RADIO
Jonathan Stewart and Darren McFadden will compete in a figurative pulling of the wish bone during Thursday's Thanksgiving matchup of the undefeated Carolina Panthers and suddenly rejuvenated Dallas Cowboys. The Panthers look to stay unbeaten, continuing their magical 2015 run while the Cowboys simply cling onto their dear playoff lives, now with Tony Romo back and healthy. Both teams will need help from their run games.
After starting the season with 220 yards through the first four games, Stewart has come alive of late, especially for fantasy owners, rushing the ball 20-plus times over the last six weeks for 544 yards. In that productive six game stretch, Stewart reestablished himself as a fantasy option and threat, scoring five touchdowns, four on the ground and one in the air. It appears that Carolina's Bye Week Five did wonders for Stewart as he should now be pencilled in as an RB1 the rest of the season, and especially against Dallas.
According to Yahoo! Sports, the Cowboys have given up the 6th most fantasy points to running backs. Dallas has allowed 10 rushing touchdowns and 104.7 rushing yards a game, benefiting a Panthers offense very much successful inside the red zone. The Panthers average at least one rushing touchdown and score 55.3% of the time inside the 20 yard line. Understandably a lot of that has to do with Cam Newton but it should be reassuring for fantasy owners to see the increased involvement of Stewart.
McFadden will also look to continue getting heavily involved in Dallas' offensive attack. Over the last five games, McFadden has carried the ball an impressive 122 times (average of 24.4 per game) and has really begun to finally find a secure spot on an offense. Plagued with injuries and inconsistency during his eight year stint in the NFL, McFadden has emerged as the workhorse of the Cowboy's offense, amidst injuries and inconsistencies of other players. He is also an RB1 on Thanksgiving, and the rest of the way, but could have a more difficult time establishing himself than Stewart.
According to ESPN.com, the Panthers have allowed less than 100 rushing yards per game and less than four yards per carry. There is a reason the Panthers are 10-0 and will attempt to stop McFadden to keep that goose egg in the loss column. Dallas is also not as efficient in the red zone, and score less than one (0.5) rushing touchdown a game inside the 20. McFadden will certainly get his chances, without any real threat backing him up, but might not find as many holes as Stewart. Although he'll need to with Dallas' playoff hopes resting on their inaugural Thanksgiving showdown.
