Who Should I Start? Christian McCaffrey or Deebo Samuel Sr.

Friday, August 29, 5:06 PM

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan thinks All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey is poised for a bounce-back season in 2025 after the former NFL Offensive Player of the Year was limited to four games in 2024 due to injuries. McCaffrey has been healthy all offeason and training camp and has been looking like his old self. "He came in healthy this year. He had a hell of an offseason, he's had a hell of a training camp, and I believe that's going to lead to a hell of a year," Shanahan said. CMC got off to a late start last year due to Achilles tendinitis in both of his legs and then suffered a PCL sprain in his right knee that ended his season. While the 29-year-old is as injury-prone as they come, he's still worth consideration in the late first round of fantasy drafts. If McCaffrey can stay healthy, he still has the potential to be a league-winner at a discounted price in 2025.

Friday, August 29, 11:49 PM

The Washington Commanders have been "blown away" by wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr.'s "commitment to recapturing as much of his prime as possible," according to Jeff Howe of The Athletic. Samuel Sr. has reportedly shed weight over the offseason after being acquired by Washington from the San Francisco 49ers. The 29-year-old is coming off an underwhelming season, recording 806 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns on 93 total touches across 15 games for San Francisco. Recapturing his peak form from 2021, when he recorded 1,770 yards from scrimmage and 14 touchdowns, may be a stretch, but Samuel Sr. could conceivably bounce back to somewhere in between his best season and his most recent one. He's the clear WR2 behind Terry McLaurin in Washington, and he may get multiple touches per game as a rusher as well. Samuel Sr. could easily end up being undervalued as a low-end WR3/high-end WR4 in fantasy drafts.