Who Should I Start? Rhamondre Stevenson or Jerome Ford

Friday, December 20, 10:56 PM

New England Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson could have an opportunity to demonstrate his pass-catching upside during Sunday's Week 16 game against the Buffalo Bills. New England faces Buffalo two times over the next three weeks, and this Sunday's contest could set the tone for Stevenson to win back some of the opportunities that he has ceded to Antonio Gibson lately. While Buffalo has been solid against the run, they're porous against pass-catching running backs. In fact, the Bills have allowed the most catches, most receiving yards, and second-most receiving touchdowns to opposing running backs in 2024. That bodes well for Stevenson, who has multiple catches in nine of his 13 games this season. He has caught an impressive 32 of 39 passes thrown his way this year, which is a higher total than Gibson, his backfield-mate. Touchdown opportunities have been limited for Stevenson this year, which means his fantasy managers need him to catch passes to produce points. There's no better matchup than the Bills for this to happen. As a result, he ranks as a high-end RB3 in most leagues as the fantasy playoffs carry on.

Friday, December 20, 5:43 PM

Cleveland Browns running back Jerome Ford found the end zone on a 62-yard rush in a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 15. He will take over as the Browns' starting running back after Nick Chubb (foot) was lost for the remainder of the season with a broken foot. Ford will take on a Cincinnati defense that is allowing the 17th-fewest fantasy points per game to running backs. With the Browns slated to give quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson his first start of the season, there's a chance they could lean on the run a bit more than usual against the Bengals. That, plus his ability in the passing game, puts Ford in play as a solid RB2 in fantasy heading into Week 16.