Who Should I Start? Michael Carter or Kimani Vidal

Saturday, January 3, 1:41 PM

Arizona Cardinals running back Michael Carter has operated as the starter for the last two weeks, but has delivered disappointing results, scoring just 6.5 and 6.3 PPR points. With Bam Knight (ankle) going down for the season in Week 15, Carter was expected to handle the lion's share of the work in Arizona's backfield. However, he's played just 49.1% of the snaps and handled 20 touches, with Emari Demercado mixing in with a 40.9% snap share and 12 touches. Arizona's offense hasn't been as exciting in recent weeks with Jacoby Brissett under center, and now they head on the road to face a Rams team that they scored just 17 points against back in Week 14. Carter projects as a decent RB3 option for the regular season finale.

Thursday, January 8, 12:17 PM

Los Angeles Chargers running back Kimani Vidal only handled three rushing attempts for 12 yards and caught one pass for a two-yard loss in the Week 18 regular-season finale versus the Denver Broncos, despite the team resting rookie Omarion Hampton (ankle). Hampton did not practice on Wednesday and might have aggravated an ankle injury that landed him on Injured Reserve earlier this season. With Hampton's status uncertain for the Wild-Card game on Sunday night against the New England Patriots, the 24-year-old Vidal could become more interesting for fantasy playoff lineups. However, the matchup isn't a great one, with New England allowing the fourth-fewest half-PPR points per game to opposing RBs in 2025. Still, a big volume increase for Vidal if Hampton is out would put him in the RB2 conversation. Vidal filled in nicely as the Bolts' lead back with Hampton hurt this year, and he posted three 100-yard games.