The Philadelphia Eagles‘ backfield feels like a complete mystery heading into the 2023 season opener, but if you are a fantasy manager who invested in D’Andre Swift or Rashaad Penny on draft day, who should you start for fantasy football in Week 1?
D’Andre Swift’s Fantasy Outlook This Week
Swift is looking for a fresh start in the City of Brotherly Love after falling out of favor with the Detroit Lions last season.
We didn’t get a chance to see a whole lot of Swift this preseason, but he looked every bit as explosive in an Eagles uniform as he did with his previous squad.
.@DAndreSwift getting busy in his first action with the @Eagles
📺: #PHIvsBAL on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/bBFpXewtKp pic.twitter.com/wzklyR8CAD— NFL (@NFL) August 12, 2023
The efficiency has been there throughout Swift’s career, averaging a career-high 5.5 yards per carry (YPC) last season, and he could continue that type of production running behind one of the best offensive lines in the league.
Another thing that Swift brings to the table is his dynamic ability as a pass catcher. He has never caught fewer than 46 passes in a season.
This could come into play in their Week 1 matchup against the Patriots, who gave up an average of 5.5 receptions per game to opposing RBs in 2022.
Rashaad Penny’s Fantasy Outlook This Week
Penny signed a one-year deal with the Eagles this offseason with the hopes of replacing Miles Sanders as the leading ball carrier in this explosive offense.
While that is still within the range of outcomes, Penny’s usage and reps with the starters during training camp have made fantasy managers a bit weary of his rank in the pecking order of this backfield heading into the 2023 NFL season.
#Eagles Training Camp Stats 2023, Running Backs:
** This was easily the most confusing group to learn something about based off the numbers. I'd be careful to use these numbers for fantasy football projections.
** Gainwell was Cleary RB1 in touches — but are they really going… pic.twitter.com/Zx1ZxhfsnC
— Eliot Shorr-Parks (@EliotShorrParks) August 23, 2023
While these are just preseason reps, Penny barely seeing more first-team carries than Trey Sermon, who was cut from the team back in late August, isn’t exactly encouraging.
However, when Penny has been on the field over the last two seasons, he has been very effective, averaging an exceptional 6.2 YPC over the span of 176 carries.
Which of the Philadelphia Eagles RBs Should You Start?
Both of these talented RBs have battled injuries throughout their entire career.
Swift has missed a minimum of three games every season, while Penny has missed 32 games over the last three seasons.
The confusing part is that both backs will enter the season-opening matchup against the Patriots with a clean bill of health, making both a bit of a risky play.
I haven’t even mentioned the potential role of Kenneth Gainwell, which helps muddy this backfield even more.
MORE: Fantasy Start/Sit Tool
As far as the matchup against the Patriots goes, they were among the league’s best against opposing rushing attacks, allowing just 105 rushing yards per game on the ground.
Objectively, most would agree that Swift is the better pass-catching option of the two players, which gives him a slight edge in PPR formats against a team that does surrender some receiving production to opposing RBs. In addition, reports have suggested that the Eagles plan to use Swift as a weapon in the passing game.
When having to choose between these two Eagles RBs, I feel much more confident in Swift’s involvement in the offense heading into Week 1.