NFL Analysis
10/18/24
8 min read
Ranking NFL's 10 Fastest Running Backs In League Today
The NFL loves speed, and it's the most expensive commodity to come by outside a star quarterback. You can't teach it, and overcoming a speed deficit is extremely challenging. We have timed 40-yard dashes and GPS tracking to help illustrate the fastest running backs in the NFL, but those times don't perfectly encapsulate speed.
Elite speed isn't just straight-line speed but also includes players with better acceleration than defenders. Shifty backs are fast in their own way, and that short-area explosiveness can be even more valuable than top-end speed.
We've reviewed the film, thumbed through all speed measurements, tests, and times, and have come up with the NFL's 10 fastest running backs. This isn't just a list of the players with the fastest 40 times, though. This is about mixing functional short-area quickness and breakaway speed.
10 Fastest NFL Running Backs
Let's start with some running backs who deserve recognition but didn't quite make the top 10.
Honorable Mentions
- Jaylen Wright, Miami Dolphins
- Elijah Mitchell, San Francisco 49ers
- Isaac Guerendo, San Francisco 49ers
- Breece Hall, New York Jets
- Travis Etienne, Jacksonville Jaguars
FSU RB Trey Benson has so many likable qualities. Insanely smooth for 6’1 220+.
— Brett Whitefield (@BGWhitefield) February 19, 2024
This run is excellent and checks a lot of boxes. pic.twitter.com/9GT6Yph6Jm
10. Trey Benson, RB, Arizona Cardinals 
Still, in his first year in the NFL, Trey Benson is earning his first opportunities as a pro running back. He's racked up only 107 yards on 30 carries, but there's no question he's qualified to be on this list. The 216-pounder was one of the most explosive backs in college throughout his time at Florida State, and his combine performance confirmed the eye test.
Running a 4.39 40 and 1.52 10-yard split put him in the 92nd and 83rd percentiles of all-time combine performances. Although we haven't yet seen Benson on a runway that shows off his straight-line speed, we saw it enough at Florida State to know he's not just a workout warrior.
9. Zamir White, Las Vegas Raiders
Zamir White is another young back who hasn't played behind an offensive line capable of producing a lane for a rusher to hit top speed. White has totaled only 673 rushing yards in three seasons, but it's hard to blame White for the lack of impact when the Raiders have ranked 30th and 31st in rushing in 2023 and 2024. This doesn't change the fact that White is lightning quick and has great long speed.
His 1.50-second 10-yard split is in the 92nd percentile all-time and the eighth-best combine time from any running back since 2016. Pair that with a solid 4.4-second 40 time, and White is the league's most-bottled-up explosive presence.
8. Raheem Mostert, Miami Dolphins
In the NFL since 2015, Raheem Mostert is the oldest player on this list. There's no doubt it's a testament to his freakish athleticism that it's still possible for a 32-year-old to be this fast. Although he's been banged up this year and has only 89 rushing yards in two games, Mostert's recent track record is undeniable.
Mostert's 43-yard touchdown against New England in Week 2 last year pitted him as the 10th-fastest ball-carrier of the season. He also had the two fastest times in 2020, so this speed has always been present.
Derrick Henry with a 87 Yard TOUCHDOWN RUN. The King had the defense running for their lives trying to catch him. pic.twitter.com/5pGsFX5Ejo
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) September 30, 2024
7. Derrick Henry, Baltimore Ravens
Like Mostert, the fact that Derrick Henry is still a terror because of his speed is remarkable. He's never been super quick, but at almost 250 pounds, he doesn't have to be. What's undeniable is that the 30-year-old Henry just outran a slew of defenders on his 87-yard touchdown run against Buffalo.
Giving Henry a straight line has always allowed him to get up to a devastating top speed that looks much faster than his 4.53 40-time out of Alabama. On that 87-yard score, he tied Nico Collins for the 10th-fastest GPS time of this season.
6. Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles
After enduring various lower body injuries throughout his career, including an ACL tear and some ankle sprains, Saquon Barkley seemed to have lost some of the 4.4 top-end speed he boasted coming into the NFL. Still quick and fast but not quite as explosive, Barkley often wins in shorter areas with great agility and acceleration.
However, his 65-yard touchdown against the New Orleans Saints revealed that Barkley still has that fifth gear we haven't seen in some time. Ranking third this season with a 21.66 MPH speed against the Saints, it's the first time since 2022 that Barkley has produced one of the 20 fastest times across the league.
5. Chase Brown, Cincinnati Bengals
Chase Brown's 54-yard touchdown reception in his rookie season was easily the bright spot of his first year in the NFL. The former Illinois playmaker had the second-fastest GPS-recorded top-end speed in 2023, finishing ahead of Tyreek Hill and De'Von Achane. It's not too shocking that his 4.43 40-yard dash time not only translated to the field, but he's even faster on Sundays than what he showed at his combine performance.
Because Brown has been GPS-timed faster than some peers who had better 40 times, and we can see his acceleration proving to be an issue for defenders, he gets placed higher on our rankings.
Kenneth Walker III goes 69 YARDS and the @Seahawks take the lead!
— NFL (@NFL) October 9, 2022
📺: #SEAvsNO on FOX
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/X4lelc0SFE pic.twitter.com/vHH47E0n0A
4. Kenneth Walker III, Seattle Seahawks
We haven't seen many big plays from Kenneth Walker III, but he checks all the boxes for being quick and fast. He immediately showed off why he produced a 10-yard split and 40-yard dash that finished in the 95th percentile after landing in Seattle. His 74-yard run in Week 7 of his rookie year led to a 22.09 MPH time.
He followed that up with a 21.56 MPH time in Week 8 last year. His quick cuts in the tackle box are far more prevalent than the big plays, and if Seattle can stay healthy in the trenches, Walker should continue to reward them with explosive plays.
3. Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions
The fastest players are usually consistently efficient. Their ability to change directions and avoid direct hits allows them to keep moving upfield. That description fits Jahmyr Gibbs to a T.
Not only is he blazingly fast with 4.36 speed, but Gibbs' low center of gravity that comes with standing 5-foot-9 allows him to chop his feet and accelerate with ease. Gibbs is one of the best at showing the minute details of everything that speed can be defined as on every play.
OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) November 5, 2023
Tune in on CBS! pic.twitter.com/Bv6jrldTnk
2. Keaton Mitchell, Baltimore Ravens
Only four combine participants have ever run a faster 10-yard split than Keaton Mitchell's 1.48 mark. Considering this and his 4.37 40-yard dash, the Ravens' backup is undoubtedly one of the scariest speedsters in the NFL. He averaged an incredible 8.4 yards per carry as a rookie in 2023.
Unfortunately, Mitchell is out as he recovers from a torn ACL suffered last season. Hopefully, we'll see his incredible quickness and top speed when he returns to action.
1. De'Von Achane, Miami Dolphins
There's no running back in the NFL who ran a faster 40-yard dash than De'Von Achane's 4.32 time. Along with a 1.51 10-yard split that ranks in the 86th percentile and a rookie season that boasted a 7.8-yard average-per-carry rate, Achane is the fastest rusher in the NFL. Only his teammate, Tyreek Hill, can also say he produced three of the 20 fastest GPS-timed top-end speeds of 2023.
Achane has two of the top six marks, reaching 21.93 MPH and 21.76 MPH on separate runs. We haven't seen him reach those peaks again, as the Dolphins' offense has struggled this year, but it's only a matter of time before Achane logs another huge run.
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