Who Should I Start? Isaiah Spiller or Israel Abanikanda

Friday, August 30, 6:07 PM

The Los Angeles Chargers released running back Isaiah Spiller from their practice squad on Friday, according to a source. Spiller missed out on making the 53-man roster out of training camp and has now been pushed off the team entirely after the club claimed RB Hassan Haskins off waivers from the Tennessee Titans earlier this week. The 23-year-old wasn't able to win one of the last RB spots over rookie Kimani Vidal and will now be free to join any team in the league as RB depth. Spiller failed to make an impact with the Bolts after they drafted him in the fourth round (123rd overall) in 2022 out of Texas A&M. In his first two years in the league, he carried the ball 55 times for 137 yards (2.5 yards per carry) and no touchdowns, adding only nine receptions (nine targets) for 47 yards without a touchdown in 15 games (zero starts).

Monday, September 9, 7:44 PM

New York Jets running back Israel Abanikanda is a healthy scratch for the team's Week 1 regular-season opener at Levi's Stadium on Monday night against the San Francisco 49ers. Abanikanda enters the 2024 season as the team's RB4 behind starter and bell-cow Breece Hall and rookies Braelon Allen and Isaiah Davis. As such, the 21-year-old is obviously off the fantasy radar in most single-year leagues for the time being unless injuries push him into a relevant game-day role. The former fifth-round pick out of Pittsburgh last year was also buried on the depth chart in his rookie season and finished with 22 carries for 70 yards while catching seven passes for 43 yards in only six games. Abanikanda has breakaway speed but is once again buried on the depth chart and will have to wait for his opportunity beyond Week 1.