Who Should I Start? Michael Thomas or Christian McCaffrey

Wednesday, September 11, 8:40 PM

The National Football League on Wednesday announced that it has lifted the suspension of free-agent wide receiver Michael Thomas. Thomas was suspended for the first game of the 2024 NFL season for an incident with a construction worker near his home last year. The fact that the 31-year-old remained without a team all offseason is a sign that he may struggle to latch on with an organization despite the fact that he's past his one-game suspension. Just several years ago, Thomas was the best receiver in the league, but injuries have limited him to 20 games since the start of the 2020 campaign, and he played in just 10 games with the New Orleans Saints last year before a knee injury ended his season. He caught 39 passes for 448 yards and one touchdown in 2023. Thomas belongs on the waiver wire in all leagues and is unlikely to be on the fantasy radar in 2024.

Sunday, October 26, 8:20 PM

San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey rushed for just 25 yards on eight carries during Sunday's Week 8 loss against the Houston Texans. He also caught three of his six targets for an additional 43 receiving yards. McCaffrey had his worst game of the season; his 9.8 points in PPR leagues marked the first time he scored fewer than 22 points in a single game this year. This was a rare dud for McCaffrey, and part of the blame can be attributed to the quarterback position, as Mac Jones (59.4% completion rate, 193 yards, two touchdowns, one interception) struggled to put together many quality drives in place of Brock Purdy (toe). McCaffrey is still one of the most talented running backs in recent NFL history, and he should have no trouble bouncing back against a struggling Giants squad in Week 9.