Who Should I Start? Rashid Shaheed or Bucky Irving

Saturday, January 24, 8:00 PM

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Rashid Shaheed was largely responsible for putting last week's Divisional Round rubber match with the 49ers out of hand from the jump, returning the opening kickoff for a touchdown in a game that was never close. The play marked Shaheed's third special teams score since being acquired from the New Orleans Saints via a mid-season trade, but his impact has been felt less on offense. After playing his first half of the season in New Orleans on a 17-game pace of 83 receptions for 943 yards and four touchdowns, that pace has fallen drastically to 26 catches for 320 yards and zero receiving touchdowns since his trade to Seattle. Over the past four games, he's caught two passes for ten yards. Even against a Los Angeles defense that has been beatable through the air, Shaheed carries very little value outside of fantasy playoff leagues that reward return yards and touchdowns.

Wednesday, December 17, 10:13 AM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving took on the majority of the workload in Week 15, totaling just 71 scrimmage yards on 17 attempts. Since returning from shoulder and foot injuries in Week 13, Irving has totaled 233 scrimmage yards and two touchdowns on 53 attempts, averaging 13.4 PPR points per game. While he started the season as the primary workhorse in this Buccaneers' offense, Irving has been limited to just 54% of the snaps, while backups Rachaad White (43% and Sean Tucker (14%) have been factors. Irving faces the Carolina Panthers defense in Week 16, which has allowed the tenth-most fantasy points to running backs this season. In his only two games against the Panthers in his career, he has had over 185 scrimmage yards in both outings. In a must-win game for the Buccaneers and with his favorable history against Carolina, look for Irving to unleash in Week 16.