Which running backs gain the most yards per carry in short yardage?
Emari Demercado leads all NFL running backs with 19.71 yards per carry in short-yardage situations, on 7 carries and 0 rushing touchdowns across 9 games.
NFL Running Back Yards Per Carry in Short Yardage
Ranked by Y/C · 2025 regular season| # | Player | Y/C | ATT | YDS | YAC | TD | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Emari Demercado Arizona Cardinals · #31 | 19.71 | 7 | 138 | 54 | 0 | 9 |
| 2 | Keaton Mitchell Baltimore Ravens · #34 | 11.56 | 9 | 104 | 83 | 0 | 8 |
| 3 | Raheem Mostert Las Vegas Raiders · #31 | 8.20 | 5 | 41 | 42 | 0 | 8 |
| 4 | Ameer Abdullah Indianapolis Colts · #26 | 8.00 | 2 | 16 | 7 | 1 | 6 |
| 5 | Jaleel McLaughlin Denver Broncos · #38 | 6.75 | 4 | 27 | 17 | 0 | 4 |
Want it sliced by week, opponent, or your own custom split?
Open this in the Stat Explorer →Why this matters
Short-yardage runs are called almost entirely against defenses that are already loaded to stop them, so a rushing average here has less to do with speed in open space than with finding the sliver of a crease before it closes. Vision and a quick burst off the snap matter more against a stacked front than the sustained speed that builds rushing totals everywhere else on the field.
These carries make up a small share of any back's workload, which leaves the rushing average vulnerable to a single explosive run breaking free of a stacked front. That kind of outlier can turn a modest season into a flattering result, so the number rewards a hot month almost as easily as it rewards a back who wins this matchup consistently.
Judge this number over a longer stretch before treating it as proof of who wins short-yardage work most reliably. A back who repeats a strong average across many stacked fronts, rather than padding it during a single favorable week, is actually finding room where a defense has left none, and that pattern matters more than any isolated average on its own.