Who Should I Start? James Conner or TreVeyon Henderson

Monday, September 22, 6:34 PM

Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner (ankle) underwent season-ending surgery on Monday after suffering a significant right ankle injury in the third quarter of Sunday's game. Conner was carted off with his ankle immobilized, and head coach Jonathan Gannon confirmed he won't return this season. With Conner sidelined, the Cardinals will turn to second-year back Trey Benson, who has been highly efficient, averaging 6.0 yards per carry (second among RBs). Gannon praised Benson before the season, noting he viewed both Conner and Benson as capable starters. Benson now projects as the lead option in Arizona's backfield, while Emari Demercado is expected to mix in behind him.

Sunday, January 18, 9:19 AM

New England Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson is getting ready for one of the toughest matchups of his young career. The rookie will be tasked with finding gaps in one of the NFL's strongest run defenses, the Houston Texans, during the Divisional Round of the playoffs on Sunday afternoon. Henderson was impressive during the back half of the regular season, racking up key yardage, earning snaps over Rhamondre Stevenson, and delivering four different multi-touchdown performances. However, he has started to lose snaps lately, while Stevenson has played incredibly well and is earning more snaps. During the Wild Card Round last week, Henderson had 10 touches for 36 yards on a 41% snap share. Meanwhile, Stevenson had 13 touches for 128 yards on a 63% snap share. Henderson offers a solid change of pace, but he's not a must-start running back this week, especially against a strong run defense. The Texans allowed the eighth-fewest fantasy points to running backs during the regular season, and they held Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell to a combined 63 rushing yards last Monday. As it stands, Henderson ranks as the overall RB9 in RotoBaller's rankings for the Divisional Round, putting him one spot behind Stevenson and one spot ahead of opponent Woody Marks.