Who Should I Start? Travis Etienne Jr. or Jacory Croskey-Merritt
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Travis Etienne Jr. News
Tuesday, May 26, 8:43 AM
New Orleans Saints running back Travis Etienne Jr. kicks off the next chapter of his career in the coming months. After five years in Jacksonville, Etienne leveraged a terrific 2025 season into a nice payday with the Saints, not to mention the added security of a four-year contract. The Clemson product missed his rookie campaign in 2021, but he followed up that up with 1,000 rushing yards in three of his next four seasons. In 2025, he was the RB10 in PPR leagues with 1,107 rushing yards, 36 catches, 292 receiving yards, and 13 touchdowns. While the Saints still have Alvin Kamara on the roster, their $48 million investment in Etienne suggests that the former Jaguar will be their every-down back going forward. His arrival is timed nicely with the trajectory of the Saints' offense. New Orleans' offense is trending upward after Tyler Shough had a terrific rookie season, Chris Olave and Juwan Johnson both had the best years of their career, and Jordyn Tyson was selected in the first round of the draft. Etienne is another piece in that puzzle, and while it's admittedly a crowded offense, the Saints should be competitive enough to offer plenty of volume (and goal-line opportunities) to their primary running back. Etienne remains a top-10 running back in redraft leagues, although he's a bit lower in dynasty formats. He ranks 18th among running backs in RotoBaller's latest dynasty fantasy football rankings.
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Jacory Croskey-Merritt News
Saturday, April 25, 6:11 PM
Washington Commanders running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt remains atop the depth chart following the 2026 NFL Draft. There was plenty of chatter that Washington might spend a premium pick on a running back, but that never came to fruition. Instead, they waited until the back half of Day 3, selecting Penn State's Kaytron Allen with the 187th overall pick in the sixth round. That's not exactly a big move, and Allen is unlikely to threaten Croskey-Merritt's role within the backfield. To this point, Rachaad White remains the biggest competition for Croskey-Merritt, but even then, it doesn't seem like he's an enormous threat. In all likelihood, Croskey-Merritt will get the bulk of the early-down carries after posting 805 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns as a rookie last year. Meanwhile, White will get more involved on passing downs, plus as a change-of-pace back when Croskey-Merritt needs a breather on early downs. That sentiment is reflected in RotoBaller's latest dynasty rankings, which have Croskey-Merritt slotted in as the overall RB44.
Travis Etienne Jr. vs. Jacory Croskey-Merritt
Still trying to decide between Etienne Jr. and Croskey-Merritt? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Travis Etienne Jr. is projected to score 0.0 points this week while Jacory Croskey-Merritt is projected to score 0.0 points.
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