Who Should I Start? Isiah Pacheco or Jacory Croskey-Merritt

Saturday, September 27, 12:52 AM

Kansas City Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco will take on the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday in Week 4. Pacheco handled 10 carries for 45 yards and one catch for three yards in the 22-9 win over the New York Giants last week. The 26-year-old had a modest 4.5 yards per carry in the contest, but has only averaged 3.7 yards per carry on the season. Pacheco and Kareem Hunt have split the Chiefs backfield evenly this season, but neither back has pulled away as a favorite to handle more work. The modest Kansas City run game duo has failed to produce a rush over 11 yards in 48 combined carries this season. Pacheco has not looked the same since returning from his fibula fracture last season, and he'll need to improve his play before the Chiefs decide to make substantial changes to the run game. The good news is that Pacheco has the easiest matchup for running backs this week, the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens have allowed the most fantasy points to opposing running backs this season, and Pacheco could benefit from this advantageous matchup. Pacheco is ranked RB36 in our RotoBaller Half-PPR rankings, putting two spots behind Hunt and on the edge of RB3/Flex range. This could be a make-or-break week for Pacheco's role moving forward, so it will be interesting to see what he can do.

Friday, September 26, 9:24 PM

Washington Commanders running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt (knee) practiced in full on Friday after three straight DNPs earlier in the week. Croskey-Merritt should be all good to go for Week 4's matchup in Atlanta with the opportunity to see more work. He led the backfield with a 41% snap share and 23% route share while tying Chris Rodriguez Jr. with two goal-line carries. Rodriguez surprisingly started the game for Washington and led the team with 11 carries, clearly indicating that he will have a role. Croskey-Merritt will need to continue to gain the coaching staff's trust in pass protection before earning a bigger workload. He did, however, have a few positive moments as a pass blocker last week against the Raiders and has been continuously praised by the staff. Atlanta has been tougher on running backs through three weeks, allowing the eighth fewest fantasy points per game at 11.3. That puts Croskey-Merritt in RB3 territory for Week 4.