Who Should I Start? Ezekiel Elliott or Saquon Barkley

Saturday, March 30, 6:37 PM

Free-agent running back Ezekiel Elliott and the Dallas Cowboys may be headed toward a reunion. Elliott played for the New England Patriots during the 2023 NFL season, the only season of his nine-year career that he was not a member of the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas has a need at the running back position after they let Tony Pollard leave via free-agency, making Elliott a good fit to return to the team. Elliott ran for 642 yards and three touchdowns for the Pats last season while splitting the backfield with Rhamondre Stevenson. Depending on whether Dallas addresses the RB position in the NFL draft, Elliott would immediately have high-end RB3/flex value if he lands with his former team.

Monday, March 11, 2:57 PM

Free-agent running back Saquon Barkley is signing with the Philadelphia Eagles on a three-year, $37.75 million deal. The deal includes $26 million in guaranteed money and has an additional $9 million available in incentives. After a 2018 rookie season that saw the former Penn State star go for over 2,000 yards from scrimmage and 15 touchdowns, he has struggled to stay healthy over a chunk of the next five years of his career. He missed 21 games from 2019 to 2021. He bounced back in 2022 with 1,312 rushing yards but regressed to 962 yards in 14 games in 2023. However, the Eagles believe in him as a game-changing running back, as his average salary ($12.58 million) ranks only below Christian McCaffrey, Alvin Kamara, and Jonathan Taylor. Although the Eagles' offensive line could take a hit after the retirement of Jason Kelce, Barkley should be playing behind the best offensive line of his career in 2024. He will have an immediate high-end RB1 upside in fantasy football.