Who Should I Start? Samaje Perine or Dameon Pierce

Thursday, May 1, 3:25 PM

Cincinnati Bengals running back Samaje Perine is expected to have a lesser version of the two-minute, passing-down role that he held near the end of his first tenure with the organization, according to Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic. Perine spent the 2020, 2021, and 2022 seasons with the Bengals and secured 38 receptions in his final season with the team. After a year with Denver and a year with Kansas City, he's back in Joe Burrow's offense and will have somewhat of a role in the backfield. However, the 29-year-old is likely well past his prime, and Chase Brown showed enough to have confidence in him as a starting fantasy football running back in 2025. Either way, Perine could be worth rostering in deeper PPR setups based on this report.

Monday, September 1, 12:27 AM

Houston Texans running back Dameon Pierce (quad) told KPRC's Aaron Wilson that his recovery is ahead of schedule and he feels ready for the regular season. "It's really a couple weeks ahead of schedule, which is a blessing," Pierce said. "I feel ready to go." The Florida product missed six games last season and didn't mak a single start. In order to get him some game reps before the regular season, the Texans' coaching staff put him on the field for a portion of their preseason finale earlier this month. In that contest, he rushed seven times for 17 yards on the ground. Houston may be forced to call on the 25-year-old early this season as the timetable for Joe Mixon (ankle) remains very unclear. At a minimum, he'll miss four games, leaving Nick Chubb to lead the backfield while Pierce and Woody Marks occupy supplementary roles. There's a chance Pierce could earn some meaningful touches, which would justify drafting him in the final rounds of your fantasy draft. However, it's just as likely that Chubb and Marks both play quite well, leaving Pierce without much of a role. At worst, you can draft him with your final pick and then just drop him if it doesn't work out.