Who Should I Start? Breece Hall or Jaleel McLaughlin

Tuesday, July 1, 1:52 PM

New York Jets running back Breece Hall has had a turbulent start to his NFL career. The first ball carrier selected in the 2022 NFL Draft (No. 36 overall) suffered a torn ACL in Week 7 of his rookie campaign after an excellent start. He averaged 5.8 yards per carry and 11.5 yards per reception on 99 total touches. He has flashed upside in his last two campaigns, but New York's offensive environment with Zach Wilson or Aaron Rodgers was not conducive to high-level production, and he's averaged fewer than 4.6 yards per carry since the start of his sophomore campaign. Heading into Year 4, Hall is determined to put his name back in the "high-end" running back discussion. "Just proving that I'm still the guy and still one of the best in the league," Hall said. "Just trying to go out there every weekend and prove that I deserve to be out there." While quarterback Justin Fields has plenty of question marks as a passer, his rushing skill set could open running lanes for Hall behind a potentially improved Jets offensive line. New York's coaching staff has hinted at a split backfield with second-year pro Braelon Allen, but Hall should continue to be viewed as the starter for Gang Green. That said, Fields likely won't target running backs often in the passing game based on his previous trends.

Monday, January 13, 10:50 AM

Denver Broncos running back Jaleel McLaughlin was a complete non-factor in the team's 31-7 blowout loss to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday on wild-card weekend. Like most of the season, Denver's backfield was stuck in the mud and couldn't get anything going to control the game, with rookie quarterback Bo Nix leading the team with 43 rushing yards on four carries. McLaughlin, who had been the leader of a committee backfield late in the season, had only two rushing attempts for minus-two yards while catching his only target for no gain. It was a dismal end to the 24-year-old's second season in the NFL. He finished with 113 carries for 496 yards (4.4 yards per carry) and only one rushing touchdown in 16 regular-season games while adding 24 catches for 76 yards and two more TDs through the air. Denver will surely look to upgrade their backfield in the offseason to give more help to Nix in 2025.