Saquon Barkley or Bucky Irving: who should I start in Week 3?

What the sportsbooks price

The player markets price Saquon Barkley at 15.7 PPR points a game, built from 5 markets across 14 books. That is the 38th highest figure of the 176 players the books price.

The player markets price Bucky Irving at 13.1 PPR points a game, built from 5 markets across 15 books. That is the 62nd highest figure of the 176 players the books price.

Where the draft room stands

Drafters have formed no consensus on Saquon Barkley: he carries no ADP, and the board ranks him 20th overall on the rest of his evidence.

By format he goes standard: ADP 3; 2QB: ADP 23.

Drafters have formed no consensus on Bucky Irving: he carries no ADP, and the board ranks him 37th overall on the rest of his evidence.

In 2QB drafts he goes at ADP 67.

This season through Week 2

Through Week 2, Saquon Barkley has been on the field for 39 percent of PHI snaps, taken 35 percent of the carries, drawn 7 percent of the targets and had 13 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 1 of the offence's 21 third down targets, had 0 of its 2 chances inside the five and seen 0 of its 12 two minute targets.

His 4 targets have averaged 0.8 air yards.

In Week 1 against WAS he carried 15 times for 83 yards, caught 1 of 2 targets for -3 yards and did not score.

In Week 2 against TEN he carried 4 times for 9 yards, caught 1 of 2 targets for 11 yards and did not score.

Through Week 2, Bucky Irving has been on the field for 70 percent of TB snaps, taken 57 percent of the carries, drawn 18 percent of the targets and had 25 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 3 of the offence's 14 third down targets, had 0 of its 1 chance inside the five and seen 0 of its 8 two minute targets.

His 11 targets have come 4.3 yards behind the line of scrimmage on average.

In Week 1 against CIN he carried 8 times for 45 yards, caught 7 of 7 targets for 48 yards and scored 1 touchdown.

In Week 2 against CLE he carried 17 times for 89 yards, caught 4 of 4 targets for 1 yards and did not score.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025 Saquon Barkley played 16 games and scored 232.3 PPR points, 14.5 a game, finishing RB14.

He carried 280 times for 1140 yards and 7 touchdowns, and caught 37 of 50 targets for 273 more yards.

That came to 17.5 carries a game at 4.1 yards a carry and 2.3 catches a game.

He was on the field for 78 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

In 2025 Bucky Irving played 10 games and scored 138.5 PPR points, 13.9 a game, finishing RB34.

He carried 173 times for 588 yards and 1 touchdown, and caught 30 of 35 targets for 277 more yards.

That came to 17.3 carries a game at 3.4 yards a carry and 3.0 catches a game.

He was on the field for 62 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

Saquon Barkley was available for 6 games more.

Head to head

In 2025 Saquon Barkley scored 14.5 PPR points a game and Bucky Irving 13.9, 0.7 a game between them.

Saquon Barkley finished RB14 that year and Bucky Irving RB34.

Saquon Barkley had 107 more carries than Bucky Irving, 280 to 173.

Saquon Barkley had 7 more catches than Bucky Irving, 37 to 30.

This season Bucky Irving holds the bigger snap share, 70 percent against 39 percent.

This season Bucky Irving holds the bigger share of the carries, 57 percent against 35 percent.

Byes and availability

Both are off in Week 10, so a roster holding the pair has that one week to cover twice.

Saquon Barkley is listed as questionable on the injury report.

What would change the answer

2.6 points a game is the entire case. The books restate it every week, and a line that moves moves the order with it.

The draft market is the half that is missing: when the consensus sample holds these two again it can order them differently from the price, and this page will follow the sample rather than the books when it does.