Who Should I Start? Alvin Kamara or Jacory Croskey-Merritt

Wednesday, December 10, 9:54 PM

New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara (knee, ankle) was a non-participant during Wednesday's practice session. Kamara has yet to practice since he suffered a sprained MCL in Week 12 against the Atlanta Falcons. Rookie RB Devin Neal (abdomen) was limited to begin the week as well. That leaves Audric Estime and Evan Hull as the only healthy running backs on the Saints' roster. Fantasy managers will need to monitor the health of these two backs ahead of the Week 15 matchup against the Carolina Panthers. This would be a situation to avoid for fantasy managers if both Kamara and Neal are unable to suit up. With the Saints out of playoff contention, it's unlikely they will rush Kamara back, so fantasy managers should not expect to have him available this weekend.

Friday, December 5, 7:45 PM

Washington Commanders rookie running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt was a trendy late-round upside pick in fantasy drafts in the fall, with Washington's backfield plans unsettled. He became even more popular off the waiver wire early in the season after Austin Ekeler suffered a season-ending Achilles tear. The 24-year-old seventh-rounder out of Arizona had double-digit rushing attempts in five of six games from Weeks 5-10, accumulating 298 yards and two touchdowns on 76 carries (3.9 yards per attempt). Bill has since fallen out of favor and has lost lead-back duties to Chris Rodriguez Jr. In the Sunday night overtime loss to the Denver Broncos, Croskey-Merritt played a season-low 14% of the snaps and had a season-low four carries for only 20 yards. He was also out-snapped by pass-catching back Jeremy McNichols. JCM is still rostered in just under 50% of Yahoo leagues, but in a three-back committee in Washington, he should be on benches entering Sunday's road matchup against Minnesota.