Who Should I Start? George Holani or Phil Mafah

Saturday, August 16, 11:05 AM

Seattle Seahawks running back George Holani recorded five carries for 49 yards in Seattle's preseason win over the Chiefs on Friday night. Holani is currently slotted as the team's No. 3 running back behind Zach Charbonnet and Kenneth Walker III. He did nothing to give up ground to running back Damien Martinez for the No. 3 spot despite Martinez having a solid game himself. Holani was an undrafted free agent in 2024, spending much of the season as a special teams player. He has played well throughout the preseason, having amassed 110 rushing yards and a touchdown on just 12 carries. The Seahawks may have found themselves a gem of a solid depth piece at running back in Holani. He will have one more chance to cement himself as the team's No. 3 back in preseason Week 3 against the Packers next Saturday.

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.