Who Should I Start? J.K. Dobbins or Elijah Mitchell

Monday, September 11, 4:49 PM

Baltimore Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins (Achilles) is expected to undergo surgery on Friday for his torn Achilles, according to a source. Los Angeles Rams running back Cam Akers recovered in less than six months from a torn Achilles two years ago, and Dobbins is aiming for a similar timeline with his recovery. In any event, fantasy managers in redraft leagues can safely drop Dobbins after just one week of the 2023 season. The 24-year-old will enter free agency next March, but he'll have to prove his health before any other teams take a chance on the injury-prone running back. With Dobbins now out of the picture, Gus Edwards and Justice Hill will share Baltimore's backfield, with veteran Melvin Gordon III expected to join the roster from the practice squad.

Friday, September 22, 11:29 AM

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan made good on his promise to get running back Elijah Mitchell involved in the game plan after Mitchell didn't play at all in the Week 2 win over the Los Angeles Rams. On Thursday night in the 30-12 win over the New York Giants, Mitchell saw a season-high 11 carries for 42 yards and caught all three of his targets for two yards. It was nice to see the 25-year-old get more involved in a game that wasn't close at all late, but Mitchell's week-to-week workload could vary drastically based on game flow, and as long as bell-cow Christian McCaffrey is healthy and doing his thing, Mitchell isn't going to have standalone fantasy value. He could, however, see another solid workload in a Week 4 matchup with the lowly Arizona Cardinals.