Who Should I Start? Saquon Barkley or Gus Edwards

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, March 20, 2:09 PM

New Los Angeles Chargers running back Gus Edwards will have a big role in the offense in his first year with the team, according to The Athletic's Daniel Popper. Head coach Jim Harbaugh, general manager Joe Hortiz and offensive coordinator Greg Roman have all stated their goal of building a reliable running game to help quarterback Justin Herbert. Edwards brings the Bolts a downhill running style, physicality and proven production in Roman's scheme with the Baltimore Ravens. However, it feels like LA will add at least one more piece at RB this offseason, either in free agency or the upcoming NFL draft. The 28-year-old had 13 rushing touchdowns and 810 rushing yards on a career-high 198 attempts in 2023 in Baltimore, but he also had a career-low 4.1 yards per carry and is certainly going to regress in the TD department in his first year with the Chargers.