Who Should I Start? Khalil Herbert or Keaton Mitchell

Wednesday, March 12, 5:14 PM

The Indianapolis Colts and free-agent running back Khalil Herbert reached an agreement on an undisclosed one-year deal on Wednesday, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Herbert began the 2024 season with the Chicago Bears and had only eight carries for 16 yards and a touchdown in six games before being traded to the Cincinnati Bengals, where he finished with 28 carries for 114 yards and no touchdowns in eight games behind Chase Brown. Now in Indianapolis, the 26-year-old will have a similar backup role to Jonathan Taylor. Because he's unlikely to see much volume unless Taylor misses time with an injury, Herbert will mainly be a handcuff in deeper leagues for those that draft Taylor. The former sixth-rounder (217th overall) by the Bears in 2021 has averaged 4.8 yards per carry on 400 rushing attempts for 1,905 yards and nine TDs in his four years in the NFL.

Tuesday, June 3, 2:37 PM

Baltimore Ravens running back Keaton Mitchell suffered a significant ACL tear at the end of his 2023 rookie campaign and was limited to just five games in 2024, logging touches in two contests. In his first season, the East Carolina product averaged a whopping 8.4 yards per carry on 47 rushing attempts, totalling 396 yards and two touchdowns. Had he not suffered a major injury, he could have entered last season as the clear RB2 behind Derrick Henry, but he'll get that chance again entering the 2025 campaign, and the 23-year-old is back to 100%. "I feel like I'm back better than when I first got here," Mitchell said. "I tell guys a lot that talk to me that I'm starting all over. They don't even know what I can do. I'm just starting all over again, proving what I can do and taking it day by day." While Henry remains the clear workhorse in Baltimore, he is entering his age-31 season and carries additional injury risk. In deeper setups, Mitchell and Justice Hill can be considered handcuff stashes, though Rasheen Ali will also have the chance to compete for a spot on the depth chart.