Happy Week 8 to football fans everywhere. With an extra game added to the schedule in 2021, we’ve nearly reached the season’s halfway point. As the trade deadline approaches on Tuesday, the NFL news cycle should remain fast and furious. Back with our fantasy sleepers, this Sunday will provide many more options after a six-team bye a week ago.
We stayed on track with our selections in the last article. C.J. Uzomah helped lead the Cincinnati Bengals to a massive 41-17 victory on the road against the Baltimore Ravens. The former fifth-round pick hauled in three receptions for 91 yards and two touchdowns. Elsewhere, A.J. Green had three catches for 66 yards in the Arizona Cardinals win over the Houston Texans. Jameis Winston also had 222 yards through the air and one passing score in a New Orleans Saints victory on Monday Night Football over the Seattle Seahawks.
Time to turn the page to Week 8.
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Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons
Ryan has begun to catch fire over the last few weeks. Leading the Falcons to their third win a week ago, the one-time MVP passed for 336 yards and two scores. With finishes as QB14, QB12, and QB3 over his previous three games, play Ryan this week in a matchup against the Carolina Panthers. Beginning to show cracks after a hot start to the year, Phil Snow’s group has allowed over 300 yards in three of their last four games. They have surrendered over 200 passing yards and 1.7 passing touchdowns on average to opposing signal-callers. As Ryan continues to push the ball downfield more and more, he is a low-end QB1/high-end QB2 in Superflex leagues.
Evan Engram, New York Giants
Engram had a season-high eight targets in Week 7, with the Giants down two of their top receiving options in Kadarius Toney and Sterling Shepard. Ultimately hauling in six passes for 44 yards, the former first-round pick has yet to find the end zone in a disappointing season for fantasy owners. However, with a road matchup on tap on Monday Night Football against the Kansas City Chiefs, start him. One of the worst units in the league at slowing down the position, Andy Reid‘s team has given up over five receptions per game, leading to an average of over 82 yards per game. With Kenny Golladay and Toney still held out of practice with injuries, the volume should be there for Engram. He’s owned in just 32 percent of Yahoo leagues and 24 percent of ESPN leagues, and has low-end TE1 upside.
Michael Carter, New York Jets
Carter became a larger part of the Jets’ offense a week ago after they lost Zach Wilson to a knee injury. The University of North Carolina product saw 11 attempts on the ground leading to 37 rushing yards. In addition to this, he also racked up nine targets in the passing game, logging eight receptions. With backup Mike White due to make his first NFL start on Sunday in a home game against the Bengals, start Carter as an RB3. Susceptible against pass-catching running backs, Zac Taylor’s team has given up 7.6 receptions on average, leading to 48.4 yards per game. Carter is likely to see a significant workload with White looking to get the ball out quickly, so the 22-year-old will have a comfortable floor in this matchup.
Laviska Shenault Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars
Shenault has endured an up-and-down season during his second year in the league. He began to carve out a bigger role in the Jaguars’ offense following an ankle injury to DJ Chark. However, following a 6-99-1 performance during their Week 4 loss to the Bengals, the Irving, TX native has hauled in just seven passes over his last two games. Ranked as WR36 heading into the weekend, stream Shenault as a WR4 against the Seahawks. Pete Carroll’s team is one of the worst defenses in the league at slowing down opposing passing attacks. They have given up 280.6 passing yards per game to opposing quarterbacks, leading to 21.1 fantasy points per contest to wideouts.
Teddy Bridgewater, Denver Broncos
Bridgewater has struggled over the last few weeks after a solid start to the season. Unable to get the Broncos offense going last Sunday, the veteran quarterback passed for just 187 yards (with two scores) in a 17-14 loss to the Cleveland Browns. While averaging only 6.4 yards per attempt during his last few starts, look for him to turn it around in a matchup against the Washington Football Team. Ron Rivera‘s team is suffering a down year on the defensive side of the ball after being one of the best units leaguewide in 2020. They rank 32nd against both the pass and in points allowed per game. This has led opposing quarterbacks to already record 217 fantasy points against the team, amounting to 31 per week. With Jerry Jeudy back with Denver after recovering from a high ankle sprain, play Bridgewater as a QB2.
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