Who Should I Start? Austin Ekeler or Josh Jacobs

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.

Thursday, October 30, 6:49 PM

Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs (calf) continues to deal with a calf injury and was limited again during Thursday's practice, according to Matt Schneidman of The Athletic. Jacobs has played through a calf injury each of the last two weeks, although he's had his two lowest snap rates in those games at just over 50%. The 27-year-old had only 33 rushing yards on 13 carries in the Sunday night win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, but he also found the end zone on the ground for the fourth straight week. While Jacobs hasn't gone over 100 yards in a game yet in 2025, he's been money for fantasy managers with nine rushing touchdowns in seven games played. The only game in which he didn't find the end zone was on Sept. 21 in the upset loss to the Cleveland Browns. Jacobs should be active this Sunday against the Carolina Panthers, where he'll be a touchdown-dependent midrange RB1 in fantasy.