Who Should I Start? Derrick Henry or Christian McCaffrey

Friday, December 26, 10:20 AM

Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry has faced some tough times this season in regard to ball security and questionable coaching decisions. While he registered his fourth fumble of the year last week against the New England Patriots, he still accrued 128 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries. Tyler Huntley is likely to be under center in Week 17 against the Green Bay Packers, which means Henry should see some more carries. In Weeks 6 and 8, Henry received a combined 45 carries with Huntley as the starter. The Packers, however, are the eighth-toughest team in the league against the position over the last four weeks. They only allow 19.38 fantasy points per game to opposing backfields, but Henry was able to run all over the third-ranked Patriots defense, so he still projects as the RB11 in RotoBaller's rankings.

Wednesday, January 7, 3:00 PM

San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey finished 2025 as the RB1 in almost all fantasy formats, and he carries the same projection into most fantasy playoff leagues. San Francisco opens the playoffs against the defending champion Philadelphia Eagles and a defensive front that scarcely resembles the one that gave Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs fits in Super Bowl LIX. The Eagles were the 10th most generous fantasy defense to opposing running backs, and McCaffrey comes into the matchup having finished as the RB12 or better in 14 of 17 starts in Full-PPR formats. He is RotoBaller's RB1 for Wild Card Weekend and, given San Francisco's status as 4.5-point road underdogs, an obvious must-start in formats that allow players to be started only once.