Who Should I Start? Antonio Gibson or Jaleel McLaughlin

Monday, October 6, 10:53 PM

New England Patriots running back Antonio Gibson (knee), who was quickly ruled out in the Sunday night win over the Buffalo Bills in Week 5, suffered a torn ACL and will miss the rest of the season, sources told NFL Network's Ian Rapoport after Gibson had an MRI exam on Monday. It's a hit to New England's backfield the rest of the way. The 27-year-old will finish the 2025 campaign with 25 rushing attempts for 106 yards and one touchdown. He added two catches for six yards on three targets through the air. Gibson wasn't really a roster candidate in 12-team fantasy leagues, but he can now safely be dropped in deeper single-year formats. Terrell Jennings will likely be elevated from the practice squad to serve as the RB3 behind Rhamondre Stevenson and rookie TreVeyon Henderson. Gibson's injury gives Henderson a clearer path to an elevated backfield workload.

Saturday, January 24, 7:55 PM

Denver Broncos running back Jaleel McLaughlin should continue to be the primary change-of-pace back behind rookie RJ Harvey, with J.K. Dobbins remaining on Injured Reserve after a week of limited practices. In Denver's Divisional Round win over a Bills team that came into the playoffs with one of the worst run defenses in the league, McLaughlin was able to turn four carries into 21 yards. In the Conference Championship, he'll face a Patriots defense that has been dominant against the run since Milton Williams' return from an ankle injury that cost him five games. Through two playoff games, New England has allowed a total of 74 yards on designed runs, so if McLaughlin is to find any success on Sunday, it may need to come through screens and checkdowns, though that is a role that's been owned by Harvey for most of the year. McLaughlin is RotoBaller's RB7 for the week, but there is a world where he is entirely phased out of the game script.