Who Should I Start? Rico Dowdle or Braelon Allen


Week 1 Projections

Fant. Pts. Rush. Yds. Rush TD Rec. Rec. Yds. Rec TD
2.9 12.8 0.1 0.8 3.5 0.0

Rico Dowdle News

Rico Dowdle, Trevor Etienne to Split Carries?

Tuesday, July 1, 9:24 PM

The Charlotte Observer's Alex Zietlow writes that Carolina Panthers running back Rico Dowdle will split carries with rookie Trevor Etienne as the backups to lead back Chuba Hubbard in 2025. Dowdle is coming of a 1,000-yard season with the Dallas Cowboys in his first year as a lead back, but he'll be working behind Hubbard. As the RB2 last year in Carolina, Miles Sanders only had 55 carries, although he was mostly injured and ineffective. Zietlow adds that the Panthers will want to find out what they have in Etienne before Jonathon Brooks (knee) returns in 2026. If anything, the 27-year-old Dowdle will take away valuable pass-catching opportunities from Hubbard on third downs in his first year in Carolina, but it's going to be hard to justify him as an every-week fantasy starter as long as Hubbard stays healthy. Dowdle is ranked as RotoBaller's RB50 going into the 2025 season.


Week 1 Projections

Fant. Pts. Rush. Yds. Rush TD Rec. Rec. Yds. Rec TD
3.9 21.4 0.2 0.3 2.6 0.0

Braelon Allen News

Braelon Allen Returns to Jets Practice

Friday, August 1, 2:16 PM

New York Jets running back Braelon Allen (knee) returned to practice on Friday, according to Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic. Allen missed the team's practices on both Wednesday and Thursday due to knee soreness. The second-year back has drawn rave reviews thus far in training camp, and early reporting indicates that the Jets plan to use more of a committee approach in the backfield between Allen, Breece Hall, and Isaiah Davis. As a rookie in 2024, Allen rushed for 334 yards and two touchdowns on 92 carries. Provided he can stay healthy, all indications are that he'll significantly increase his workload in 2025. If that happens, he could be a value as a late-round dart throw in fantasy drafts.


Rico Dowdle vs. Braelon Allen

Still trying to decide between Dowdle and Allen? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Rico Dowdle is projected to score 2.9 points this week while Braelon Allen is projected to score 3.9 points.