What Is RB Utilization?
RB Utilization shows a running back's share of their team's total RB carries and targets, highlighting who carries the backfield workload.
RB Utilization | NFL Advanced RB Stats
| Player | Team | Position | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jahmyr Gibbs |  | RB | 89.2% | 97.2% | 90.7% | 88.6% | - | 89.8% | 88.5% |
| 2 | James Cook |  | RB | 85.1% | 83.3% | 79.3% | 84.4% | - | 87.5% | 82.9% |
| 3 | Kenneth Walker III |  | RB | 82.7% | 86.4% | 86.7% | 85.0% | - | 81.0% | 85.1% |
| 4 | Jonathan Taylor |  | RB | 81.8% | 63.6% | 74.7% | 77.2% | - | 89.2% | 76.7% |
| 5 | Derrick Henry |  | RB | 79.2% | 63.3% | 74.4% | 78.9% | - | 76.8% | 80.8% |
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Who leads the NFL in RB utilization in 2026?
Through games played October 30, 2026, Jahmyr Gibbs of Detroit leads all NFL players in RB utilization with 89.2%. James Cook of Buffalo is second with 85.1%, Kenneth Walker III of Kansas City third with 82.7%, Jonathan Taylor of Indianapolis fourth with 81.8% & Derrick Henry of Baltimore fifth with 79.2%. Gibbs's rate puts him 4.1 percentage points clear of second place & 37.2 ahead of the 25th-ranked player.
Only 16.8 percentage points separate first from tenth. Javonte Williams of Dallas is sixth with 77.2%, Chuba Hubbard of Carolina seventh with 76.7%, Ashton Jeanty of Las Vegas eighth with 73.3%, Tony Pollard of Tennessee ninth with 73.1% & Bijan Robinson of Atlanta tenth with 72.4%.
A gap of 3.4 percentage points separates seventh from eighth, the widest single step anywhere below the top four. Chase Brown of Cincinnati ranks 11th with 72.3%, Aaron Jones of Minnesota 12th with 72.1%, Jaylen Warren of Pittsburgh 13th with 71.4%, Bucky Irving of Tampa Bay 14th with 68.8%, Quinshon Judkins of Cleveland 15th with 66.5%, Christian McCaffrey of San Francisco 16th with 64.6%, Bhayshul Tuten of Jacksonville 17th with 64.3% & Kyren Williams of the Los Angeles Rams 18th with 62.0%.
Eight players sit inside 5.8 percentage points of each other from sixth to 13th, the tightest stretch of the ranking. Braelon Allen of the New York Jets is 19th with 59.0%, D'Andre Swift of Chicago & Woody Marks of Houston are tied 20th with 58.8%, Cam Skattebo of the New York Giants is 22nd with 55.5%, Emanuel Wilson of Seattle 23rd with 55.0%, Ollie Gordon II of Miami 24th with 53.3% & Omarion Hampton of the Los Angeles Chargers 25th with 52.0%. One rank inside the top 25 is shared by more than one player.
How this ranking is measured
The ranking above covers the top 25 of 101 NFL players in the 2026 regular season. A minimum of 5 touches is applied. RB Utilization shows a running back's share of their team's total RB carries and targets, highlighting who carries the backfield workload. Figures are as of October 30, 2026 & are recalculated on StatRankings after each game's play-by-play is processed.
