Who Should I Start? Carson Steele or Jonathon Brooks

Tuesday, August 26, 11:48 AM

The Kansas City Chiefs have released running back Carson Steele, according to Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team. An undrafted free agent signee in 2024, Steele earned some playing time early last season for Kansas City and finished the year with 56 carries for 183 yards. The Chiefs have much better depth at the position heading into 2025 after bringing back veteran Kareem Hunt, signing Elijah Mitchell in free agency, and using a seventh-round pick on Brashard Smith. With Steele now out of the picture, Hunt, Mitchell, and Smith will compete for touches in Kansas City behind undisputed RB1 Isiah Pacheco.

Sunday, February 15, 4:39 AM

Carolina Panthers running back Jonathon Brooks (knee) has been dealt some very unfortunate injury luck since entering the NFL. Brooks tore his ACL in November 2023 while still at Texas, causing him to fall to the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft. The injury cost him the first few weeks of his NFL career, but he debuted in Week 12 of the 2024 season with a very small workload. He ultimately played just three games that season before suffering another ACL tear, and he has been sidelined ever since. Brooks' recovery timetable suggests that he should be healthy for the 2026 season. It's fair for fantasy managers to have their doubts about Brooks, given that he has just 12 touches through two years, but we can't forget how productive he was at Texas. Additionally, he should benefit from a clear path to productivity in Carolina. Rico Dowdle is expected to depart in free agency and Trevor Etienne had an underwhelming season, resulting in a wide-open competition for the No. 2 running back role behind Chuba Hubbard. If healthy, Brooks could be the favorite for that role. He'd presumably be eased back into action, but he has top-40 running back appeal if he's healthy for Week 1.