Who Should I Start? Christian McCaffrey or Austin Ekeler

Saturday, June 29, 1:07 PM

No NFL running back played a higher percentage of his team's offensive snaps last year than San Francisco 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey. Elijah Mitchell, their top backup, missed six games in another injury-riddled season, and McCaffrey was simply too good to take off the field. CMC led the league with 1,459 rushing yards -- 292 more than the next best RB. His 21 TDs tied for the league lead and he also added 564 receiving yards, which ranked fourth on the 49ers. His 339 total touches were the second-most of his career. McCaffrey's efforts earned him Offensive Player of the Year honors and a two-year extension. The Niners would love a repeat performance in 2024, but perhaps with less wear and tear. A healthy Mitchell would help them accomplish that. "We have to protect Christian from himself. He doesn't like to ever come out no matter what the situation is and I do think that's something we could protect him with more," head coach Kyle Shanahan said.

Thursday, June 27, 4:25 PM

Washington Commanders running back Austin Ekeler was an elite fantasy football producer for a few of his seasons with the Los Angeles Chargers, but last year was disappointing for the veteran and fantasy managers. Ekeler posted 179 attempts for 628 yards and five touchdowns and caught 51 passes for 436 yards and one touchdown en route to an RB26 finish in PPR leagues. He was selected as a top-three running back in PPR formats, so it was far from ideal. However, the former undrafted free agent is confident he will bounce back in 2024. "You're going to get the best version of myself always, no matter what," Ekeler told NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero. "There's been this controversy out there, like, 'Oh Austin said he doesn't want 300 carries, 'cause that's what the Chargers said.' I've never had that many carries ever. So, I don't know why everybody's in an uproar. It's not that I don't want to touch the ball. It's the way that I've had the most production is when I'm able to split between catching and running the ball. If I'm healthy, I'm going to be on the field and I'm going to be producing." The 29-year-old is slated to share the backfield with Brian Robinson this season, but as long as he maintains the clear pass-catching role out of the backfield, he should be a weekly flex option in PPR and half-PPR setups. He is usually available after the top 25 running backs are selected.