Who Should I Start? Jeremy McNichols or Dameon Pierce

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.

Wednesday, July 23, 11:07 AM

The Houston Texans placed both wide receiver Tank Dell (knee) and running back Dameon Pierce (undisclosed) on the Physically Unable to Perform list on Wednesday, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. Dell suffered a dislocated knee and tore his ACL, MCL and LCL last year in Week 16, so he's not expected to practice at all in training camp or play at all in 2025. The 25-year-old has already had multiple surgeries on his knee in the offseason and may never be the same player if he's able to return in 2026. It's part of the reason why Houston drafted rookie pass-catchers Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel. Pierce, meanwhile, will be sidelined to begin training camp this summer with an undisclosed ailment, but he can be activated at any time. When healthy, he'll primarily be battling former Brown Nick Chubb for backup duties to Joe Mixon (ankle).