Who Should I Start? Antonio Gibson or Rico Dowdle

Sunday, January 5, 8:17 PM

New England Patriots running back Antonio Gibson rushed for 41 yards on 12 carries during Sunday's Week 18 win over the Buffalo Bills. He also caught four of his six targets for an additional 20 yards through the air. Gibson remained the Patriots' primary running back on Sunday, playing 65.6 percent of the offensive snaps. Terrell Jennings played 37.5 percent of the snaps, and interestingly, Rhamondre Stevenson didn't step foot on the field for a single down. Stevenson has been in the doghouse following a costly Week 16 fumble, registering just two carries since then. Gibson is still under contract with the Patriots for two more years, which means there's a strong chance he enters 2025 as the team's primary running back. Of course, a lot could change between now and Week 1 of next year, especially with New England set to bring in a new coaching staff.

Tuesday, July 1, 9:24 PM

The Charlotte Observer's Alex Zietlow writes that Carolina Panthers running back Rico Dowdle will split carries with rookie Trevor Etienne as the backups to lead back Chuba Hubbard in 2025. Dowdle is coming of a 1,000-yard season with the Dallas Cowboys in his first year as a lead back, but he'll be working behind Hubbard. As the RB2 last year in Carolina, Miles Sanders only had 55 carries, although he was mostly injured and ineffective. Zietlow adds that the Panthers will want to find out what they have in Etienne before Jonathon Brooks (knee) returns in 2026. If anything, the 27-year-old Dowdle will take away valuable pass-catching opportunities from Hubbard on third downs in his first year in Carolina, but it's going to be hard to justify him as an every-week fantasy starter as long as Hubbard stays healthy. Dowdle is ranked as RotoBaller's RB50 going into the 2025 season.