Who Should I Start? Elijah Mitchell or Dameon Pierce

Friday, September 5, 7:20 PM

Kansas City Chiefs running back Elijah Mitchell is a healthy inactive for the Week 1 regular-season opener on Friday night in Brazil against the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers, according to Nate Taylor of ESPN. It's bad news for Mitchell heading into his first year with the Chiefs, as it looks like he's the RB4 to open the year, behind starter Isiah Pacheco, Kareem Hunt and rookie Brashard Smith. The 27-year-old was getting some first-team reps early in training camp, but that was a long time ago in late July. Mitchell signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal with KC in the offseason after spending his first three NFL seasons with the San Francisco 49ers. In his three years in the Bay Area, the former sixth-rounder in 2021 out of Louisiana averaged 4.7 yards per tote on 327 rush attempts for 1,523 yards and nine touchdowns (five in his rookie season).

Tuesday, November 25, 8:00 PM

Kansas City Chiefs running back Dameon Pierce was signed to the practice squad on Monday. This news comes after Pierce was cut by the Houston Texans last week. The 25-year-old barely had a role in Houston, so a change of scenery was needed. This wasn't a perfect landing spot, but Pierce should see more action in Kansas City. Lead back Isiah Pacheco (knee) is currently banged up, but is expected to play against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. Outside of that, Kareem Hunt is the primary backup with Brashard Smith getting mixed in as well. At the moment, Pierce doesn't seem to have a path to consistent playing time, but that could change if Pacheco is unable to play. Fantasy managers should keep Pierce on their radar if someone goes out.