Who Should I Start? Mo Alie-Cox or Kareem Hunt

Friday, February 23, 2:30 PM

The Athletic's James Boyd writes that Indianapolis Colts tight end Mo Alie-Cox is an easy target if the team wishes to create more salary cap space this offseason. He's entering the final year of a three-year, $17.6 million contract extension that he signed in 2022. Alie-Cox is due the last $5.9 million of that in 2024, but none of it is guaranteed. The 30-year-old is the team's best blocking tight end and has recorded at least three touchdowns in each of the last three seasons, but he's not getting any younger and is unlikely to develop into a true No. 1 pass-catching tight end at this point of his career. Both Will Mallory and third-year tight end Jelani Woods, who missed all of 2023 with hamstring issues, give the Colts more upside at the position amid their current youth movement. Alie-Cox hasn't been much more than a low-upside, touchdown-dependent TE2 option for fantasy managers in deep leagues.

Tuesday, January 30, 8:42 PM

Cleveland Browns running back Kareem Hunt (hernia) recently had sports-hernia surgery to fix a ruptured adductor, according to sources. Hunt played in 15 games in his fifth year with the Browns in 2023, but he was listed on the injury report often with a groin injury and averaged a career-low 3.0 yards per carry on 135 attempts for 411 rushing yards and a career-high nine rushing TDs in the regular season. He added a career-low 15 receptions for 84 yards through the air. The 28-year-old's lower numbers now make more sense, but he still had plenty of fantasy appeal as a flex play because of his red-zone usage and nose for the end zone. Hunt could be more effective with better health in 2024, but he's also scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent. His fantasy appeal will depend on where he lands, and there's a good chance it won't be in Cleveland.