Who Should I Start? Isiah Pacheco or Chase Brown

Saturday, October 11, 12:44 AM

Kansas City Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco will face off against the Detroit Lions in Week 6. Pacheco handled seven carries for 36 yards and caught three passes for 20 yards in their Week 5 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Pacheco once again split carries with Kareem Hunt, and the latter found the endzone twice last week. Rostering Pacheco has been a frustrating task for fantasy managers, even though he's averaged at least 5.0 yards per carry in three games this season. Despite his efficiency, Kansas City has still preferred Hunt in goal-line situations. It won't be easy to trust Pacheco again this week against the Lions, who are the highest-scoring team in the league. The Chiefs have the highest neutral pass rate in the league, and that trend should continue, given their game has a 52.5 O/U, the highest of the week. Pacheco is ranked RB41 in our RotoBaller Half-PPR rankings, making him a desperation flex option despite his efficiency on limited touches.

Saturday, October 11, 11:34 AM

Cincinnati Bengals running back Chase Brown hasn't played well this season. After scoring a touchdown in the Bengals' Week 1 win over the Cleveland Browns, the 25-year-old hasn't visited the end zone since then. He only had eight carries for 27 yards in Week 5 versus the Lions. Fortunately, Brown made up for it by catching seven of his eight targets for 21 yards. Cincinnati won the first two games of the 2025 campaign. Unfortunately, the Bengals have lost their last three contests, so the team is desperately looking for a win in Week 6 against Green Bay. Joe Flacco, who was recently acquired in a trade with the Browns, will get the start under center for that one. However, Flacco's knowledge of the playbook will presumably be limited, meaning Brown may see more touches than normal while potentially getting an uptick in short passes out of the backfield. With that said, the Packers defense has been a challenge for opposing offenses throughout the year, which isn't good news for Brown, Flacco, Ja'Marr Chase (illness), and Tee Higgins. Still, the 2023 No. 163 overall pick remains worthy of a start in all fantasy formats based on his upside alone, especially for managers with limited options at the running back position.