Who Should I Start? Will Shipley or Phil Mafah
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.6 | 3.8 | 0.0 | 0.6 | 4.4 | 0.0 |
Will Shipley News
Sunday, August 2, 6:25 AM
Philadelphia Eagles running back Will Shipley has displayed excellent efficiency in the passing game through his first two seasons in the league, catching nearly 93% of his targets on a very small sample size, but his current spot on the depth chart suggests little opportunity to expand his role in 2026. Through the early days of training camp, Saquon Barkley and Tank Bigsby have been splitting work close to evenly, and The Athletic's Brooks Kubena does not believe another back on the roster will see more than 30 touches this season. Kubena includes Shipley as the third running back on his initial 53-man roster projection, primarily for his role on special teams and points out that his pass-catching ability could become useful in an emergency. Barkley has touched the ball more than 800 times across his first two seasons with the Eagles, and Bigsby has been an early camp standout, tabbed for a larger role in his first full season with the team, leaving little opportunity for Shipley, who is unlikely to factor into fantasy plans for 2026.
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.6 | 7.8 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 2.2 | 0.0 |
Phil Mafah News
Thursday, August 6, 12:43 PM
Dallas Cowboys running back Phil Mafah had another good run in training camp practice on Thursday, according to The Dallas Morning News' Calvin Watkins, and he appears to be gaining some steam in the backfield this summer for a depth role behind starter Javonte Williams. The 23-year-old entered camp this summer competing with second-year RB Jaydon Blue and Malik Davis for the No. 2 role in the Cowboys' backfield after he saw only five rushing attempts for 18 yards and a touchdown while catching both of his targets for 11 yards in one game as a rookie in 2025 after Dallas took him in the seventh round (239th overall) out of Clemson. Although Mafah has reportedly looked good so far in camp, so has Blue, a fifth-rounder out of the University of Texas last year. Blue is also the much more complete back with more explosiveness, so he figures to be given the first shot at RB2 duties over Mafah in 2026, at least early on. At best, Mafah will most likely serve as a short-yardage weapon for Dallas because of his battering-ram style out of the backfield. Until further notice, he can be ignored in redraft fantasy leagues.
Will Shipley vs. Phil Mafah
Still trying to decide between Shipley and Mafah? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Will Shipley is projected to score 1.6 points this week while Phil Mafah is projected to score 1.6 points.
Latest Fantasy News
