Who Should I Start? Brian Robinson or Emari Demercado

Tuesday, September 1, 2:16 PM

The Athletic's Josh Kendall writes that Atlanta Falcons backup running back Brian Robinson has "shown a physical style in practice that cements his role" as the new Tyler Allgeier. Kendall adds that Bijan Robinson's fantasy managers "may not like how many goal-line carries he gets." We all know how good Bijan Robinson is -- he's had over 1,400 rushing yards in each of the last two seasons as one of the best all-around backs in the league -- but Allgeier frustratingly handled more goal-line and red-zone looks than Robinson's fantasy managers were comfortable with, and Kendall is saying that it could happen again. Bijan Robinson had a career-high 14 rushing scores in 2024, but that number was cut in half last year, while Allgeier had a career-high eight rushing TDs. Bijan is ranked as the RB2 in half-PPR leagues at RotoBaller, behind only the Detroit Lions' Jahmyr Gibbs. Brian Robinson had a career-low 400 rushing yards and two TDs behind Christian McCaffrey in San Fran last year, but he had three straight 700-plus-yard seasons in his first three years in the league and is very capable as a goal-line option in Atlanta. Bijan Robinson should still be in play as the No. 1 overall fantasy pick this year, but his new backfield mate could be a thorn in his side and lower his overall ceiling.