Who Should I Start? Zamir White or Kyren Williams

Thursday, September 5, 3:24 PM

Las Vegas Raiders running back Zamir White has been the heavy favorite to be the team's starter this season after losing Josh Jacobs in free agency. Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy said, "You're looking for someone to take the lead," when asked about the possibility of White being the featured running back this season. White was a top-10 running back during the four contests Jacobs missed last year, averaging 21 rushing attempts and nearly 100 yards per game. Some fantasy players were worried that the third-year player wouldn't have a featured role in 2024, given how late he played in some preseason games. However, White is the most likely candidate to be the featured guy in the Las Vegas backfield. The former Georgia star is a low-end RB2 with a safe floor for his Week 1 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Friday, September 6, 6:36 PM

Los Angeles Rams running back Kyren Williams is one of the best fantasy options at his position but faces a tough matchup against the Lions in Week 1. In what should be a high-scoring game, the Rams figure to exploit the passing game against Detroit which allowed 15.79 fantasy points to opposing running backs last season, the best mark in the NFL in that category. Put another way, the Lions were the stiffest test for fantasy running backs last season. That could continue into this season. Williams made some plays in the passing game last season so that could help him a bit in this matchup. The other wild card is the unknown usage of rookie Blake Corum, who theoretically could take away goal-line carries from Williams. Add it all up and this is not an ideal matchup for Williams. Fantasy managers will still likely want to start Williams without a better option in most cases. But expectations should be lowered in Week 1.