Who Should I Start? Saquon Barkley or Kenneth Gainwell

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.

Sunday, January 7, 7:37 PM

Philadelphia Eagles running back Kenneth Gainwell took seven carries for 62 yards and failed to catch his lone target in Sunday's 10-27 loss to the New York Giants. D'Andre Swift (illness) was ruled out early on Sunday, leaving the 24-year-old as the starter for the final game of the regular season. Gainwell looked good early but was not given the ball much after the team fell behind. The Eagle's offense was in disarray, with all of their top skills players injured either before or during the game, leading to a disappointing performance for everyone involved. Swift should be good to go next week when the Eagles travel to Tampa to take on the Buccaneers, leaving Gainwell off most managers' fantasy radars in DFS and tournaments.