that teams are warming up to the fact you can get a super talented back with pass-catching ability instead.”
I read that, and I just shook my head.
That’s not a strategic pivot, dawg. That’s a desperate attempt to find *any* kind of value in a market that has officially gone nuclear. It’s like saying “gas prices are so high, I’m warming up to the idea of riding a unicycle to work.” You’re not *warming up* to it. You’re being forced into it, and you’re still gonna look silly.
Let’s talk about Bijan Robinson at #1.
I know what you’re about to type in the comments. “But Ryan, 2,498 scrimmage yards! A franchise record! He’s HIM!”
Yeah, I saw the numbers. I also saw the Falcons. What did all those yards lead to? Were they winning Super Bowls? Were they even making the playoffs consistently?
Sometimes, volume is just volume.
An NFC executive is out here glazing Bijan, saying, “Bijan is just more dynamic than the rest of the field in terms of creating positive runs despite blocking failure. Combo of his bend, feet and agility. His size shows up with physicality. And while Gibbs is top-end faster, Bijan is still explosive in his own right, creating home run plays.”
Okay, “creating positive runs despite blocking failure.” That’s a fancy way of saying he was running behind a shaky offensive line on a team that, for years, has been trying to figure out if they even *want* to throw the ball. Of course, he’s going to get touches. They force-fed him the ball like it was 1998.
His 820 receiving yards on 79 catches? Impressive, sure. “Routes, hands and pass protection, he’s elite in that area,” another exec adds.
I’m not denying Bijan is talented. He’s got the burst, the vision, the ability to make guys miss. He’s a good player, a 90+ overall in 2K. But I’m asking if he’s a #1 overall player, a guy who fundamentally shifts the W/L column *because* he’s #1.
I’m not seeing it.
His game, while undeniably effective for racking up personal stats, still feels like it’s missing that *aura* that truly elite, game-changing backs of yesteryear had. He’s a fantastic piece in an offense, but is he the engine, or just a really, really well-oiled gear? I’d argue he’s a gear. A beautiful, expensive gear. But a gear nonetheless.
Now, let’s talk about Jahmyr Gibbs at #2.
This is where I get spicy.
“Your eyes tell you there’s no one like him with the ball in his hands,” an NFL coordinator said. “He plays with better pace because of his vision, and then the gear is different. You see him blow by guys with angles. And he’s elite in the passing game.”
THIS. This is the truth.
Gibbs has that *juice*. That cheat-code speed that breaks angles and makes defenders look like they’re running in mud. Bijan might be “explosive in his own right,” but Gibbs is a different kind of explosive. He’s a stick of dynamite. He’s the guy who can take a nothing play and turn it into a 70-yard house call.
The ESPN article even mentions, “Gibbs’ 18 touchdowns in 2025 are the second most in a season in Lions history, trailing only Gibbs himself in 2024 (20).”
And then the NFC exec drops this: “He’s got 39 [rushing] touchdowns in three years while splitting time. It’s crazy.”
Splitting time.
THAT’S the key.
Bijan is getting fed, force-fed, every single touch he can handle. He’s the undisputed RB1 in his backfield, getting all the volume necessary to break franchise records for scrimmage yards. He’s running until his legs fall off.
Gibbs? He’s splitting carries. He’s often coming off the field. He’s sharing the rock. And he’s *still* putting up 18-20 touchdowns a season. He’s doing more with less. His efficiency, his big-play ability, his pure threat every time he touches the ball? That’s what separates him.
If Gibbs was getting Bijan’s volume, I’m telling you right now, he wouldn’t just be breaking franchise records. He’d be breaking the *league*. He’d be putting up numbers that would make Barry Sanders blush. He’s the guy who has been nerfed by his own team’s depth chart, and he’s still putting up generational production.
This isn’t just about who puts up bigger numbers. It’s about who has the bigger *impact* per touch, who demands more defensive attention, who creates more fear in the opponent.
That’s Gibbs.
Bijan is a great back. A top-5 back, easily. But to put him at #1, ahead of a guy like Gibbs who is scoring 20 touchdowns *while splitting carries*, feels like a narrative push, not an objective assessment of who is “best right now.” It feels like the execs are looking at the shiny new toy with the huge stat line, without asking *why* that stat line is so huge.
ESPN’s methodology of “composite average and dozens of interviews” sounds great on paper, but I’m telling you, it’s just groupthink. It’s a bunch of GMs and coaches afraid to go against the grain, all nodding along, saying what they *think* they should say, or what the last highlight reel they saw told them.
I’m not buying it.
The “running back market improving” narrative is just a smokescreen. Two guys got paid monster deals. Two *elite* guys. That doesn’t mean the position is suddenly valued like a QB or a WR. It means if you’re a unicorn, you might get paid. But the vast majority of running backs are still going to be chewed up and spit out. The NFL is a passing league, and that’s not changing.
So, while ESPN’s “experts” are busy glazing Bijan and pretending the RB market isn’t still a brutal meat grinder, I’m watching the film. I’m seeing the real juice.
I’m seeing a player in Jahmyr Gibbs who is genuinely transcendent, held back only by his own team’s embarrassment of riches in the backfield. He’s the real #1. He’s the guy with the *dawg in him* that makes you gasp.
Bijan is excellent, but he’s not the one.
Go ahead, @ me. Tell me I’m wrong. Tell me I don’t know football. But when Gibbs inevitably breaks free from sharing the backfield and sets the league on fire, I’ll be here, sipping my coffee.
So, tell me, which other “expert” ranking do you think is pure L energy and why?
