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 24, 11:08 PM

Baltimore Ravens running back Keaton Mitchell suffered an ACL tear in his knee in his rookie year in 2023 but has shown the same speed and explosiveness in offseason workouts that he teased back in 2023 before his season-ending injury. Mitchell was still navigating physical and mental hurdles when he returned last November to average just 2.0 yards per carry in five regular-season games. The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec writes that the 23-year-old has looked quicker and more assertive during offseason workouts in recent weeks, which is a great development for the Ravens. Although Derrick Henry remains the RB1 workhorse in Baltimore, he's not getting any younger, and Mitchell is far too explosive not to be used in 2025. Mitchell has the most upside of the Ravens' backup RBs and would be a fine handcuff to Henry.