First running back drafted by year Full list of top RBs taken in every draft since 197

Running backs no longer run the NFL world. For a sport that often uses terminology that resembles an actual war, it comes as no surprise that NFL teams have instead adopted an aerial attack rather than traditional boots on the ground. The early days of the league placed an emphasis on the running-back spot, similar to a high school team that hasn't stopped running an option offense. As time goes on, coaches and players find new ways to put points on the scoreboard. While running backs are typically a key piece to a team's succe s, the seemingly endle s amount of quality talent at the position is what keeps them from rocketing up the draft board. 2026 NFL DRAFT HQ: | | Here's a look at where the first running back has come off the board in every NFL Draft since 1970. First running back drafted by year Prior to 2000, it wasn't uncommon to see a running back drafted at No. 1. It happened six times before the turn of Jarrell Brantley Jersey the century, with 1995 being the last instance when Penn State's Ki-Jana Carter was selected by the . Since then, however, only nine players have been able to crack the top five Jamal Lewis, LaDainian Tomlinson, Ronnie Brown, Reggie Bush, Darren McFadden, Trent Richardson, Ezekiel Elliott, Leonard Fournette and Saquon Barkley. Running backs have seen their average draft spot drop to 19.6 since 2010, even despite the game-breaking talent that's entered the league. With the position's average salary being the lowest for any non-special teams position $2,025,769, per Spotrac NFL teams have found a cheap solution to filling a crucial role. MORE 2026 NFL MOCK DRAFTS: As talent continues to be pushed down the board, it's a wonder whether they'll ever recover. There will always be those few special players that break through, but the best of the rest are continued to force to settle for le s. Here is where the first running back has come off the board every year since 1970: Year Pick Player 1970 8 Larry Stegent 1971 6 John Riggins 1972 13 Franco Harris 1973 9 Otis Armstrong 1974 2 Bo Matthews 1975 4 Walter Payton 1976 3 Chuck Muncie 1977 1 Ricky Bell 1978 1 Earl Campbell 1979 8 Ottis Anderson 1980 1 Billy Sims 1981 1 George Rogers 1982 7 Darrin Nelson 1983 2 Eric Dickerson 1984 26 Greg Bell 1985 19 George Adams 1986 1 Bo Jackson 1987 3 Alonzo Highsmith 1988 14 Gaston Green 1989 3 Barry Sanders 1990 2 Blair Thomas 1991 14 Leonard Ru sell 1992 9 Tommy Vardell 1993 3 Garrison Hearst 1994 2 Marshall Faulk 1995 1 Ki-Jana Carter 1996 6 Lawrence Phillips 1997 12 Warrick Dunn 1998 5 Curtis Enis 1999 4 Edgerrin James 2000 5 Jamal Lewis 2001 5 LaDainian Tomlinson 2002 16 William Green 2003 23 Willis McGahee 2004 24 Steven Jackson 2005 2 Ronnie Brown 2006 2 Reggie Bush 2007 7 Adrian Peterson 2008 4 Darren McFadden 2009 12 Knowshon Moreno 2010 9 C.J. Spiller 2011 28 Mark Ingram 2012 3 Trent Richardson 2013 37 Giovani Bernard 2014 54 Bishop Sankey 2015 10 Todd Gurley 2016 4 Ezekiel Elliott 2017 4 Leonard Fournette 2018 2 Saquon Barkley 2019 24 Josh Jacobs 2020 32 Clyde Edwards-Helaire 2021 24 Najee Harris 2022 36 Breece Hall 2023 8 Bijan Robinson 2024 46 Jonathon Brooks 2025 6 Ashton Jeanty 2026 3 Jeremiyah Love Miye Oni Jersey