Who Should I Start? James Cook or Jaleel McLaughlin

Sunday, December 14, 9:42 PM

Buffalo Bills running back James Cook put up a dominant performance in his team's critical Week 15 win over its division rival, the New England Patriots, on Sunday. Cook recorded 22 carries for 107 yards and two touchdowns, and two receptions for four yards and a score. The 26-year-old has now racked up 1,686 yards from scrimmage and 12 touchdowns on 302 touches across 14 games this season. Cook has topped 100 scrimmage yards in five straight games and 11 out of 14 total contests in 2025. He also continues to dominate backfield touches in Buffalo, logging 22 of the team's 26 rushing attempts by running backs in Week 15. Cook profiles as a must-start fantasy running back heading into a Week 16 matchup against the Cleveland Browns.

Monday, December 15, 10:12 AM

Denver Broncos running back Jaleel McLaughlin played second fiddle to rookie running back RJ Harvey in Week 15's 34-26 victory over the Green Bay Packers, as he only had two rushes for four yards and played 13 percent of the snaps in the game. At this time, McLaughlin, at best, is a handcuff to Harvey fantasy managers as over the past four games that Harvey has taken over as the lead back after J.K. Dobbins (foot) was injured, McLaughlin has earned a total of 18 carries for 69 yards (3.83 YPC), and is playing only 15 percent of the snaps, which provides no standalone fantasy value outside of being a safety net for Harvey fantasy managers. If you do not own Harvey on your team, it makes no sense to roster McLaughlin for the final few weeks of the fantasy season.