Who Should I Start? Trey Benson or Woody Marks

Wednesday, December 10, 12:00 PM

Arizona Cardinals running back Trey Benson (knee) will not be activated off Injured Reserve for the team's Week 15 matchup against the Houston Texans, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Since Benson will not return within his 21-day activation window, he will revert to season-ending IR and will not be eligible to return in 2025. Benson suffered a knee injury in Week 4 that was serious enough to land him on IR, but was not thought at the time to be season-ending. It's unclear whether the 23-year-old suffered a setback once his activation window was opened, or if the 3-10 Cardinals are simply choosing to be cautious with their potential running back of the future. Either way, Benson should now be completely off the radar of redraft fantasy managers for the remainder of 2025. His absence ups the value of Cardinals running backs Bam Knight and Michael Carter, who should continue to see the majority of the team's backfield snaps. Emari Demercado (ankle) could play a role in Arizona as well once he returns from the ankle injury that has sidelined him since Week 11.

Tuesday, January 6, 11:32 AM

Across 16 games in his rookie campaign, Houston Texans running back Woody Marks has recorded 196 carries for 703 yards and two touchdowns while adding 24 catches for 208 yards and three scores on 36 targets. Marks has operated as Houston's lead back for most of the season, but he's been one of the least efficient runners in the league, averaging 3.59 yards per carry, which ranks 48th out of 49 RBs with at least 100 carries. The rookie fourth-rounder hasn't been very dynamic on his high volume of touches, and he will now face a stout Pittsburgh Steelers defense that allowed the fewest rushing yards per game (73.3) over the final four weeks of the season. Marks profiles as a risky RB3/flex for the Wild-Card round matchup on Monday night.