Who Should I Start? MarShawn Lloyd or Dylan Sampson

Thursday, July 17, 10:38 PM

Last year, Green Bay Packers running backs Emanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks shared backup duties behind bell-cow Josh Jacobs. But their biggest challenger for the No. 2 job in 2025 comes from MarShawn Lloyd, writes Packers.com's Mike Spofford. The third-rounder out of USC in 2024 was derailed by injuries in his rookie season, first by a hip injury early in training camp and then a hamstring injury in the preseason. Lloyd injured his ankle in his lone regular-season appearance in Week 2 and then had appendicitis that required emergency surgery when he was on the verge of coming off Injured Reserve. The 5-foot-9, 220-pounder offers an intriguing mix of speed, shiftiness and power that will make him an interesting handcuff option for fantasy managers that draft Jacobs. In addition to beating out Wilson and Brooks, Lloyd will need to solve ball-security issues he had in college.

Saturday, June 28, 11:38 AM

Cleveland Browns rookie fourth-round running back Dylan Sampson received work "as a running back and a receiver" during minicamp, according to RBs coach Duce Staley. Staley went on to add that Sampson "is able to go play in the slot and also he's able to go and play on third down and maybe sprinkle in a little second down." The Cleveland Plain Dealer's Dan Labbe thinks that heading into training camp, rookies Quinshon Judkins and Sampson figure to be the top two backs, with Jerome Ford serving as the primary third-down back. The 20-year-old Sampson rushed for 1,491 yards and 22 touchdowns (5.8 yards per carry) in 2024 at Tennessee, but he wasn't all that involved as a pass-catcher. He's a speedy back that could be worth a dart throw in deep PPR formats, but most likely he'll be an inconsistent fantasy performer unless Judkins misses time with an injury.