Who Should I Start? Malik Davis or Dylan Sampson
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.2 | 16.6 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 3.3 | 0.0 |
Malik Davis News
Sunday, August 30, 12:14 PM
Dallas Cowboys running back Malik Davis came out of Sunday's cuts with a much cleaner path behind Javonte Williams. Dallas waived both Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah, two backs who had spent the summer competing with Davis for the No. 2 job. The timing matters because Davis was already pulling ahead before either move. Jon Machota reported last week that the Cowboys seemed most comfortable with Davis as their RB2, and Cowboys.com made the same call after the second preseason game. Davis gave them reasons to trust him. He led Dallas' backs with 39 yards on seven carries in the preseason opener, then flashed in pass protection against Arizona. He also rushed for 250 yards and two touchdowns on 52 carries last season, averaging 4.8 yards per attempt. This still isn't a path to major standalone volume with Williams healthy, and Dallas could add another back after cuts. For now, though, two of Davis' biggest competitors are gone. He's one of the clearest redraft winners from the Cowboys' roster moves.
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6.1 | 16.9 | 0.1 | 1.9 | 14.8 | 0.1 |
Dylan Sampson News
Wednesday, August 26, 8:52 PM
Cleveland Browns running back Dylan Sampson remains in the No. 2 spot on the depth chart, but he should still carve out a role this season as a key pass-catching option for veteran starting quarterback Deshaun Watson. Sampson had 33 catches for 271 receiving yards (and just 175 rushing yards) as a rookie last year. For the most part, he operated behind fellow rookie Quinshon Judkins and mostly saw the field on passing downs. Judkins is expected to be the lead back once Week 1 comes around, so the big question is whether Sampson can have enough involvement to get on the weekly fantasy radar. It's not as simple as Judkins getting the early downs and Sampson getting the passing downs, as the former is a very capable pass catcher, and the latter does earn some carries from time to time, too. For now, Sampson has a little bit of RB3/flex appeal in deeper full-PPR leagues, but in all other formats, he's a better fit as a handcuff for fantasy managers who already have Judkins on their roster. Sampson is the RB53 in RotoBaller's latest half-PPR and full-PPR draft rankings for the 2026 fantasy football season.
Malik Davis vs. Dylan Sampson
Still trying to decide between Davis and Sampson? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Malik Davis is projected to score 3.2 points this week while Dylan Sampson is projected to score 6.1 points.
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