Who Should I Start? Cordarrelle Patterson or Jonathan Taylor

Monday, July 28, 2:17 PM

The Pittsburgh Steelers have released running back Cordarrelle Patterson, according to a tweet from Patterson himself on Monday morning. The 34-year-old appeared to be fifth on the team's depth chart at running back behind Jaylen Warren, Kaleb Johnson, Kenneth Gainwell, and Trey Sermon, so this news does not come as a huge surprise. Patterson appeared in 13 games for Pittsburgh in 2024, rushing for 135 yards on 32 carries and catching 12 passes for 80 yards. He also served as a kick returner, which is where Patterson has arguably made the biggest impact throughout his career. It remains to be seen whether the 12-year vet will look to catch on with another team as a gadget piece on offense and contributor on special teams, or hang up his cleats. Either way, his days as a fantasy-relevant player are in the past.

Sunday, December 21, 12:30 AM

Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor is a superb fantasy start for his Monday night home matchup with the San Francisco 49ers. Taylor remained the Colts' workhorse in Week 15's loss to the Seahawks, notching his eighth game of the campaign with at least 80 rushing yards, handling his second-highest carry total of the season (25). It's worth noting that veteran backfield mate Ameer Abdullah has seen an increased snap share across the previous two weeks, though it shouldn't affect Taylor's position as a locked-in RB1, even against a sound 49ers' rush defense. San Fran has been stingy to opposing ground games, yielding the twelfth-fewest rushing yards per contest (106.1). That said, they've allowed RBs to rack up the second-most receptions of any squad (78). Veteran signal-caller Philip Rivers adds an extra variable to the equation, but that should mean that Indy will continue to rely on the rushing attack as they try to remain in playoff contention. Fantasy managers can fire up the 26-year-old as RotoBaller's PPR RB6 for Week 16's slate of action.