Who Should I Start? Saquon Barkley or Alvin Kamara

Monday, March 11, 2:57 PM

Free-agent running back Saquon Barkley is signing with the Philadelphia Eagles on a three-year, $37.75 million deal. The deal includes $26 million in guaranteed money and has an additional $9 million available in incentives. After a 2018 rookie season that saw the former Penn State star go for over 2,000 yards from scrimmage and 15 touchdowns, he has struggled to stay healthy over a chunk of the next five years of his career. He missed 21 games from 2019 to 2021. He bounced back in 2022 with 1,312 rushing yards but regressed to 962 yards in 14 games in 2023. However, the Eagles believe in him as a game-changing running back, as his average salary ($12.58 million) ranks only below Christian McCaffrey, Alvin Kamara, and Jonathan Taylor. Although the Eagles' offensive line could take a hit after the retirement of Jason Kelce, Barkley should be playing behind the best offensive line of his career in 2024. He will have an immediate high-end RB1 upside in fantasy football.

Wednesday, February 21, 2:02 PM

NewOrleans.Football's Nick Underhill believes that New Orleans Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak is going to bring a running game that will give running back Alvin Kamara "more space" to operate in 2024. Kubiak, who comes to New Orleans from the San Francisco 49ers, is expected to add plenty of pre-snap motion, something the Saints rarely did in 2023. The 28-year-old Kamara finished second among all RBs last year with 75 catches on 86 targets for 466 yards and a touchdown through the air. He added 180 rushing attempts for 694 yards and five touchdowns on the ground, so perhaps the addition of Kubiak will make Kamara more productive on the ground next season. Still, fantasy managers should have hesitations about Kamara's overall effectiveness as a rusher as he enters his age-29 campaign in 2024.