Who Should I Start? Jeremy McNichols or Chase Brown

Tuesday, March 11, 4:37 PM

The Washington Commanders are re-signing running back Jeremy McNichols to an undisclosed one-year deal on Tuesday, a source tells ESPN's John Keim. Although McNichols wasn't on the fantasy radar at all last year in his first year in D.C., he was a valuable member of the team's RB room as a backup for his blitz pickups while also contributing a career-high 267 rushing yards and a career-high four rushing touchdowns on 55 carries over 17 regular-season games (one start). He also had nine catches for 27 yards and added nine yards and a touchdown on five carries in three playoff games. With both Brian Robinson Jr. and Austin Ekeler returning to the Commanders' backfield in 2025, McNichols will open the year as the No. 3 RB and will have a bigger role on special teams as a return man. The 29-year-old has only 625 rushing yards and five rushing TDs on 145 carries over seven NFL seasons.

Tuesday, March 4, 5:41 PM

Bengals beat writer Geoff Hobson gets the sense that the Cincinnati Bengals are looking to go bigger for a complement to lead back Chase Brown this offseason with Zack Moss' (neck) status unclear. Brown played big as a three-down back in 2024 after Moss' injury and racked up an impressive 1,350 scrimmage yards on 283 touches while also protecting quarterback Joe Burrow, but offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher wouldn't mind another big and physical back to help Brown out. "The easy answer is Chase isn't the biggest guy, so maybe if you have an opportunity to add a bigger back with a little more power repertoire to his game, that size helps you in protection," Pitcher said. The 24-year-old Brown finished as the RB12 in half-PPR scoring in 2024 thanks to his workhorse role, and although he should remain the lead back in a high-scoring offense, fantasy managers should expect some regression.