Who Should I Start? Christian McCaffrey or Bucky Irving

Sunday, September 14, 8:39 PM

San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey rushed for 55 yards on 13 carries during Sunday's Week 2 victory over the New Orleans Saints. He also caught six of seven targets for an additional 53 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown. Although the veteran playmaker didn't quite eclipse the 100-yard mark, he made up for it by scoring his first touchdown of the 2025 campaign. He also served as a very valuable and dependable pass-catching option for quarterback Mac Jones amidst the injury to Brock Purdy (shoulder). McCaffrey has wasted no time making a big impact in fantasy football, scoring at least 22.7 points (PPR) in each of his first two games this year. There's minimal competition for the 29-year-old in San Francisco, keeping him in the mid-range RB1 tier ahead of Week 3 versus the Arizona Cardinals.

Tuesday, September 16, 12:19 AM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving was busy Monday night against Houston, handling 17 carries for 71 yards while adding six receptions for 50 yards in the pass game. Irving was the engine of Tampa Bay's offense against Houston's stout defense, consistently making defenders miss and finding positive yardage. The star's second year back forced 11 missed tackles, including five on receptions in Monday night's game, the most in his career, according to NFL Pro. Mayfield was under a ton of pressure and took four sacks overall against one of the league's best pass rush groups, and he often resorted to Irving as a safety valve. Rachaad White handled more work than he did in Week 1 and ended up scoring the game-winning touchdown after Mayfield drove them down to the goal line. Otherwise, Irving still had a highly productive fantasy outing and remains Tampa Bay's lead back. He should be viewed as a rock-solid RB1 moving forward with his high-value touch role.