Who Should I Start? Najee Harris or Rhamondre Stevenson

Wednesday, September 24, 6:15 PM

The Los Angeles Chargers announced on Wednesday that they placed running back Najee Harris (Achilles) on Injured Reserve, according to Fernando Ramirez of the Sporting Tribune. Harris' season is over after he tore his Achilles in the Week 3 win over the Denver Broncos on Sunday. It's a disappointing end to his first year with the Bolts after signing with them in free agency in the offseason. The 27-year-old will end his streak of four straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons to begin his career. In his three games this year, Harris carried the ball 15 times for 61 yards and no touchdowns, adding three receptions for 25 yards through the air. The Chargers will be forced to lean more on rookie first-rounder Omarion Hampton as their lead back going forward, making him a must-start each week. Hassan Haskins will be elevated to the RB2 role, with Kimani Vidal the next man up at No. 2 in the backfield.

Sunday, January 18, 10:00 AM

New England Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson has been playing some of the best football of his career lately, and he'll look to carry that momentum into Sunday's Divisional Round contest against the Houston Texans. Stevenson has scored double-digit fantasy points (full-PPR) in each of his last six games, re-establishing himself as the primary running back in New England. His last four games have been particularly dominant, as he has tallied 461 scrimmage yards and six touchdowns in that short window. His efficiency has been the most impressive part of his success, as Stevenson posted those absurd numbers while handling 13 or fewer touches in each of the four games. He should handle a similar workload on Sunday afternoon, but he'll admittedly face a tougher test in the form of the Houston Texans' elite defense. Houston's defense has allowed the fourth-fewest rushing yards and eighth-fewest fantasy points to opposing running backs in 2025. We still believe that Stevenson's pure talent could allow him to overcome this difficult matchup, but managers should have lower expectations than they did in the last few weeks. As it stands, Stevenson ranks as the overall RB8 in RotoBaller's fantasy rankings for the Divisional Round, putting him one spot ahead of teammate TreVeyon Henderson.