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2027 NFL Draft RB Rankings: Ahmad Hardy, Jadan Baugh Lead Summer Board
- Brandon Lundberg
- May 18
- 5 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
The early 2027 NFL Draft RB rankings are led by Missouri’s Ahmad Hardy and Florida’s Jadan Baugh, giving the class two lead-back profiles with different paths to the top of the board. Hardy has one of the cleanest early evaluations in the group because of his production, contact balance, and yards-after-contact profile, while Baugh brings the size, physicality, receiving value, and three-down foundation to keep climbing in 2026. Behind them, Ole Miss’ Kewan Lacy, Georgia’s Nate Frazier, and Michigan’s Jordan Marshall give the class a strong mix of burst, power, efficiency, and feature-back upside entering the 2026 season.
2027 NFL Draft Running Back Class Overview
The 2027 NFL Draft running back class enters summer scouting with more depth than the early list suggests. Missouri’s Ahmad Hardy sits at the top of the Football Scout 365 grading, with Ole Miss’ Kewan Lacy, Florida’s Jadan Baugh, Georgia’s Nate Frazier, and Michigan’s Jordan Marshall forming the next wave of backs with legitimate NFL traits.
This early RB rankings article breaks down the top backs on the summer board through film-based grades, production context, and 2026 projection notes. I have graded eight running backs during the early summer scouting window, which feels like the right cutoff point for now, but this class has the upside to grow into a 12 to 15-player group of solid NFL Draft prospects by the time the 2027 cycle fully takes shape.
Football Scout 365 NFL Draft Hub Preview
The 2027 NFL Draft Hub is an all-in-one tool built around the Big Board, team needs analysis, and an early predictive mock draft. The Big Board adds a deeper scouting layer, including player grades, in-depth player comparisons, film-room-style video analysis, video profiles, and scheme-fit projections for top 2027 NFL Draft prospects.
More Early 2027 NFL Draft Positional Rankings
The 2027 NFL Draft position rankings organize the class by position, grade tier, scheme fit, and NFL projection.
2027 NFL Draft RB Rankings: Summer Scouting
1). Ahmad Hardy | RB | Missouri
Summer Grade Tier: High-End Starter Potential
Analysis: Hardy is a compact, physical runner with RB1 traits built around vision, contact balance, tackle-breaking volume, and yards-after-contact creation. His 2025 profile was elite from a production standpoint: 1,649 rushing yards, 16 touchdowns, 6.4 YPC, 1,186 yards after contact, and 97 missed tackles forced. Hardy can push his 2027 NFL Draft stock higher if he returns fully from the May 2026 gunshot wound to his upper leg, reestablishes his pre-injury explosiveness and contact balance, and expands his receiving value.
2). Jadan Baugh | RB | Florida
Summer Grade Tier: High End Starter Potential
Analysis: Baugh brings a feature-back frame with three-down traits built around size, contact balance, patient vision, receiving value, and pass-protection utility. Baugh can elevate in 2026 if he proves his long speed and explosive-play consistency can match the rest of the lead-back profile.
3). Jordan Marshall | RB | Michigan
Summer Grade Tier: High End Starter Potential
Analysis: Marshall is a compact, downhill runner with a reliable early-down profile built around tempo, decisive cuts, contact balance, and efficient run pacing. Marshall can push higher in 2026 if he proves to be a true workhorse and expands his passing-down value.
4). Justice Haynes | RB | Georgia Tech
Summer Grade Tier: High End Starter Potential
Analysis: Haynes is a compact, urgent runner with one-cut burst, contact balance, and enough acceleration to create explosive gains when the blocking structure is clean. Haynes can climb in 2026 if he validates durability, pass protection, and receiving usage in a larger role.
5). Mark Fletcher | RB | Miami
Summer Grade Tier: Mid-Level Starter Potential
Analysis: Fletcher is a big-frame downhill runner with a defined power-back profile built around contact balance, short-yardage value, pass-protection utility, and steady early-down execution. The limitation is that Fletcher still has to show more explosive gains, lateral flexibility, and dynamic receiving value. He can push toward the next tier in 2026 if he creates more chunk plays and expands his third-down utility.
6). Nate Frazier | RB | Georgia
Summer Grade Tier: Mid-Level Starter Potential
Analysis: Frazier is one of the more explosive backs in the class, with a profile built around acceleration, long speed, space creation, and chunk-play ability. The athletic upside is clear, but the three-down projection still depends on improved ball security, pass protection, and consistency within the structure of the run game. He can climb in 2026 if the explosive traits become more reliable across a full RB1 workload.
7). Cam Cook | RB | West Virginia
Summer Grade Tier: Mid-Level Starter Potential
Analysis: Cook is a tough downhill runner who plays much harder than his 5’11”, 200-pound frame might suggest. In 2025 at Jacksonville State, he led the FBS with 1,659 rushing yards on 295 carries, scored 16 rushing touchdowns, and added 30 receptions for 286 yards, giving him one of the strongest production profiles in this early RB group. He wins between the tackles with pad level, burst, quick one-cut decisions, and high-end contact balance.
8). Kewan Lacy | RB | Ole Miss
Summer Grade Tier: Mid-Level Starter Potential
Analysis: Lacy is a tall, linear runner with a strong production profile built around decisive tempo, one-cut acceleration, tackle-breaking ability, and explosive gains when the crease is defined. He has enough functional receiving value to project beyond a pure early-down role, but the passing-game profile still needs confirmation. Lacy can elevate in 2026 if his pass protection, contact balance, and receiving usage hold up against stronger box defenders.
2027 NFL Draft RB Rankings: Key Questions
Who is the top running back in the 2027 NFL Draft rankings?
Ahmad Hardy is the No. 1 running back in the early 2027 NFL Draft RB rankings entering summer scouting. His grade is based on production, vision, contact balance, tackle-breaking volume, and yards after contact.
Who are the top running backs in the 2027 NFL Draft?
The top running backs in the 2027 NFL Draft rankings include Ahmad Hardy, Jadan Baugh, Jordan Marshall, Justice Haynes, Mark Fletcher, Nate Frazier, Cam Cook, and Kewan Lacy. The group includes lead-back profiles, downhill power backs, explosive space runners, and developmental three-down candidates.
Is Ahmad Hardy the RB1 in the 2027 NFL Draft?
Ahmad Hardy enters summer scouting as the RB1 because of his production, contact balance, missed-tackle creation, and yards-after-contact profile. His 2026 evaluation depends on returning fully from injury, reestablishing his explosiveness, and expanding his receiving value.
Which 2027 NFL Draft running backs have feature-back upside?
Ahmad Hardy, Jadan Baugh, Jordan Marshall, and Justice Haynes have the clearest early feature-back pathways. Each brings a different profile: Hardy leads through contact balance and production; Baugh through size and three-down traits; Marshall through tempo and early-down reliability; and Haynes through burst and one-cut explosiveness.
How are the 2027 NFL Draft RB rankings built?
The 2027 NFL Draft RB rankings are built from film-based grades, production context, contact balance, vision, explosiveness, receiving value, pass protection, role projection, and 2026 development checkpoints. Running back value depends on whether each player can create beyond structure, handle contact, and contribute on passing downs.
When will the 2027 NFL Draft RB rankings be updated?
The 2027 NFL Draft RB rankings will update throughout the 2026 college football season as new film, production, injuries, receiving usage, pass-protection growth, and workload changes reshape the board.
