Who Should I Start? Jordan Mason or Chase Brown

Wednesday, April 2, 9:44 AM

It sounds as though Minnesota Vikings running back Jordan Mason, who was acquired from the San Francisco 49ers this offseason, will have a notable role in the team's backfield in 2025 as the "1b" behind starter Aaron Jones. "I do think Jordan's gonna bring something to the table in those short-yardage situations, those goal-line situations, goal-to-go, where we've really left a lot to be desired as a football team," head coach Kevin O'Connell said. If healthy, Jones should be Minnesota's go-to guy on the early downs and on third down in obvious passing situations, but the presence of Mason as the potential goal-line guy for the Vikes could be bad news for Jones' fantasy ceiling and floor this upcoming season. Mason, 25, has averaged at least 5.2 yards per carry in his three years in the NFL and looked good filling in for the injured Christian McCaffrey in 2025. He'll be a handcuff to Jones but could also be in play as a touchdown-dependent RB3/flex in deeper leagues.

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.