Why Smart Drafters Are Quietly Targeting Jonathon Brooks

Jonathon Brooks, the Backfield Bet Worth Gambling On

Jonathon Brooks has played three NFL games and not appeared on a field since December 2024, yet he may be the most interesting running back value on Carolina’s roster this summer.

The reason is opportunity. The Panthers let Rico Dowdle, their leading rusher, leave for Pittsburgh, and NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe reported they did so in part because of what they expect from Brooks. “From what I understand, they may ease him in early on in camp and during the season. But the hope is, if he can go full-go, he could be a guy that defines this offense,” Wolfe said. He added that the team let Dowdle walk because it believed Brooks was ready to be the lead back.

That is a meaningful endorsement for a player whose career has been defined by his knee. Brooks tore the ACL in his right knee at Texas in late 2023, then tore the same knee again in his third professional game, costing him all of last season. The medical reality is sobering, and two repairs on the same joint raise legitimate questions about burst and durability that no single practice can answer.

The early signals, though, have been positive. Brooks has been a full participant in offseason work for the first time, and coaches and teammates have praised his speed and the way he is finishing runs. He even broke off a screen pass for a score during one session. For a back trying to reclaim the explosiveness that made him the first runner drafted in 2024, those are the right boxes to check.

The fantasy case is built on cost and upside. Brooks sits around the RB40 range in early redraft rankings, which prices him as a late-round flier rather than a building block. If he holds up through camp and wins the lead role, that range badly understates him. Chuba Hubbard remains the incumbent and is signed long-term, so this is not an uncontested job; Trevor Etienne and A.J. Dillon are also in the mix. But a true lead back in a run-leaning offense carries weekly starter value, and Brooks is the only player in the group with that ceiling.

The risk is equally clear. A reinjury or a slow ramp-up could leave him in a committee or on the sideline, and Hubbard is a capable veteran who could simply hold the job. Drafters paying a late-round price are buying a wide range of outcomes, not a safe floor.

That is precisely what makes him attractive at the current cost. The team’s actions, not just its words, point toward a larger role, and the price has not caught up. Managers who can absorb the volatility may find that Brooks is one of the better late-round swings available, with the arrow pointing up the more healthy reps he banks.