Admin October 22, 2024
Lions hand Vikings first loss, Russell Wilson cooks in Steelers debut
Mackenzie Salmon breaks down the top storylines from Week 7 in the NFL.
Sports Seriously
So, things look bad and your back’s against the wall? Your whole fantasy team seems hopeless? Of course it does. Why else would you be searching who to start and sit in Week 8 of the NFL season.
Despite your team’s miserable existence though, there is always hope. Hope that you will not finish dead last. Hope that the teams at the top of the standings fall apart. Hope that you can sneak into the playoffs and earn a little bit of respect.
With that, there are more than a few serious questions to consider when building your lineup for Week 8 and beyond. With Brandon Aiyuk possibly suffering a season-ending ACL tear, is Jauan Jennings worth considering again? Is Patrick Mahomes droppable now? And can Tank Dell bounce back after recording zero catches in Week 7? With so many questions, you can’t do research about favorable matchups this weekend. Luckily, we’ve got you covered.
Here are 16 players to start (or sit) in Week 8.
WEEK 7 WINNERS, LOSERS: Lions take control in cutthroat NFC North
Players to start in Week 8:
Quarterbacks
Despite his early season struggles, Caleb Williams has bounced back remarkably the last two weeks, and he gets a favorable matchup yet again in the Washington Commanders. While the Commanders did a fine job of limiting Andy Dalton and the Carolina Panthers’ offense in Week 7, the Commanders’ defense is still questionable until they can achieve similar consistent success.
The Falcons play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this weekend. Remember the last time the Falcons played the Bucs? Of course you do, it was less than a month ago. Cousins went insane-o mode for over 500 yards and four touchdowns. Should a similar performance be expected? No, but the Bucs defense has struggled against quarterbacks all season long, and the Bucs couldn’t seem to stop Cousins last time.
Running backs
It’s been a long while since the Dolphins were startable assets. With Tyler Huntley and Tim Boyle at quarterback, the team’s offense has looked downright pitiful. However, a matchup against the lowly Arizona Cardinals’ run defense could be exactly what the team needs to get back on track. The Cardinals are bottom-five in the league in basically every run defense metric. Even though the Cardinals will likely stack the box on every play due to Miami’s horrendous quarterback play, Achane should still see solid production.
Of course, with Tau Tagovailoa returning from IR this week, there’s also a slim chance that he plays. If he does, Achane returns to RB1 status.
So long as Isiah Pacheco is out, Kareem Hunt is a must-start. However, it’s even better than that this week as the Chiefs face an atrocious Las Vegas Raiders defense that has allowed at least 18 non-PPR fantasy points to opposing running backs in all but one game this season.
Wide receivers
Yes, DeVonta Smith was massively disappointing in Week 7, corralling only one catch for -2 yards, but he should be in for a much better game against a Cincinnati Bengals defense that, prior to facing the New York Giants and Cleveland Browns, had surrendered at least one touchdown and 150 yards to opposing receivers in three straight weeks.
There are two things Russell Wilson has done exceptionally well throughout his entire career: know when to go to his checkdowns and throw deep balls. Pickens lives, breathes, and eats deep balls. Go routes are where he’s at his best, and with Russell Wilson now the main man in Pittsburgh, Pickens owners are in for a very solid stretch of success.
Tight Ends
With Amari Cooper out of town and Jameis Winston potentially the new starter in Cleveland, the Browns’ pass-catchers have seen their stock skyrocket lately. None more than Njoku, who saw a team-high 14 targets and 10 receptions in Week 7. Njoku and Jerry Jeudy are the obvious risers following Cooper’s departure, but the Baltimore Ravens have not been that great defending tight ends in 2024, meaning Njoku has the higher upside between the pair in Week 8.
Drake Maye has looked pretty good through his first two weeks as the Patriots’ starter. Although we don’t know exactly who Maye’s top target is thus far, Henry seems like a prime candidate after his remarkable Week 7 performance. With how inconsistent the tight end position has been all year, Henry is a fine stash, but could be a sneaky start against a New York Jets defense that has surrendered double-digit PPR fantasy points to opposing tight ends in back-to-back weeks.
Players to sit in Week 8:
Quarterbacks
The Miami Dolphins have been the best defense against opposing quarterbacks this year. While much of that success has likely come because opposing teams don’t need to throw the ball in the second half against Miami, they still boast a fairly solid secondary. With Tua Tagovailoa potentially returning this week, there is a chance that Arizona needs to pass more often. But the Dolphins’ defense is much more susceptible in the run, so James Conner is more likely to have a big game than Murray.
Geno Smith is a pretty touchdown-dependent fantasy asset, and the Buffalo Bills have allowed more than one passing touchdown only twice all year. Opposing quarterbacks have also only scored more than 20 fantasy points all year. While Smith is still a solid floor play, his ceiling will be rather limited in Week 8.
Running backs
With Derek Carr likely still sidelined this weekend, the Saints’ offense is going to have trouble moving the ball, especially against a Los Angeles Chargers’ defense that, prior to Monday Night Football, has on average given up the second-fewest non-PPR fantasy points to opposing running backs.
Don’t let his Week 7 touchdown fool you. Chubb is still far from the player he once was, and his small workload is evidence of that. Chubb managed only two yards a carry on 11 rushing attempts. He also played only 36% of offensive snaps. While that workload should increase as the season progresses, it would be a miracle if he played more than half of the snaps this week against the Baltimore Ravens. Furthermore, prior to Monday Night Football, Baltimore had allowed the third-fewest average non-PPR fantasy points to opposing running backs on the year.
Wide receivers
The Carolina offense struggled to get anything going against Washington, and a bounce-back should be expected, but with Patrick Surtain expected to return, Diontae Johnson will be blanketed by one of the best corners in the league against a defense that has only allowed two touchdowns to wide receivers all year.
Coming off one of his best games of the season, the Lions’ matchup against the Tennessee Titans is bad for St. Brown on two fronts. Most obviously, this is a game that the Lions should win fairly easily. They will be up big in the second half, and they will run the ball a lot. Secondly, the Titans have been very, very good against receivers all year long.
Tight Ends
With how horrendous the tight end position has been all year, you likely have no choice but to play Bowers. But this entire Raiders’ offense is going to be stifled in Week 8, especially Bowers. The Kansas City Chiefs are phenomenally good at limiting opposing teams’ top options, and Bowers is kind of the only option in Las Vegas right now.
By that logic, you could argue that Bowers should get a massive workload moving forward, but that was supposed to be the case with Jordan Mason in San Francisco last week. Mason has his worst rushing efficiency of the season.
LaPorta has been one of the most disappointing players of the 2024 season. He has been used inconsistently and has become very touchdown dependent for someone who isn’t scoring many touchdowns. His struggles will continue against a Tennessee Titans defense that has yet to allow a touchdown to opposing tight ends and has only surrendered double-digit PPR points to them once all year.
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