Who Should I Start? Saquon Barkley or Kenneth Gainwell

Tuesday, November 11, 12:41 AM

Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley recorded 22 carries for 60 yards and added three receptions (three targets) for 41 yards in Monday night's 10-7 win over the Green Bay Packers. It was a struggle for Barkley and the Philadelphia offense all night, as he averaged just 2.7 yards per carry, and even his 41 receiving yards came entirely on one reception. It was a disappointing performance for the 28-year-old after having his best game of the season before the bye in Week 8 against the Giants, totaling 174 yards and two touchdowns. He did tweak his groin in that game, but was cleared from the injury report earlier this week. Barkley has already posted five games with fewer than four yards per carry this season after having just two such games all of last season. His involvement as a receiver this season has at least helped offset the lack of breakaway runs, with 27 receptions through nine games compared to 33 in 16 games last year. Barkley will look to bounce back in Week 11 against the Detroit Lions.

Tuesday, November 11, 4:11 PM

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Kenneth Gainwell has had a solid season while serving as the No. 2 back behind Jaylen Warren and could be in line for more opportunities moving forward. Head coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday that Warren "simply cannot play every down" when asked if he should play more snaps. Gainwell has played mostly on pass downs with Warren healthy and actually outsnapped him 27 to 24 in Pittsburgh's Week 10 loss to the Chargers. The Steelers were trailing for most of the game, which led to the uptick in snaps for the 26-year-old, but he had only three receptions for four yards on four targets. Tomlin also pointed out that if the Steelers win more on third down, then Warren will get more touches. Pittsburgh was unable to sustain drives on Sunday night, going just two for 11 on third downs. Gainwell should continue to play a prominent role on late downs with the potential to fill in as the workhorse if Warren were to miss any time.