Who Should I Start? Christian McCaffrey or Khalil Herbert

Friday, May 9, 12:06 PM

San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak said that running back Christian McCaffrey (knee) "looks awesome" this offseason and also said that "we're going to do everything we can to get him the ball as much as we can." McCaffrey was a big-time fantasy bust as the No. 1 overall pick in most fantasy drafts in 2024, as he didn't make his season debut until Week 10 due to bilateral Achilles tendinitis before spraining his PCL in Week 14 and being shut down for the rest of the year. The 28-year-old All-Pro has no restrictions during the team's offseason program, though, and should be fully healthy for Week 1 in 2025. It doesn't sound like the Niners plan to reduce his workload this year, but fantasy managers are surely skeptical about CMC staying healthy for a full season. McCaffrey is a league-winner if he stays healthy, but he's played fewer than eight games three times in the last five years.

Wednesday, March 12, 5:14 PM

The Indianapolis Colts and free-agent running back Khalil Herbert reached an agreement on an undisclosed one-year deal on Wednesday, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Herbert began the 2024 season with the Chicago Bears and had only eight carries for 16 yards and a touchdown in six games before being traded to the Cincinnati Bengals, where he finished with 28 carries for 114 yards and no touchdowns in eight games behind Chase Brown. Now in Indianapolis, the 26-year-old will have a similar backup role to Jonathan Taylor. Because he's unlikely to see much volume unless Taylor misses time with an injury, Herbert will mainly be a handcuff in deeper leagues for those that draft Taylor. The former sixth-rounder (217th overall) by the Bears in 2021 has averaged 4.8 yards per carry on 400 rushing attempts for 1,905 yards and nine TDs in his four years in the NFL.