Running back is one of the more intriguing spots on the New York Jets’ depth chart.
Breece Hall is back on the franchise tag after his best rushing season at the professional level. Behind him, Braelon Allen is working back from a season-ending MCL injury, while fellow third-year back Isaiah Davis has yet to make a significant impact in his NFL career.
This is a position where teams consistently find solid value in the later rounds of the draft. Since running backs hit their ceiling early in their careers, teams can use Day 3 draft picks to land instant contributors on cheap rookie contracts. These deals often last through a player’s prime.
Here are three running backs the Jets could target on Day 3 of this year’s NFL draft.
Kaytron Allen, Penn State
- Consensus big board rank: 150th
Allen, 23, spent all four of his college seasons at Penn State after graduating from IMG Academy as a four-star recruit.
Throughout 54 collegiate games (24 starts), Allen racked up 4,180 rushing yards and 39 touchdowns on 769 attempts (5.4 yards per carry) while adding 490 yards and four touchdowns across 70 receptions.
Standing at 5-foot-11 and 216 pounds, Allen possesses excellent vision along with exceptional burst and explosiveness out of the backfield. He is also very durable, having appeared in all 41 games throughout his career as a Nittany Lion.
In 2025, his 6.2 yards per attempt ranked sixth among 57 qualified running backs (minimum 160 carries), while his 57 missed tackles forced ranked 12th, good enough to earn first-team All-Big Ten honors and be named a second-team All-American.
At the next level, Allen will have an impact right away in goal-line packages while being very effective in between the tackles.
He may not offer a ton of upside, largely because he isn’t a difference-maker in the passing game, and he will not be a bell-cow back. Still, he offers one of the highest floors among all running backs in this year’s draft class.
Emmett Johnson, Nebraska
- Consensus big board rank: 111th
After working his way up Nebraska’s depth chart from 2022-24, Johnson erupted during the 2025 season, going for 1,451 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns on 251 attempts (5.8 yards per carry). He also contributed 370 yards and three more touchdowns across 46 receptions.
Johnson finished the 2025 season ranked fourth in rushing yards among FBS running backs, sixth in missed tackles forced (68), and third in receiving yards.
He became the first Nebraska running back to surpass 1,000 rushing yards since their program leader, Ameer Abdullah, logged 1,611 in 2014. Johnson also became just the seventh Big Ten player since 1956 to reach 1,400 rushing yards and 350 yards in a single season. Within the past 20 years, Saquan Barkley is the only other player to reach that milestone.
Johnson is a versatile scheme fit and, like Allen, has excellent burst and vision. He projects as a home-run hitter at the NFL level and a workhorse. The 22-year-old can also make a significant impact as a pass-catcher, evidenced by his 370 receiving yards and three touchdowns in 2025.
Kaelon Black, Indiana
- Consensus big board rank: 188th
Black, 24, kicked off his college career in 2020 with Curt Cignetti at James Madison. After spending four seasons with JMU, the running back followed Cignetti to Indiana in 2023, where he was impactful during their National Championship run in 2025.
After playing a smaller role during the 2024 season, Black broke out in 2025, rushing for 1,034 yards and 10 touchdowns across 186 carries (5.6 yards per attempt). He also showed up on the biggest stages, erupting for 99 yards against Alabama in the semifinals while logging two touchdowns against Oregon in the championship.
He also holds on to the ball, logging just five fumbles across 551 career touches.
Black is very efficient when it comes to generating yardage after contact. Consistently bouncing off tacklers, Black posted 646 yards after contact in 2025 while forcing 30 missed tackles.
The 24-year-old projects perfectly behind someone like Breece Hall, who will be the workhorse and primary receiving back, while Black serves as a complementary piece who can make explosive plays and is a red-zone threat.
