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Will Jacory Croskey-Merritt start for the Washington Commanders when he returns? Craig breaks down the Jacory Croskey-Merritt return timeline and fantasy football outlook ahead of Week 10.
Jacory Croskey-Merritt was the Washington Commanders’ top tailback heading into the 2026 NFL season. Will he still be that when he returns from his stint on injured reserve?
Croskey-Merritt was knocked out of action by a groin injury that had hampered him all season. He was placed on the short-term injured reserve in October and is eligible to be activated for Washington’s Week 11 game against the high-flying Cincinnati Bengals. Washington’s rushing attack has sputtered all year, with or without Croskey-Merritt in the backfield.
So will Croskey-Merritt regain his spot as the starting running back in Washington? Or will he have to share time and touches or be relegated to a backup role? Here is the latest:
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Will Jacory Croskey-Merritt Start For The Washington Commanders When He Returns?
There is nothing to suggest that Croskey-Merritt will not return as the primary ball carrier on early rushing downs and inside the red zone when his groin heals up. Rachaad White, the multi-purpose back the Commanders signed in the offseason, has only rushed for 110 yards over the three games JCM has missed. White has not proven he should be the every-down back from here on out.
Neither has 100-year-old Austin Ekeler, who was signed from Siberia a few weeks ago. His 16 carries for 52 yards over the past two weeks have not done fantasy favors for anybody. White and Ekeler are fine in their third-down roles, but neither is a better pure runner than Croskey-Merritt is.
Jacory Croskey-Merritt Fantasy Football Outlook
Croskey-Merritt was not blowing the doors off defenders and was not scoring like Gerald Diggs when he was on the field. He failed to have 65 combined yards in any of his first four games this season, and one of those was against Dallas’ dreadful defense. His best game was his last before he was injured, where he rushed for 82 yards and a touchdown against the New York Giants in the infamous overtime tilt where neither division rival wanted to win.
Jacory Croskey-Merritt breaks free for a 33-yard TD run!
📺: FOX/FOX One https://t.co/9wfDhRQB9V
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) October 11, 2026
Washington’s running back room is crowded, but White and Ekeler have the same skill set. Neither are power backs who run between the tackles for hard yards like Croskey-Merritt can.
White and Ekeler are average runners whose greatest talents come on passing downs where their above-average ball-catching skills can be put to use. Both will take touches from Croskey-Merritt, but he should still end up with 15-18 per game as Washington’s lead back.
The good news for Croskey-Merritt is that franchise quarterback Jayden Daniels is still injury-free, his two elbows are still intact, and he is still running Washington’s offense and passing attack.
This will create space for Croskey-Merritt to run as opposing defenses cannot crowd the box with Daniels under center like they can when Marcus Mariota is the one taking the snaps. It will also provide JCM more scoring opportunities since a Daniels-led offense will end up inside the red zone and near the end zone more often than a Mariota-led offense will.
Croskey-Merritt is not Jim Brown, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith, or Saquon Barkley. He is not going to run for 100 yards and two touchdowns on a weekly basis. He is not going to rack up 20-25 touches per game and be a dynamic fantasy force that will save millions of managers’ seasons.
What Croskey-Merritt can be is a solid RB3 for a fantasy team in need of running back depth and flex options in their starting lineup. 50-75 yards per week and a TD every other week is not out of the realm of possibility for him. Croskey-Merritt rushed for 805 yards and eight touchdowns in 2025, so fantasy managers know what he can do when given carries on a regular basis.
Who Should I Start Tool
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Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 10 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Blake Corum, Breece Hall, Rachaad White, Austin Ekeler, Devin Singletary. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 10. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 10 of the 2026 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Week 10 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Blake Corum, Breece Hall, Rachaad White, Austin Ekeler, Devin Singletary. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 10.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, players news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do, is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 10 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 10 (2026)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 10 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 10 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Blake Corum, Breece Hall, Rachaad White, Austin Ekeler, Devin Singletary compared to others:
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