DJ Giddens

21-Year-Old Running BackRB
2025 Fantasy Outlook
Kansas State was beyond fortunate to unearth Giddens as a walk-on recruit, because he would go on to be one of the all-time best players for the Wildcats. Giddens (6-0, 212) ran for 3,087 yards (6.0 YPC) and 23 touchdowns over 39 career games, and with 4.43 speed at his disposal it's easy to see that Giddens is a good athlete despite his walk-on background. With that said, Giddens visibly lacks anchor and to fully tap into his speed requires standing upright in a way that makes Giddens a big target for defenders. This means that while Giddens is otherwise competent at running through traffic, he can't hit the gas until he's well into the open field, because to open up his gait in the middle of traffic is begging for a clothesline or helmet-to-helmet collision. Giddens also appears dubious for passing-down purposes, because his 65.2 percent career catch rate is quite poor by running back standards. Giddens should be a productive off-the-bench rushing specialist in the NFL with some big-play upside, but his areas of concern are enough to make it appear that Giddens is better suited to the bench than a starting role, even in the distant future. For now he'll compete with Khalil Herbert and Tyler Goodson for the running back snaps behind Jonathan Taylor, and observers shouldn't be shocked if Giddens ends up fourth in that line. Read Past Outlooks
RANKS
#188.49
ADP
Signed a four-year contract with the Colts in May of 2025.
Six carries in preseason win
RBIndianapolis Colts
August 23, 2025
Giddens rushed six times for 22 yards in the Colts' 41-14 preseason win over the Bengals on Saturday afternoon.
ANALYSIS
Giddens served as the starting running back and handled the Colts' first touch from scrimmage, gaining six yards on that carry. The rookie fifth-round pick is thought to have a decent path to the No. 2 role behind Jonathan Taylor, and the fact his primary competition for that job, Tyler Goodson, missed Saturday's game with an elbow injury only figures to strengthen Giddens' chances.
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Fantasy/Red Zone Stats
See red zone opportunities inside the 20, 10 and 5-yard lines along with the percentage of time they converted the opportunity into a touchdown.
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Snap Distribution / Depth Chart
Snap Counts
Snap %
Indianapolis ColtsColts 2024 RB Snap Distribution
#% of Team Snaps

67365%
23623%
12912%
10%
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Receiving Alignment Breakdown
See where DJ Giddens lined up on the field and how he performed at each spot.
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2024 DJ Giddens Split Stats
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Measurables Review View College Player Page
How do DJ Giddens' measurables compare to other running backs?
This section compares his draft workout metrics with players at the same position. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that metric and it would be considered average.
Height
6' 1"
 
Weight
212 lbs
 
40-Yard Dash
4.43 sec
 
Shuttle Time
4.33 sec
 
Vertical Jump
39.5 in
 
Broad Jump
130 in
 
Hand Length
9.25 in
 
Arm Length
30.37 in
 
Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring DJ Giddens See More
Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring DJ Giddens See More
More Fantasy News
Ahead of Goodson for backup role?
RBIndianapolis Colts
August 22, 2025
Giddens is on track for the No. 2 running back role, according to ESPN's Stephen Holder.
ANALYSIS
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Busy in multiple roles Saturday
RBIndianapolis Colts
August 16, 2025
Giddens rushed six times for 28 yards, brought in one of three targets for nine yards and returned one kickoff for 27 yards in the Colts' 23-19 preseason loss to the Packers on Saturday afternoon.
ANALYSIS
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Rotates with Tyler Goodson
RBIndianapolis Colts
August 7, 2025
Giddens took six carries for 17 yards and had one incomplete target in Thursday's preseason opener at Baltimore.
ANALYSIS
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Listed as No. 3 RB
RBIndianapolis Colts
August 4, 2025
Giddens is listed as the No. 3 running back on the Colts' first unofficial depth chart of the preseason.
ANALYSIS
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Taken by Indy in fifth round
RBIndianapolis Colts
April 26, 2025
The Colts selected Giddens in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 151st overall.
ANALYSIS
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Early down option for Colts?
RBIndianapolis Colts
May 16, 2025
Giddens, who was selected in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, could fill in as the Colts' early down option while serving as the primary backup behind Jonathan Taylor, Mike Clay of ESPN.com reports.
ANALYSIS
Giddens worked his way up Kansas State's depth chart to serve as the starter in his final two college seasons, where he rushed for over 1,200 yards in each of those two years. He demonstrated his athletic ability at the 2025 NFL Combine with the second-best measures in the vertical and broad jump drills among running backs, but his struggles with drops in the passing game could limit him to early downs while spelling Taylor. Giddens will use OTAs, minicamp and training camp to compete against Khalil Herbert and Tyler Goodson for backup duties behind Taylor.
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