Who Should I Start? Michael Penix Jr. or Jacory Croskey-Merritt

Tuesday, October 14, 11:59 AM

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. completed 20 of 32 passes for 250 yards and a touchdown in Monday night's 24-14 win over the Bills, adding two rushes for six yards. The former first-round draft pick has looked more confident in his last two contests (69 percent completion rate, 3:1 TD:INT) after posting duds in Weeks 2 and 3 (54 percent completion rate, 0:2 TD:INT). Still, even though he's recorded one rushing score this season, the 25-year-old has gained just 37 yards on the ground through five games in 2025, so he does not have that weekly floor built into his fantasy value that so many other QBs have these days, currently ranking as the No. 27 QB in fantasy. The University of Washington product will face a 49ers defense in Week 7 that is middle of the pack in terms of allowing fantasy production to opposing QBs, but proactive managers interested in a streaming option might look ahead to the following week, where he'll face a soft Miami defense that has been generous in the passing game, giving up the third-most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks.

Thursday, October 16, 3:14 PM

Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury said that the team is "still confident" in rookie running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt despite his ball-security issues, according to Tashan Reed of The Washington Post. Croskey-Merritt was unable to keep the momentum he had coming out of a breakout game in the Week 5 win over the Los Angeles Chargers, as he had 61 rushing yards on 17 carries and caught one pass for seven yards in the Monday night loss to the Chicago Bears. The 24-year-old also had a crucial fumble early in the game that led to a Bears touchdown. With Austin Ekeler (Achilles) out for the season, JCM isn't going anywhere in Washington's backfield and is clearly a better lead-back option than both Chris Rodriguez Jr. and Jeremy McNichols. Croskey-Merritt should maintain heavy volume in a plus matchup in Week 7 and is ripe for a bounce-back performance against the division-rival Dallas Cowboys.