Who Should I Start? Jaydon Blue or Jacory Croskey-Merritt

Monday, November 3, 8:00 PM

Dallas Cowboys rookie running back Jaydon Blue and wide receiver Jonathan Mingo are both healthy scratches for the team's Monday night game against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 9. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer was very critical of Blue following the Week 8 loss to the Denver Broncos, in which Blue had a costly fumble. The 21-year-old will now be inactive this week in favor of Malik Davis as Dallas' RB2 behind starter Javonte Williams. It's a step back for Blue, who didn't make his NFL debut until Week 5 for the Cowboys. In his four games played, the fifth-rounder out of Texas has carried the ball 22 times for 65 yards (3.0 yards per carry) while adding one catch for five yards. While Blue probably won't be in the doghouse for the rest of the season, he's in street clothes on Monday night and has currently lost out on the RB2 role in Dallas.

Tuesday, November 4, 4:40 PM

Washington Commanders rookie running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt has struggled over the past month after a hot start to the season. The rookie has recorded 51 carries for 151 yards, no touchdowns, and a lost fumble while adding just three receptions (five targets) for nine yards in his past four games. Croskey-Merritt was outproduced by third-year back Chris Rodriguez Jr. in Washington's blowout loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday night. Rodriguez could be earning his way back into a more prominent role on early downs while veteran Jeremy McNichols handles the pass-down responsibilities. Croskey-Merritt has been held below four yards per carry in each of the last four games and has a longest run of just 11 yards in that time. Now, with star quarterback Jayden Daniels (elbow) out for an extended period of time, the Washington offense as a whole takes a significant hit. Croskey-Merritt doesn't catch passes, and now that the explosive runs have dried up, it's left fantasy managers with a disappointing result. After a promising start to his career, Croskey-Merritt looks more like an RB3/RB4 option than the potential league winner he appeared to be earlier in the year.