Who Should I Start? Dameon Pierce or Ray Davis

Monday, September 8, 12:59 PM

Houston Texans running back Dameon Pierce totaled five yards on his three carries in Sunday's 14-9 road loss to the Los Angeles Rams. He failed to bring in his lone target. Veteran Nick Chubb was the only Houston rusher to see more than three carries (13), and Pierce technically saw the second-most of his fellow RBs. However, rookie Woody Marks also saw three attempts, and Dare Ogunbowale handled two of his own. It was a rough day for Houston's offense overall, as they were blanked in the second half by a hungry Rams' defense. Still, Chubb was the clear-cut Texans RB1 in this outing, and Pierce's current touch load wouldn't be enough to sustain fantasy value. Houston will host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as part of a Monday Night Football doubleheader in Week 2. We'll see if Pierce can carve out a larger role then.

Saturday, August 9, 7:07 PM

With Buffalo Bills star running back James Cook staging a hold-in and unwilling to play Saturday, Ray Davis earned the start in the team's 34-25 preseason-opening loss to the New York Giants. Davis rushed for just seven yards on four attempts and caught one of two targets for another seven yards. As the Bills' emergency kicker, his most memorable highlight came on a successful extra-point attempt in the second quarter. The 5-foot-8, 220-pound Davis joined the Bills as a fourth-round pick from Kentucky in 2024 and was a capable reserve behind Cook as a rookie. Davis appeared in all 17 of the Bills' regular-season games and totaled 442 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 113 rushing attempts. He also caught three TDs and pulled in 17 of his 19 targets for 189 yards. With third-down back Ty Johnson also in the fold, Davis took around 25% of offensive snaps last season. That should be the case again in 2025, but Davis might have an expanded role early on if Cook is unavailable. While Cook seems unlikely to sit out into Week 1 over dissatisfaction with his contract, Davis figures to be the main beneficiary if he does. Cook missed one game last season, a 23-20 win over the New York Jets in Week 6, and Davis accrued 152 total yards (97 rushing, 55 receiving) on 23 touches as Buffalo's go-to back.