Who Should I Start? Saquon Barkley or David Montgomery


Week 1 Projections

Fant.
Pts.
Rush.
Yds.
Rush
TD
Rec. Rec.
Yds.
Rec
TD
15.8 78.6 0.5 2.5 19.9 0.1

Saquon Barkley News

Saquon Barkley Could Have His Load Managed This Season

Friday, July 31, 5:14 AM

Through the early days of training camp, Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley has worked in close to a 50/50 split with fourth-year back Tank Bigsby, with the latter drawing rave reviews from the local beat in his first offseason with the team. While Bigsby's involvement could be viewed as planned load management to keep the team's three-time Pro Bowler fresh through the summer after handling more than 800 touches across his first two campaigns with the team, Eagles reporter Eliot Shorr-Parks speculated on his Go Birds! podcast about whether Bigsby's increased involvement could stretch into the regular season. With Bigsby arriving in Philadelphia via a mid-season trade, his 2025 involvement was limited primarily to special teams, but as his offensive opportunities grew throughout the year, he took advantage, averaging nearly six yards per carry and looking decisive and explosive behind the same banged-up offensive line that was frequently pointed to as a reason Barkley was incapable of matching some of his previous-season highs. Barkley ran for only 1.6 yards after contact per carry last season, with Bigsby's number more than a full yard higher at 2.8 YPA, while his 10 broken tackles came on only 58 carries to Barkley's 18 broken tackles on 280 attempts. Barkley is RotoBaller's RB6 for 2026, but without the volume that fantasy managers are used to seeing, he could struggle to live up to ADP expectations.


Week 1 Projections

Fant.
Pts.
Rush.
Yds.
Rush
TD
Rec. Rec.
Yds.
Rec
TD
11.6 54.4 0.4 1.9 13.8 0.1

David Montgomery News

David Montgomery Still Has the Upper Hand in Houston's Backfield

Thursday, August 6, 11:00 AM

Houston Texans running back David Montgomery is not taking over an empty backfield, but he still has the better path to fantasy points. The 29-year-old was squeezed down to a career-low 158 carries in Detroit last season and still produced 716 yards and eight touchdowns, averaging 4.5 yards per attempt. Houston traded for him in March, then reworked his contract into a two-year, $16.5 million deal with $10 million guaranteed. Woody Marks is not disappearing. He led the Texans with 196 carries for 703 yards as a rookie, caught 24 passes for 208 yards and three scores, and has been preparing for a larger receiving role. Current camp reporting suggests the split will change with the situation. That still leaves Montgomery as the stronger bet for the physical early-down work, with Marks mixing in on passing downs and elsewhere. RotoBaller ranks Montgomery RB21 in PPR and RB26 in dynasty. That is a fair price for a back who has scored at least eight touchdowns in three straight seasons. He remains a solid redraft RB2 and a useful win-now piece. Rebuilding teams should be willing to shop him before the age discount gets any steeper.


Saquon Barkley vs. David Montgomery

Still trying to decide between Barkley and Montgomery? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Saquon Barkley is projected to score 15.8 points this week while David Montgomery is projected to score 11.6 points.