RB · PHI · 23 yrs · exp 3 · Auburn
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Latest: Jul 24, 2026 · 2,577
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This article ranks the top 10 running back duos in the NFL for the 2026 season, considering individual stardom, balanced backfields, and recent production against projections. It also includes honorable mentions and discusses specific player pairings and their potential impact
Tank Bigsby could be a top RB handcuff due to his potential to take over as the lead back if Saquon Barkley is injured
Drops: Tank Bigsby
Bigsby is expected to enter the 2026 season as the Eagles' primary backup behind Saquon Barkley, Glenn Erby of Eagles Wire reports. Bigsby was acquired from the Jaguars prior to Week 2 last season, and he went on to rush for 344 yards and two touchdowns on 58 carries across 16 regular-season appearances for Philadelphia. His 5.9 yards-per-carry average would have ranked first in the NFL if Bigsby had enough carries to qualify. Though the Eagles also currently employ Will Shipley, Dameon Pierce and Elijah Mitchell at running back, Bigsby appears set to be Barkley's clear No. 2 and someone who will be worth stashing on fantasy benches in the event of a Barkley injury
The Philadelphia Eagles acquired running back Tank Bigsby from the Jacksonville Jaguars early in the 2025 season, and he went on to carry the ball 58 times for 344 yards (career-high 5.9 yards per carry) and two touchdowns in 16 games (one start), adding three catches for 32 yards. Saquon Barkley remains the centerpiece for new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion, but he needs a complementary weapon in the backfield, and that's were Bigsby comes in. The 24-year-old former third-rounder in 2023 out of Auburn is a physical, explosive RB who can give Barkley a breather while also helping Philly's ground attack remain strong as they look to bounce back from a disappointing 2025 campaign. If Bigsby can maintain his efficiency and explosive ability in a new-look Eagles offense, he could be the most valuable handcuff in fantasy circles in 2026. He probably won't become a fixture on offense as long as Barkley stays healthy, but he should be clearly ahead of Will Shipley, Dameon Pierce, and Elijah Mitchell in the Eagles' RB room. RotoBaller has Bigsby ranked as the No. 50 fantasy RB this year. If you draft Barkley early, make it a point to handcuff Bigsby to him later on
Philadelphia Eagles news and links for 7/1/26
Tank Bigsby poised for primary backup duties behind Saquon Barkley in Philadelphia
The Eagles filled the spot on their 90-man roster that opened up when they traded wide receiver A.J. Brown to the Patriots on Monday. They announced that they have signed running back Elijah Mitchell . Mitchell spent last season with the Chiefs and appeared in one game before being released in December. He spent his first four seasons with the 49ers, but missed all of 2024 after suffering a hamstring injury. Mitchell had 207 carries for 963 yards and five touchdowns as a rookie with the Niners, but a knee injury in 2022 and the arrival of Christian McCaffrey during that season limited his opportunities over the rest of his tenure. Saquon Barkley , Tank Bigsby , Will Shipley , Dameon Pierce , and Carson Steele are the other backs in Philly
The Philadelphia Eagles have signed running back Elijah Mitchell to their 90-man roster, filling the spot vacated by the A.J. Brown trade. Mitchell spent last season with the Chiefs and previously played for the 49ers, where he had a productive rookie season before injuries and the acquisition of Christian McCaffrey impacted his opportunities
The Eagles have signed former 49ers running back Elijah Mitchell. Mitchell, who is familiar with the offensive scheme the Eagles aim to install, has had injury concerns throughout his career but showed promise in his rookie year. He joins a crowded Eagles backfield that includes Saquon Barkley, Will Shipley, and Tank Bigsby
Eagles sign veteran running back ahead of OTA practice originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia The Eagles on Tuesday morning signed veteran running back Elijah Mitchell , who will presumably be on the field this afternoon for an OTA practice. Mitchell, 28, was at the Jefferson Health Training Complex earlier this spring on a tryout during rookie minicamp. The Eagles also had Khalil Herbert at rookie camp but Mitchell must have impressed more. Mitchell (5-10, 200) was a sixth-round pick out of Louisiana back in 2021. He was drafted by the 49ers and spent his first four years in San Francisco . His best season came as a rookie in 2021, when he had 963 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns on 207 attempts in just 11 games. He also caught 19 passes for 137 yards and another touchdown that season. The next season, Mitchell missed some time with a knee injury and played just five games in 2022 but still averaged 6.2 yards per attempt. In 2023, Mitchell played in 11 games but had just 281 rushing yards. Mitchell missed his entire 2024 season after suffering a hamstring injury in August. Last season, Mitchell was with the Chiefs and Patriots but played in just one game. Mitchell joins a running back room that includes Saquon Barkley , Tank Bigsby , Will Shipley , Dameon Pierce and Carson Steele
Adds: Tank Bigsby
We’ve recently spent time forecasting the Philadelphia Eagles ’ depth chart for the 2026 NFL season. We started with the offense , moved on to the defense , and then finished up with the special teams unit . With OTAs starting up next week , here’s a prediction of who will actually make the final cut down to 53 players. We’ll continue to make updated projections throughout the rest of the offseason to reflect meaningful developments from practices and preseason games. ( For fun, take a look at my 53-man roster projection from this time last year .) QUARTERBACK: Jalen Hurts , Andy Dalton , Cole Payton (3) [3] The Eagles are expecting more from Hurts as a passer this season. It’ll be very interesting to see how he performs and how his future is impacted. The Eagles won’t trade Tanner McKee just to trade him but the guess here is that a team will eventually make a strong enough offer to acquire him. If McKee is gone, Dalton is clearly QB2. It’s been suggested that Payton could have a small role as a rookie ( Taysom Hill packages and/or Tush Push specialist) but he’ll likely be inactive as the emergency third quarterback … at best. It’s entirely possible he doesn’t even make the roster, just like Kyle McCord didn’t last year. RUNNING BACK: Saquon Barkley , Tank Bigsby , Will Shipley (3) [6] Barkley logged 136 fewer touches in 2025 than he took in 2024, so, it stands to reason he’ll be comparatively fresher for 2026. The question of his success is less about him, though, and more about the offensive line improving upon last season’s disappointment. Bigsby was an excellent ball carrier in limited action last season; he logged 5.9 yards per carry! But the Eagles oddly underutilized him and they shouldn’t do that again this year. The coaching staff seems to like Shipley as a dirty work guy (blocking, special teams) who might also contribute in two-minute drill situations. Dameon Pierce could contend for a roster spot but it doesn’t feel necessary to roster a fourth running back when the team could likely keep such a player on the practice squad. WIDE RECEIVER: DeVonta Smith , Makai Lemon, Dontayvion Wicks , Hollywood Brown , Darius Cooper (5) [11] Smitty is more than ready to take over as WR1 with A.J. Brown soon to be traded. I don’t think it’ll take us long to realize if Lemon is equipped to be a serious contributor as a rookie or not. I’m cautiously optimistic; it’ll be nice to see evidence of his talents translating to the NFL. Wicks is an underrated player who could thrive with more opportunity in Philly than he saw with the Packers . Brown’s deep threat ability and general veteran competence makes him worth keeping around. Wicks and Brown have combined for five career special teams snaps, so, they’re probably not going to help out in that category. The Eagles need to keep around a dirty work guy or two and Cooper showed he’s capable of playing that role last year while also flashing offensive potential. Johnny Wilson was a tough cut here; he was showing promise before suffering a season-ending injury in August. Would like to see him back on the field first before assuming he’ll pick up where he left off. Elijah Moore has never really been a special teams guy and there are too many players ahead of him on offense, so, he’s more realistically looking at a practice squad spot unless there are injury issues. The Eagles could try to have Britain Covey begin the season on the practice squad, which they’ve done in the past, and use up his temporary elevations early on to be their punt returner. Doing so would buy them time to open up a spot for him if they want him to stay around for the rest of the season. TIGHT END: Dallas Goedert , Eli Stowers , Johnny Mundt , Cameron Latu (4) [15] Goedert is still more than a capable pass-catcher but it remains to be seen what the Eagles will get out of him as a blocker. Stowers might have a smaller role than expected as a rookie; his college coaching staff only trusted him as a part-time p [... truncated ...]
This group of articles will take a look at the newly released Panthers schedule, review the opponents, and take our best guess at predicting the outcomes of each game. Here, we’re starting with the second “quarter” of the schedule, the second four games just after the Week 5 bye. The Eagles are a tough team to figure out this year. They drafted Makai Lemon in the first round and added a couple other wide receivers, and rumors are swirling about AJ Brown ’s impending trade. They also added to an already elite front four by trading for former Vikings pass rusher Jonathan Greenard and retaining Nolan Smith. Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean are young superstars, and the team added Riq Woolen in free agency to bolster that group even more. While Nakobe Dean walked in free agency, the team drafted Jihaad Campbell last year to help fill that void. Eli Stowers was drafted as well, combining with Dallas Goedert to make a quality tight end group. The Eagles are always talented, but oftentimes they are a bit Jekyll and Hyde. This might continue this year as Jalen Hurts and Nick Sirianni are still in town. Their defense is still elite, especially along the line and in the secondary. Saquon Barkley is not exactly in his prime, but Tank Bigsby was added as depth. DeVonta Smith combines with the other pass catchers to make a deep and versatile group. Any time a player of AJ Brown’s caliber leaves your team, however, there is bound to be some growing pains. Final: Eagles 24 – Panthers 13 A couple notorious Panthers killers are no longer in Tampa Bay as Lavonte David retired and Mike Evans and Rachaad White left in free agency. They did add quite a bit to their defense, though, signing veterans Alex Anzalone and A’Shawn Robinson. They also drafted Rueben Bain and Josiah Trotter. Baker Mayfield and the coaching staff is mostly intact from last year, though they do have yet another new offensive coordinator. Todd Bowles is undoubtedly on the hot seat, however. The Bucs do still have some talent, including Vita Vea plugging up the middle with Calijah Kancey . Ted Hurst was drafted in the third round to help replace the loss of Mike Evans, and Chris Godwin should be back healthy this season after missing a good chunk of last year. Final: Panthers 28 – Buccaneers 20 The Panthers second prime time game of the year is a Thursday night game at Lambeau. Luckily it’s early enough in the season that the weather should not be too bad. The Packers lost a couple wide receivers in Romeo Doubbs and Dontayvion Wicks . Rashan Gary was traded this offseason, largely because the team hopes Micah Parsons will be back and fully healthy at some point this season. Jordan Love is still the man under center, but they also added Tyrod Taylor as a fully capable backup. The team largely revolves around Love and that dynamic offense. Christian Watson is joined by second year receiver Matthew Golden , free agent Skyy Moore in the receiver room. A relatively weak secondary was addressed in the draft by taking Brandon Cisse and in free agency by signing Benjamin St-Juste . The depth at edge is also a bit of a weakness, especially with Parsons coming back from a torn ACL. The Packers are also going through some transitions on the offensive line, which could cause some issues. Starting left tackle Rasheed Walker left for the Panthers and Elgton Jenkins left in free agency as well. Final: Packers 27 – Panthers 23 The Denver Broncos surprised a lot of people last year, ripping off a 14-3 record largely led by their elite defense. To help on offense, the team added Jaylen Waddle and JK Dobbins. Bo Nix is still under center, and old nemesis Sean Payton and his permanent duck face is still the head coach. The team also still has a very good offensive line together, which will be important with Nix coming off a major ankle injury. The Broncos did not have a pick this year until the third round, so an influx of big name young players did not happen. The Broncos still have [... truncated ...]
Acquired by trade from Jacksonville after Week 1 of last year in exchange for a fifth- and sixth-round pick, Bigsby was able to secure the RB2 role behind Saquon Barkley despite the short notice. Part of what precipitated the trade might have been Philadelphia realizing that 2024 fourth-round pick Will Shipley probably wouldn't suffice as the RB2, creating a need for a power-capable back like Bigsby on the depth chart. Bigsby is a rugged runner with some hints of big-play ability (six carries of 20 or more yards on his last 231 attempts), and in the event that a starting role opens up Bigsby should have just enough heft and anchor to hold up in the role. Bigsby has shown next to nothing as a receiver in the NFL, on the other hand, so even if Barkley misses time it might result in a timeshare between Bigsby and the more passing-down oriented Shipley
After opening 2025 with the Jacksonville Jaguars, running back Tank Bigsby was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles after Week 1. The 24-year-old saw limited playing time in Philadelphia while playing a backup role to star Eagles running back Saquon Barkley. Across 16 games with Philly, Bigsby recorded 58 carries for 344 yards and two touchdowns. As long as Barkley stays healthy, Bigsby's path to fantasy-relevant production is blocked. However, Barkley is entering his age-29 season and has recorded consecutive 350-plus touch campaigns, including playoff action. Bigsby has been a highly efficient rusher when given the opportunity to this point in his NFL career, averaging 4.9 yards per carry over the past two seasons. Should Barkley go down at any point in 2026, Bigsby could immediately vault into the top-24 conversation at the running back position. In dynasty formats, Bigsby remains a high-end handcuff option heading into 2026
Drops: Tank Bigsby
Adds: Tank Bigsby
Philadelphia Eagles running back Tank Bigsby began his 2025 season as a Jacksonville Jaguar, with fantasy managers hoping he could carve out something close to a lead-back role. Those hopes were dashed early when a Week 2 trade sent him to an Eagles team that has now seen Saquon Barkley handle almost 23 opportunities per game over the past two seasons. While it became evident early that the former third-round pick was acquired largely for his work as a kick returner, those duties were eventually turned over to Will Shipley and Britain Covey, leaving Bigsby to function primarily as a change-of-pace back and as a direct backup to Barkley. While Bigsby's touches were limited, he was efficient with the work he got, averaging nearly six yards per carry and topping 100 total yards in his lone start of the season, a meaningless Week 18 game in which he also scored a touchdown. Heading into 2026, his role remains unchanged, but his value as an insurance back makes him a must-roster player in dynasty and even deeper redraft leagues. Philadelphia's offensive line still ranks in the top half of the league, and the 29-year-old Barkley's career-long durability concerns have only been amplified by the exorbitant workload he's received with the Eagles
Adds: Tank Bigsby
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