Start Jonathon Brooks or Jaleel McLaughlin? Week 1
Locks at kickoff, graded after.
Start Jonathon Brooks over Jaleel McLaughlin
- CHI D vs RB
- 33.7
- 8th most to RBs (2026)
- JAX D vs RB
- 12.6
- 8th fewest to RBs (2026)
Our Week 1 call
Start Jonathon Brooks over Jaleel McLaughlin in Week 1.
Neither player has a posted player market for this week, so this call is ADP and news based rather than priced against the betting market. Drafters take Jonathon Brooks at ADP 93.5 overall and Jaleel McLaughlin at 97.8.
What the books imply
No sportsbook posted a player market for Jonathon Brooks in Week 1.
No sportsbook posted a player market for Jaleel McLaughlin in Week 1.
Week 1 matchups
Jonathon Brooks and CAR host CHI.
CHI allowed 33.7 fantasy points to RBs in its one game this season, the 8th most in the league.
Running backs ran for 91 yards and a touchdown against CHI and caught passes for 86 more yards.
Jaleel McLaughlin and CLE visit JAX.
JAX allowed 12.6 fantasy points to RBs in its one game this season, the 8th fewest in the league.
Running backs ran for 34 yards and no touchdowns against JAX and caught passes for 42 more yards.
By points allowed to the position, Jonathon Brooks has the softer matchup.
Injury status
Jonathon Brooks was listed as questionable when the call was made.
Jaleel McLaughlin was not on the injury report when the call was made.
Their 2025 seasons
In 2025, Jaleel McLaughlin played 8 games for DEN and scored 31.4 PPR points, 3.9 a game, finishing RB82.
He ran 37 times for 187 yards and 1 touchdown, and caught 4 of 6 targets for 27 yards.
He was on the field for 15 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.
Jaleel McLaughlin, Week 18 of 2025 against LAC: 6 carries for 41 yards, 2 targets and 1 catch for 17 yards, 6.8 PPR points.
Jaleel McLaughlin, Week 17 of 2025 against KC: 16 of 72 snaps, 7 carries for 40 yards, 0 targets and 0 catches for 0 yards, 4.0 PPR points.
Jaleel McLaughlin, Week 16 of 2025 against JAX: 10 of 66 snaps, 5 carries for 37 yards, 0 targets and 0 catches for 0 yards, 3.7 PPR points.
Their other Week 1 calls
The board cards are draft figures, not the week's call. Locks at kickoff, graded after. When the start/sit engine grades week 1, the call and the result appear on the public record, wrong ones included.
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