Joshua Abbe, Mason Thompson, Givanni Damico | October 26th, 2019
Well back again to go into week eight of the NFL season and you’re either sitting comfortably or barley hanging on hope to get into the playoffs. To help fantasy football players with their roster construction, three of our writers have provided some insight on which players they would start, would sit, and consider a sleeper for week eight. Be sure to follow all of them on twitter and ask any of The Scorecrow’s fantasy writers for fantasy advice.
Quarterbacks
Starts
Jared Goff vs Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals are dealing with injuries in their secondary and look to Goff to take advantage of this. He had a good enough performance last week and should continue that momentum Sunday. The Bengals are allowing an average of 23 fantasy points to the quarterback position. Get Goff in those lineups. – Josh
Matthew Stafford vs New York Giants
Stafford had a great performance last week against the Vikings. This week, he gets the Giants defense which is far worse than Minnesota’s. New York has no secondary and would’ve been destroyed by Kyler Murray had Chase Edmonds not taken over the game. The Giants defense has given up the most fantasy points to the quarterback position when the quarterback plays at home. Start your draft bargain with confidence again this week. – Mason
Jacoby Brissett vs Denver Broncos
Brissett has been very efficient and has done a fantastic job filling in the void that Andrew Luck created with his retirement. The Broncos are only allowing 205 passing yards per game. Brissett will be challenged, but he has come through thus far. He should be a plug-and-play guy at this point unless you have better options. – Gio
Sits
Jameis Winston at Tennessee Titans
Much has been said about Winston this season so far. He has shown flashes of what he was ranked coming into the 2019 season as a possible top 10 fantasy QB. Then he’s performed poorly as he did two weeks ago with five interceptions and a fumble. I’d sit him Sunday facing a tough Titans defense that is allowing only an average 250 passing yards and less than 15 fantasy points to the opposing position. – Josh
Philip Rivers at Chicago Bears
The Chargers have been a massive disappointment this year and while Rivers isn’t the one to blame, I don’t see much changing this week. The Bears’ defense isn’t the same as it was last year but is still great against opposing quarterbacks. With his offensive line in shambles and the running game not living up to its potential, Rivers is in for another long game. – Mason
Kyler Murray at New Orleans Saints
The Saints secondary has been very efficient this year. Murray could be without David Johnson and Christian Kirk tomorrow which makes his job even harder. He may try to use his legs to get the job done, but the Saints have been good at sniffing out the quarterback keeper this year. Murray will likely not be very effective tomorrow. – Gio
Sleepers
Mason Rudolph vs Miami Dolphins
Rudolph returns Monday night from a nasty hit from Earl Thomas just a few weeks ago and comes back in a nice spot. He gets a very vulnerable Dolphins defense that has given up over 20 or more fantasy points to all, but one of the six quarterbacks faced so far into the season. – Josh
Ryan Tannehill vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers
In his first game taking over for Marcus Mariota, Tannehill looked great and gets a favorable matchup against the Buccaneers this week. Tampa Bay has given up the most passing yards this year and is surrendering over 20 points per game to quarterbacks this year. I know many that are streaming Tannehill in favor of playing Carson Wentz this week. Stick Tannehill in your lineup and don’t look back. – Mason
Derek Carr at Houston Texans
The Texans have given up nearly 300 passing yards per game this year. Carr has played effectively and should be in line for possibly his biggest day of the year. There will likely be little defense played in this game, so hopefully, that leads to a shootout, allowing Carr to heave the ball plenty of times. – Gio
Running Backs
Starts
Carlos Hyde vs Oakland Raiders
Hyde had been putting up very good flex numbers with some nice RB2 as well. He continues to be the lead back in Houston and gets favorable matchup Sunday against the Oakland Raiders. Going into Sunday, the Raiders have given up around 25 fantasy points a game and eight catches per game to the passing game. Hyde should have a nice day on Sunday. – Josh
LeSean McCoy vs Green Bay Packers
McCoy has had more touches than Damian Williams in the Chiefs backfield the last two weeks and I expect that to continue. He gets a very enticing game this week as he faces off against the Packers defense that can’t stop the run to save its life. Josh Jacobs and Ezekiel Elliot have both averaged over five yards a carry vs the Packers this season and I expect McCoy to do the same. – Mason
Chase Edmonds at New Orleans Saints
With Murray facing a stout passing defense, he will likely look to Edmonds on screenplays often. The Saints’ run defense is impeccable but that doesn’t mean Edmonds won’t get in the endzone. With DJ likely out, Edmonds will be the feature back with a heavy workload once again. – Gio
Sits
Jordan Howard at Buffalo Bills
The Bills have been one of the best teams in the league so far and it starts with their defense. They have only given up an average 81 yards rushing a game to running backs to go along with only letting four rushing touchdowns as well by the stingy defense. He continues to share touches with Miles Sanders which will eat up his production some making him a sit for me. – Josh
Joe Mixon at Los Angeles Rams
The Bengals have been a complete disaster this season and it has affected Mixon’s performance. He didn’t even manage to average a single yard per carry last week and his fantasy performance was “saved” by a touchdown. Until the Bengals show some kind of life, I’d find an option that isn’t Mixon. – Mason
Le’Veon Bell at Jacksonville Jaguars
While the Jaguars haven’t been fantastic against the run, Bell has struggled running the ball. He seems to be slumping after taking a year off, similar to Marshawn Lynch when he did the same. He seems to have lost some of his vision and isn’t even very effective in the passing game. Bell’s not someone that you think about sitting, but if you have better options, take them. – Gio
Sleepers
Tevin Coleman vs Carolina Panthers
Coleman seems to be taking over the backfield in San Francisco and out snapping and carrying the ball over Matt Breida. He now gets a Panthers defense that is giving up six rushing touchdowns to the position and an average 119 rushing games to opposing running backs. – Josh
Benny Snell vs Miami Dolphins
With James Conner missing time in practice this week because of an injury suffered last week, Snell has gotten a lot of reps in practice this week with the first team. Snell was already seeing an uptick in his workload after Jaylen Samuels went down. Against the Dolphins in what could be a game to get out of hand quickly, Snell could be forced into action to save Conner from another potential injury. – Mason
Ty Johnson vs New York Giants
The Giants have allowed over 130 rushing yards per game this year. With Kerryon Johnson our for likely the season, I’m all aboard the Ty Johnson hype train, at least until they trade for Kenyan Drake. Johnson should be useful in both the run and passing game this week. – Gio
Wide Receivers
Starts
John Brown vs Philadelphia Eagles
Brown has been producing for the fantasy season with scoring double digits in five of his six games so far. Facing a defense that has allowed nine touchdowns to wideouts lined to the outside, Brown is in a prime spot where he lines up at for over 75 percent of the time on passing plays. – Josh
Marvin Jones vs New York Giants
Like Stafford, Jones put up a monster game last week against Minnesota, catching all four of Stafford’s touchdowns. I expect Jones to continue to be the 1B to Kenny Golladay and should get the chance against the Giants porous secondary. – Mason
DJ Chark vs New York Jets
Chark has been less effective than normal lately which has led to a drop in him being in starting fantasy lineups. This should be a big week for him as he matches up with Trumaine Johnson (if he plays), who has struggled with speedy receivers this year. Dede Westbrook didn’t practice this week and is leaning towards not playing which means more targets for Chark. Expect a big week. – Gio
Sits
Tyler Boyd at Los Angeles Rams
Boyd his last two weeks have not been productive whatsoever. Even though the volume is there, the production missing is why he’s my sit for this week. Tack on the fact Rams traded for Jalen Ramsey, who should be shadowing Boyd all game long. – Josh
Jarvis Landry at New England Patriots
Landry has been an afterthought in the Browns offense and now faces the Patriots defense which has seemed impenetrable this season for receivers. With the Browns offense struggling and the Patriots putting out astronomical numbers, I wouldn’t touch Landry this week. To make matters worse, Landry has guaranteed a Browns win this week meaning the Patriots defense could key in on him. – Mason
Emmanuel Sanders vs Carolina Panthers
The Panthers passing defense is elite this year. Jimmy Garoppolo faces a challenge this week against one of the best defenses in the league and Sanders doesn’t match up well. It’s his first game with the new squad, so give him a week to ease into his role before plugging him in. – Gio
Sleepers
Corey Davis vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers
For the long agony of being a Davis owner, may the patience finally be worth it? Ryan Tannehill took over at quarterback and the payoff was a 20-point performance for Davis last week. Now heading into a matchup with Tampa Bay on Sunday, The Buccaneers has allowed almost 28 fantasy points a game to wideouts to the outside. Davis is in line for another productive day. – Josh
D.K. Metcalf vs Atlanta Falcons
With Will Dissly out for the year, it could be Metcalf’s time to shine. The rookie has shown flashes that made many think he was a top ten talent in this year’s draft. He faces off against the reeling Falcons this week who are trying to just make it through the year without suffering any major injuries at this point. With Dissly out and facing off against a Falcons team, Metcalf could be a sneaky flex play this week. – Mason
Kenny Stills vs Oakland Raiders
The Raiders’ passing defense is absolutely awful. As I said earlier, this game has shootout potential, and with Will Fuller out of the mix (hamstring), Stills steps up as the new number two weapon. He played well last week and now he goes up against a team with really nobody or substance in their secondary. – Gio
Tight Ends
Starts
Jimmy Graham at Kansas City Chiefs
With Davante Adams out for the past couple weeks, Graham has been performing rather well with the added targets thrown his way. While the numbers aren’t there, the volume is. He’s the second-most in red-zone targets and ninth in routes run at the position. Now facing the Chiefs, he has a chance to perform against a defense that gives up six catches a game to tight ends and 14 fantasy points a game as well. – Josh
Jared Cook vs Arizona Cardinals
Cook had just begun to show a good connection with Teddy Bridgewater before going out due to an injury. Cook gets a great matchup to come back to as he faces the Cardinals defense which has given up the most fantasy points to the tight end position. Cook should find his way back into the fold and be a good streaming option this week. – Mason
Editors note: Cook has been ruled out for week eight against the Cardinals.
Gerald Everett vs Cincinnati Bengals
Everett is so inconsistent that it’s hard to trust him as an every game option. But he’s a YAC machine and faces an 0-7 team. Although the Bengals haven’t given up too much to the tight end position, Everett projects like a big wide receiver who’s hard to cover. If he can get open and find the open field, he’s in for a big day. – Gio
Sits
Greg Olsen at San Francisco 49ers
With a bad couple of weeks from Olsen as of late, Sunday might be more of the same, unfortunately. The 49ers defense has only given up one touchdown and 6 fantasy points per game to opposing tight ends. If there is another option, then you might need to look that way. – Josh
Ricky Seals-Jones at New England Patriots
Seals-Jones has had a good connection with Baker Mayfield recently. In a game against the Patriots though, I’d leave him on the waiver wire as the Patriots defense is in a league on its own. There are better options on the waiver wire than Seals-Jones. – Mason
Eric Ebron vs Denver Broncos
The Broncos don’t give up many fantasy points to the tight end position. Ebron is very hit or miss. If he’s not in the endzone, he’s not giving you a productive week. He also has to split reps with Jack Doyle. Stay away from Ebron in this matchup. – Gio
Sleepers
Cameron Brate at Tennessee Titans
Brate is the TE1 for Tampa Bay going into the weekend now that O.J. Howard is listed as out. Though Howard’s appearance hasn’t been felt anyways. Brate has scored 12 or more fantasy points his last two out of three games and has been running more red zone routes that Howard has. In a favorable matchup against the Titans, Brate is a nice sneaky play. – Josh
Jonnu Smith vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers
With Delanie Walker sidelined, Smith will take over the role as the main tight end in an offense led by Tannehill. He had more snaps than Walker the past few weeks and immediately took over once he had left the game last week. Smith is a prime streaming candidate this week against a leaky Buccaneers secondary. – Mason
Dawson Knox vs Philadephia Eagles
The Eagles secondary is brutal. They give up the most fantasy points to wide receivers, but Knox, like Everett, projects as a big wide receiver. He’s got soft hands and can bring in almost anything. If Josh Allen gives him some targets, he could be very productive. – Gio
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