Who Should I Start? DJ Giddens or Tahj Brooks

Friday, August 8, 9:11 AM

Indianapolis Colts running back DJ Giddens carried the ball six times for 17 yards and failed to corral his lone target in a 24-16 preseason loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday. Giddens and Tyler Goodson split the work throughout the first half of the game before ultimately giving way to Khalil Herbert at the beginning of the third quarter. Giddens finished with a long run of seven yards while averaging 2.8 yards per carry in the contest. The fifth-round rookie out of Kansas State is fighting to open the regular season as the primary backup behind Jonathan Taylor. His next chance to make an impression will come in the Colts' second preseason game, which will be next Saturday against the Green Bay Packers.

Friday, August 8, 10:53 AM

Cincinnati Bengals running back Tahj Brooks ran for 26 yards off 10 attempts in Thursday's preseason loss to the Eagles. He added one catch (two targets) for three yards. Chase Brown began the contest with the rest of the starters. While Brooks handled the bulk of the touches, he only averaged 2.6 yards per carry. Despite the subpar showing on Thursday night, the 2025 No. 193 overall pick has looked good throughout training camp and appears to have earned the trust of the coaching staff. However, with Brown expected to get the majority of the snaps out of the backfield in 2025, there could be little room for Brooks to remain consistently involved, even if the rookie manages to secure the No. 2 spot on the depth chart over Samaje Perine. With the Bengals dropping their first game of the preseason, the team will look to get on track versus the Commanders on August 18.