Who Should I Start? Kenneth Walker III or Kaleb Johnson

Thursday, August 21, 12:06 PM

Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (foot) is in full pads at practice on Thursday for the third straight day, according to Gregg Bell of The Tacoma News Tribune. Walker suffered a minor foot injury earlier this month and had been alternating practice days as a precaution given his lengthy history with lower-body ailments. The 24-year-old appears to be moving past the foot issue in the final week of the preseason, but he'll probably be held out of the finale this weekend against the Green Bay Packers. Walker has been very productive for Seattle and fantasy managers when he's healthy, but he's almost guaranteed to miss some time again in 2025 due to injury. It's why the Seahawks have hinted that they will involve Zach Charbonnet more in order to try and keep Walker available. He has become a risk/reward RB2 for fantasy purposes.

Friday, August 22, 11:18 AM

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Kaleb Johnson turned five carries into 24 yards and gained two yards on his only reception of a 19-10 exhibition win over the Carolina Panthers. Johnson was productive with most of his touches on Thursday night and did play a few snaps with Pittsburgh's first-team offense. The bad news, however, is that he entered the contest after both Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell got some run. Johnson also had a few opportunities on special teams in the first quarter, returning the opening kickoff and later a punt, both for gains of 22 yards. The rookie's role on offense isn't exactly clear heading into the regular season, but fantasy managers should not plan to deploy him as a reliable RB2 right away. Johnson is better viewed as a bench stash with the upside to become a valuable asset down the stretch.