Thursday Night Football DFS: Week 8

Thursday night football is back, and once again, it features another divisional battle. Teddy Bridgewater and the Carolina Panthers host Matt Ryan and the struggling Atlanta Falcons. These teams have faced off once already, with the Panthers coming out on top in Week 5 by a final score of 23-16. The Panthers are looking to stay in the mix of teams for the NFC wildcard race. The Falcons playoff hopes are all but over. However, they will still be ready to take down a divisional opponent. Let’s jump right into the top players for this Thursday night showdown.

DraftKings Captain and FanDuel MVP

Calvin Ridley (DK Captain $15,300 | FD $14,000)

Ridley has been one of the top receivers all season long. That should continue this week, even in a tough matchup. He was able to grab eight receptions for 136 yards in Week 5 against this Panthers defense. In that game, Julio Jones did not play. Jones will be back this week, and that only helps Ridley. In the five games that Jones has played this season, Ridley has scored in all but one of those games for a total of six touchdowns. Teams focus on Jones, and that frees up Ridley for more scoring opportunities. Look for Ridley to score another touchdown and make it three weeks in a row.

Utility Players

Matt Ryan (DK $11,000 | FD $14,500)

Ryan had his worst game of the season by far against the Panthers defense in Week 5. However, a bounce-back game is very likely for Ryan. In his career against the Panthers, he has thrown for 39 total touchdowns in 25 games. He is also coming into this game with back-to-back games of at least 300 passing yards. Look for Ryan to continue his strong play and have another 300-yard passing game.

D.J. Moore (DK $8,200 | FD $11,000)

Moore is starting to get things going with Bridgewater. He was decent the first few weeks, but without touchdowns, he wasn’t putting up many fantasy points. However, in Week 5 against the Falcons, he finally broke through and scored a touchdown. Moore has put together a pretty impressive streak of 93 receiving yards in each of the last three games. He also has a total of three touchdowns in those three games. Moore is getting targets and should continue his success against a weak Atlanta secondary.

Mike Davis (DK $8,800 | FD $15,000)

Davis has impressed in Christian McCaffrey‘s absence. He has scored double-digit fantasy points in every game without McCaffrey except for last week. He has even scored 20-plus points in three games this season. Against Atlanta, in Week 5, Davis had his best game of the season. He went for 149 total yards and one touchdown. He even added nine receptions as Bridgewater looked his way in the passing game. That was a big reason why Davis had such a good game. He should be able to replicate that performance, especially considering the Falcons defense has struggled all season long.