Who Should I Start? Emani Bailey or Phil Mafah

Saturday, August 31, 6:42 PM

Kansas City Chiefs running back Emani Bailey has been cut by the organization on Friday. The team has decided to move on from the 22-year-old to make room for quarterback Bailey Zappe on their practice squad. Bailey failed to impress during his time with the Chiefs during the preseason. He rushed 10 times for 29 yards and caught one pass in three games. The Chiefs decided to stick with Carson Steele as their No. 4 back instead of Bailey. The undrafted back will now look to catch on elsewhere before the season begins.

Saturday, August 9, 11:43 AM

Dallas Cowboys rookie running back Phil Mafah indicated Friday that he played through a torn labrum in his shoulder during his final college season at Clemson, Joseph Hoyt of the Dallas Morning News reports. Mafah has been looking good in camp thus far and mentioned that he is feeling healthy, then proceeded to discuss his 2024 injury. During the 2024 season, he rushed for 1,115 yards and eight touchdowns on 216 carries. He also caught 21 passes for 103 yards and played all 14 games, starting every one, and was voted a permanent team captain by his teammates. Those are still solid numbers considering he was dealing with a shoulder injury. Nonetheless, it could be why he fell to the seventh round of the 2025 NFL Draft in the spring. A big performance from Mafah on Saturday against the Los Angeles Rams could create a running back battle in the Cowboys' backfield between the two veterans (Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders) and the two rookies (Jaydon Blue and Mafah) ahead of Week 1. At this point, from a fantasy standpoint, Mafah remains a dynasty stash at best.