Who Should I Start? Audric Estimé or Rasheen Ali

Friday, December 20, 12:18 AM

With Denver Broncos running back Jaleel McLaughlin (quadriceps) out for the Week 16 contest on Thursday night against the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers, rookie Audric Estime was Denver's lead rusher in the 34-27 loss. Estime had team-highs in carries (nine) and rushing yards (48) while finding the end zone for the first time in his NFL career. He was not targeted in the passing game. The nine carries were the second-most that the 21-year-old fifth-rounder has seen in his first year in the NFL, and he averaged a healthy 5.3 yards per carry. The Broncos certainly have high hopes for Estime in the long term, but how big of a role he'll have in a strong matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals' porous defense in Week 17 will probably all come down to the health of McLaughlin. The fact that Estime hasn't really been utilized in the running game would also make him no better than an RB3/flex if McLaughlin misses another game.

Thursday, November 7, 7:18 PM

Baltimore Ravens rookie running back Rasheen Ali (ankle) is officially out for Thursday night's divisional tilt against the Cincinnati Bengals after entering the contest with a questionable tag. Meanwhile, second-year back Keaton Mitchell (knee) is fully recovered from a torn ACL suffered last year and will make his 2024 debut on Thursday. Ali, a fifth-rounder out of Marshall this year, was active for just one game so far this year (Week 6) but didn't play any offensive snaps. Now that Mitchell is back in the fold in Baltimore's backfield, Ali will most likely be a healthy scratch on game days moving forward once he reaches full health. In addition to Mitchell, the Ravens have the NFL's leading rusher in Derrick Henry and pass-catching specialist Justice Hill.