Who Should I Start? Tony Pollard or James Cook

Thursday, September 21, 1:51 PM

Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard is a strong fantasy option in Week 3 despite a tough matchup against the Arizona Cardinals. Pollard has been the overall RB6 through the first two weeks of the season, but he hasn't done much in terms of breaking tackles (43rd out of 48) or yards after contact (32nd). Still, the volume of his workload and the general effectiveness of the Cowboys offense makes him a good bet to put up RB1 numbers even though the Cardinals defense has been strong against the run this year.

Friday, September 22, 2:08 PM

Buffalo Bills running back James Cook excited fantasy managers with a huge 159-yard showing in Week 2's dismantling of the Las Vegas Raiders. The 23-year-old next challenges the Washington Commanders, who have held James Conner and Javonte Williams to scoreless 14/62 and 12/44 rushing lines respectively in the opening two games. Washington's defense has proven to be slightly more vulnerable in the backend, if anything, with their ravenous defensive line, so Cook will likely need to break away for some explosive runs on the outside to penetrate this unit. Buffalo has constantly utilized him on counter plays, so expect that usage to persist in an effort to get the dynamic Cook to the second level of the field. Due to zero red-zone touches on the young season, however, the 2022 second-rounder is stuck as a high-floor RB2 in Week 3 and until further notice.