Who Should I Start? Jaleel McLaughlin or TreVeyon Henderson

Saturday, January 24, 7:55 PM

Denver Broncos running back Jaleel McLaughlin should continue to be the primary change-of-pace back behind rookie RJ Harvey, with J.K. Dobbins remaining on Injured Reserve after a week of limited practices. In Denver's Divisional Round win over a Bills team that came into the playoffs with one of the worst run defenses in the league, McLaughlin was able to turn four carries into 21 yards. In the Conference Championship, he'll face a Patriots defense that has been dominant against the run since Milton Williams' return from an ankle injury that cost him five games. Through two playoff games, New England has allowed a total of 74 yards on designed runs, so if McLaughlin is to find any success on Sunday, it may need to come through screens and checkdowns, though that is a role that's been owned by Harvey for most of the year. McLaughlin is RotoBaller's RB7 for the week, but there is a world where he is entirely phased out of the game script.

Monday, January 26, 1:05 PM

New England Patriots rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson played a season-low 6% of the offensive snaps in Sunday's win over the hosting Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship. Meanwhile, backfield mate Rhamondre Stevenson played a season-high 94% of the snaps, carrying the ball 25 times for 71 yards in the 10-7 snowy victory. Henderson once again took a back seat to Stevenson, rushing the pigskin only three times for five yards. He was not targeted in the passing game. There was little offense to come by for either team in bad conditions in the second half in the Mile High City on Sunday, as the Patriots only mustered 206 yards of total offense. The 23-year-old from Ohio State had 23 total touches in the team's first two playoff wins, and he'll head into the Super Bowl in two weeks against a tough Seattle Seahawks defense as New England's clear No. 2 RB behind Stevenson.