Who Should I Start? Duke Johnson or Samaje Perine

Sunday, May 5, 1:51 PM

Running back Duke Johnson announced his retirement from professional football on Sunday. Johnson was originally taken in the third round (77th overall) by the Cleveland Browns in the 2015 NFL draft out of Miami. He spent the first four seasons of his NFL career with the Browns before spending two years with the Houston Texans. Johnson played for the Miami Dolphins in 2021 and the Buffalo Bills in the final year of his career in 2022. The 30-year-old wraps up his career having recorded 2,265 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns on 532 carries, adding 311 catches on 405 targets for 2,870 yards and an additional 12 touchdowns in 97 games (21 starts) covering eight seasons. Johnson had a career-high 410 rushing yards on 83 attempts in his first year in Houston in 2019.

Tuesday, December 30, 2:11 PM

Cincinnati Bengals running back Samaje Perine has finished as a low-end RB2 in each of the past two weeks without cracking a 40% snap share. If the Bengals opt to rest or limit their starters, including the surging Chase Brown, Perine could be in line for a solid workload in a Week 18 matchup against the Browns with nothing but divisional pride on the line. Even if Perine maintains only his usual change of pace and mop-up duties, he has enough of a floor to keep him in consideration for a flex role against a Cleveland defense that just allowed 131 yards on the ground to a Steelers offense with no threat of a passing attack. Readily available on most waiver wires, Perine should be a top priority in any league with a Week 18 title game.