Who Should I Start? Austin Ekeler or Ashton Jeanty

Monday, September 22, 12:34 PM

Although Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. wasn't all that efficient (3.5 yards per carry) in his 2025 debut in the team's 41-24 blowout win over the visiting Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, he did lead the team with 11 carries. Rodriguez was a healthy scratch the first two weeks, but he was elevated to the active roster for Week 3 after Austin Ekeler tore his Achilles in Week 2. The 24-year-old ran for 39 yards on his 11 carries and was not utilized in the passing game. Rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt was second on the team with eight carries, and he, too, was inefficient with just 26 yards on the ground. Jeremy McNichols and quarterback Marcus Mariota combined for 10 rushing attempts and two touchdowns against the Raiders. Croskey-Merritt has the most upside in the Commanders' backfield moving forward with Ekeler done for the year, but Rodriguez is worth a waiver-wire pickup if you have JCM rostered or are looking for RB depth. Rodriguez is currently rostered in only 5% of Yahoo leagues.

Tuesday, November 18, 3:29 PM

In a blowout loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Monday Night Football to close out Week 11 action to drop them to 2-8 on the season, the Las Vegas Raiders abandoned their running game. Rookie first-round running back Ashton Jeanty had just six carries for seven yards and had just two rushing attempts in the first half. The Raiders had a designed pass on 84% of its plays, the team's highest rate in a game since 2012. Head coach Pete Carroll admitted that he heavily influenced the offensive game plan. "I don't really care about pleasing people with our run/pass mix. I'm trying to move the football," Carroll said. "I wanted to get the ball to Brock Bowers a bunch and see what he could do. I'm responsible for that." The expectation was that the Raiders would rely heavily on Jeanty after he was taken sixth overall in the draft, but he currently ranks 16th among RBs with 149 rushing attempts. Vegas' poor offensive line play and the fact that they continue to fall behind by multiple scores doesn't bode well for Jeanty's workload on the ground increasing anytime soon.