Who Should I Start? Richie James or Isaiah Likely

Saturday, July 19, 11:06 AM

Wide receiver Richie James announced on X on Friday that he is retiring from professional football. "It took time but i have come to realize I am retired from the NFL. Seventh round out of MTSU. I feel like I was just a ballplayer to last that long. Unfortunately, my knee never healed properly. I was playing hurt since 2022. Oh well. I gave everything I got to the game of football," James wrote. The 29-year-old was originally selected 240th overall in the seventh round by the San Francisco 49ers in the 2018 NFL draft out of Middle Tennessee State. He played the first three years of his career in the Bay Area before joining the New York Giants in 2022. James last played for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2023. He will finish his five-year career with 105 catches on 143 targets for 1,372 yards and seven touchdowns in 66 regular-season games (15 starts).

Saturday, December 13, 11:21 AM

Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely has seen an increased amount of work over the last two weeks. He finished as the TE9 in each of the last two weeks in half-PPR formats, and saw six targets in both games while catching nine of the possible 12. The last time he took on the Cincinnati Bengals' defense in Week 13, Likely finished with five catches for 95 yards and a fumble. The Bengals are far and away the weakest defense against opposing tight ends (ranked 32nd on the season and last four weeks), so Likely and Mark Andrews should both see plenty of opportunities. The biggest issue is the game script and if the Ravens' coaching staff actually wants to commit to the run, roll with Andrews more often, or keep finding Likely. With that being said, Likely projects as the TE12 on RotoBaller's rankings this week.