Who Should I Start? Keaton Mitchell or Emmett Johnson


Week 1 Projections

Fant.
Pts.
Rush.
Yds.
Rush
TD
Rec. Rec.
Yds.
Rec
TD
4.7 23.6 0.1 0.8 6.3 0.0

Keaton Mitchell News

Keaton Mitchell Is Becoming a Sneaky Late-Round Target

Friday, August 21, 9:47 AM

Los Angeles Chargers running back Keaton Mitchell has a little more separation in the race behind Omarion Hampton. The Chargers' current depth chart lists Mitchell second at running back, with Kimani Vidal on the next line, and Mitchell was involved early Thursday night before a 21-yard catch was wiped out by penalty. The 5-foot-8, 191-pound back doesn't need many touches to change a game. He ran for 341 yards on 59 carries last season, averaged 5.8 yards per attempt and added nine catches for 63 yards. Los Angeles also noted that Mitchell led the NFL in average run speed in 2025 at 14.49 mph and had 11 runs of at least 10 yards. Mike McDaniel has already said he expects to use Hampton, Mitchell and Vidal every week and could ride the hot hand, so this isn't a clean backup situation. Hampton still leads the room. Mitchell just looks like the best bet for the change-of-pace work right now, and his speed gives him enough standalone upside to stay interesting late in deeper redraft drafts.


Week 1 Projections

Fant.
Pts.
Rush.
Yds.
Rush
TD
Rec. Rec.
Yds.
Rec
TD
2.3 10.3 0.1 0.4 2.9 0.0

Emmett Johnson News

Emmett Johnson the Clear RB2 in Kansas City

Monday, August 17, 7:54 AM

Kansas City Chiefs rookie fifth-round running back Emmett Johnson appears to be the clear No. 2 RB in KC in training camp behind starter Kenneth Walker, with Johnson getting the next touch after Walker in 9-on-7 drills in Monday's practice, according to Pete Sweeney of The Kansas City Star. Head coach Andy Reid had good things to say about the Nebraska product after he carried the ball 12 times for 59 yards and caught all three of his targets for 10 yards during the preseason opener against the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday. Johnson's carries and rushing yards led the team. The 22-year-old was listed as the RB3 on the first unofficial depth chart of the preseason behind Walker and Emari Demercado, but if Johnson continues to run hard and look good in camp and the preseason, it would not be a surprise at all to see him open his rookie campaign as the primary backup in KC. In addition to Demercado, Johnson is competing with Brashard Smith for the backup role. Walker will be close to a bell-cow back in his first year with the Chiefs, but Johnson's pass-catching ability alone might make him the best upside handcuff option in KC.


Keaton Mitchell vs. Emmett Johnson

Still trying to decide between Mitchell and Johnson? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Keaton Mitchell is projected to score 4.7 points this week while Emmett Johnson is projected to score 2.3 points.