Who Should I Start? Alexander Mattison or Jaleel McLaughlin

Monday, September 9, 10:56 AM

Las Vegas Raiders running back Alexander Mattison turned his limited touches into gold with a 31-yard touchdown reception, totaling 62 yards from scrimmage. The former Minnesota Viking rushed for 19 yards on five carries and caught four of six targets for 43 yards and a score in Sunday's 22-10 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. His involvement in the passing game was a silver lining in an otherwise gloomy rushing day for the Raiders. The 26-year-old out-snapped teammate Zamir White 36 to 23 in Sunday's loss. Mattison's versatility keeps him relevant in fantasy. He's a flex play with upside in PPR formats, especially if he continues to see targets. His role could expand after Sunday's performance, but he is off the fantasy radar in a tough matchup against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2.

Monday, September 16, 12:24 AM

Denver Broncos running back Jaleel McLaughlin took a step back from his Week 1 involvement in the Week 2 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Denver on Sunday. After out-touching backfield mate Javonte Williams last week in the loss to the Seattle Seahawks, McLaughlin had only three carries for six yards in the 13-6 loss to the Steelers and wasn't targeted in the passing game. Meanwhile, Williams had 16 touches for 65 scrimmage yards. It was a step back for the 24-year-old second-year back, but he's still the clear RB2 in Denver, with Tyler Badie seeing only one carry for a 16-yard gain. McLaughlin is going to have much better games than this, obviously, but it's hard to justify using a roster spot on him in 12-team fantasy leagues as long as the Broncos' offense continues to struggle so much under rookie quarterback Bo Nix. McLaughlin will have very little standalone value in Week 3 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.