Who Should I Start? Ameer Abdullah or Jamaal Williams

Friday, January 3, 6:07 PM

After initially being listed as doubtful, the Las Vegas Raiders have downgraded running back Ameer Abdullah (foot) to out for the Week 18 regular-season finale on Sunday against the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers after he missed practice all week. Abdullah injured his foot in the Week 17 loss to the New Orleans Saints in which he had the first 100-yard rushing day of the season. With the 31-year-old getting an early start to the offseason, the Raiders will use Alexander Mattison as their lead back against LA at Allegiant Stadium, with rookie Dylan Laube and Chris Collier also seeing action in a change-of-pace role. Abdullah saw additional opportunities in the second half of this season due to injuries to Mattison and Zamir White, but he'll finish his third season in Sin City with only 311 rushing yards and two TDs on 66 carries over 16 games. He added a career-high 40 catches for 261 yards and three more TDs.

Tuesday, March 4, 5:13 PM

The New Orleans Saints released running back Jamaal Williams on Tuesday, according to The 33rd Team's Ari Meirov. The move comes after Williams' worst season as a pro in 2024 in his second year with the Saints. The 29-year-old was rarely used behind starter Alvin Kamara and finished with a career-low 48 rushing attempts for 164 yards and one touchdown while adding only nine receptions for 57 yards on 11 targets in 14 games (one start). Williams had a league-high 17 rushing touchdowns in 2022 in his final year with the Detroit Lions but averaged just 3.1 yards per carry, 470 rushing yards and two touchdowns in his 27 games (five starts) in two seasons with the Saints. He's unlikely to garner a ton of interest on the open market in free agency this offseason and will almost certainly have to settle for a depth role at RB wherever he signs.