Who Should I Start? Alvin Kamara or J.K. Dobbins

Friday, January 2, 3:42 PM

New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara (knee, ankle) has been ruled out for his team's Week 18 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, per ESPN's Katherine Terrell. Kamara suffered a sprained MCL in Week 12 that will ultimately end up causing him to miss New Orleans' final six games of the season. Across 11 contests in 2025, the 30-year-old recorded 657 scrimmage yards and one touchdown on 164 touches. His 3.6 yards per carry and 4.0 yards per touch both represent career lows. With Kamara sidelined and Saints backs Kendre Miller (knee) and Devin Neal (hamstring) on Injured Reserve, New Orleans will likely split backfield work between Audric Estime and Evan Hull in Week 18, with tight end Taysom Hill possibly mixing in as well. Estime functioned as the team's lead back in Week 17, recording 14 carries for 94 yards and a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans.

Friday, January 9, 1:23 PM

Denver Broncos running back J.K. Dobbins (foot), who landed on Injured Reserve in mid-November after having surgery to fix a Lisfranc foot injury, could be an option to return to the team if they advance to the Super Bowl on Feb. 8, according to Nick Kosmider of The Athletic. Dobbins was well on his way to a career year in 2025 in his first year in Denver before the injury, as he had 772 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 153 carries over 10 games. He was fifth in the league in rushing at the time of his Week 10 injury, and the Broncos ranked eighth in yards per carry from RBs (4.8) and 10th in RB yards per game (101.2). Denver has gone 6-1 without Dobbins, but they averaged only 3.8 yards per carry in the final seven games, ranking 23rd in the NFL. Their 79.1 RB yards per game ranked 24th. Getting Dobbins back for a potential Super Bowl matchup would be huge for Denver's offense, but a lot has to go right still for that to be on the table for Dobbins and the Broncos.