Week 8 Matchups - Fantasy Football Game Breakdowns (Part 2)

Welcome to the second part of our Week 8 matchups analysis and starts/sits column for fantasy football. We'll be covering every matchup from every Sunday game to help you make the best decisions for your fantasy lineups. We'll also be updating this as injury reports come in so check back often.

This article will cover the late slate of games, beginning at 4 PM ET on Sunday as well as the Sunday night game. Click here to see our early game matcups analysis and our MNF matchups analysis as well.

Check back here each week to get advice for your toughest start/sit decisions and take a look at our consensus rankings each week. Find me on Twitter @Pfunk00 for more insight and help to your start/sit questions.

4:05 PM ET Games

With four teams on bye yet again, including the high-scoring Chargers and the suddenly relevant Cowboys, we are left with three games in the late afternoon block. All eyes will be on the showdown between the Packers and Rams in a game that has an early line of 56.5 points, the highest in Week 8. The night game features the high-scoring Saints and Vikings, not far behind at 53.

Packers at Rams

Matchups We Love:

Aaron Rodgers (QB, GB)
It goes without saying that you don't need to worry about Rodgers. His knee injury from Week 1 seems to be all but forgotten and he's posted well over 400 yards the last two weeks without Randall Cobb or Geronimo Allison. The integration of new receivers into the offense could be a blessing in disguise, as he now has more weapons at his disposal. The Rams have been fairly tough against the pass but they've also faced a number of weaker offensive teams like Oakland, Arizona, Denver, and San Francisco to pad those stats. Rodgers is a top-five QB play, plain and simple.

Jared Goff (QB, LAR)
After an enormous game against the Vikings with 465 yards and five TD, followed by another 321 yards the next week, Goff was looking like an every-week QB1. He's fallen back to Earth the last two weeks with 201 and 202 passing yards respectively. He has a 3/3 TD/INT ratio over the last three games. With Gurley doing all the heavy lifting, his value has been capped while facing inferior opponents that they could simply run over. This could be different, however. The Packers are sure to challenge the Rams defense, increasing the likelihood that Goff surpasses the 30-attempt mark once more. His ceiling isn't as high as his opponent but Goff should fall within the top 10 for fantasy QBs and is a fairly safe start.

Todd Gurley (RB, LAR)
This write-up seems less necessary each week. Gurley leads the league with 14 touchdowns in seven games and averages a league-best 98 rushing YPG. He's only faced the Packers once, in his rookie season of 2015, and back then he ran for 159 yards. He will keep carrying his team and that of fantasy owners on his back.

Davante Adams (WR, GB)
Jordy who? Adams has taken the No. 1 receiving job in Green Bay and run away with it. He is the second-leading point-scorer among all wide receivers, catching at least seven balls in all but one game and scoring a touchdown in all but one game. A matchup with Marcus Peters on the other side should bring a smile to the face of all Adams owners in Week 8.

Brandin Cooks (WR, LAR)
Cooks has surprisingly seen his yardage totals go down in the last two weeks with no Cooper Kupp. As mentioned above, this could be more a result of game flow than anything, as the Rams have not needed to pass as much or stretch the field. This seems like a good time for the team to utilize Cooks more. He had been averaging almost seven receptions and 113 yards per game in the first four weeks before his concussion. He should be a mainstay in all season-long fantasy lineups and looks like a great tournament play this week as well.

Robert Woods (WR, LAR)
With Kupp still out, Woods will be the primary target once more. Woods hasn't sniffed the end zone in three weeks but he has caught at least five passes in five straight games. He is a high-floor WR2 and could take advantage of a matchup with rookie Josh Jackson to turn in a big play.

Matchups We Hate:

Packers RBs
Regardless of the matchup, this has become an RBBC to avoid. Since Aaron Jones returned from suspension in Week 3, he's averaged 5.9 yards per carry and been the most dynamic of the three runners. The problem is he's only averaging eight rush attempts and one reception per game. As a result, he has been held under 60 total yards in three of his four games. Jamaal Williams plays the grinder role, which means he can produce 3.8 yards and a cloud of dust but not much else. He doesn't even have a rushing touchdown this season and has seen the same number of red zone carries as Jones. Ty Montgomery leads them all in snap count with a 46% offensive snap share. He is also third on the team with 24 carries and his 28 receiving yards per game aren't enough to make him fantasy relevant. If you need a desperation flex play, Jones has the upside but none are worth starting until something significant changes.

Gerald Everett / Tyler Higbee (TE, LAR)
Not that you were considering either of these players anyway but it should be noted that the Packers are the third-toughest defense against opposing tight ends this year. If Everett couldn't capitalize on a great matchup last week, it's probably not happening this time around.

Other Matchups:

Randall Cobb / Geronimo Allison (WR, GB)
Listed as probable, it looks like Cobb and Allison are finally over the hamstring issues that sidelined them for three weeks. After a huge season opener with 142 yards and a TD, Cobb quickly faded before his injury. Allison had become the more reliable play, averaging five catches per game. It's hard to tell how much either will be targeted now that Equanimeous St. Brown, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and J'mon Moore have earned snaps. It's too risky to play either just yet based on speculation alone but Allison seems like the preferred option.

Jimmy Graham (TE, GB)
Graham has become much more involved the last two weeks, with a total of 20 targets resulting in 11 catches for 180 yards. Much of that was a result of Green Bay missing their WR2 and WR3, however. With both Randall Cobb and Geronimo Allison presumably set to return, Graham could see his numbers dip slightly. The funnel defense theory has proved true to some extent, as the Rams have allowed the fifth-most passing yards to tight ends this year. Graham remains in the TE1 discussion this week.

Colts at Raiders

Matchups We Love:

Andrew Luck (QB, IND)
Despite a season-low in pass attempts and yardage in Week 7, Luck still made fantasy owners happy with four touchdowns. He has definitively asserted himself as an elite quarterback again and should be started in all but the toughest matchups, namely Week 10 against Jacksonville. The Raiders pose little threat with a bottom-10 pass defense despite facing the fewest attempts of all teams. Now that T.Y. Hilton is back, Luck is a legitimate threat to be the top-scoring QB of the week.

Marlon Mack (RB, IND)
Mack broke out in a big way against the Bills, running for 126 yards and adding another 33 through the air with two touchdowns. Was it just a matter of an overmatched opponent laying down? Not necessarily. Mack ran for 89 yards on just 12 carries the week before and should get even more work as the team ramps up his usage. Mack's touches have gone from 13 to 21 the last two weeks while Jordan Wilkins saw zero and seven touches respectively, so there's no doubt who owns this backfield now. The Raiders aren't much better against the run than the pass, allowing the seventh-most fantasy points per game to RBs. Mack could deliver another big game just ahead of the team's bye.

T.Y. Hilton (WR, IND)
The fact Hilton saw just four targets in Week 7 would be disappointing except that he caught all of them and two were in the end zone. He should see more action this week, especially with Ryan Grant still out. His 9.4 aDOT is unusually low for him but small sample size plays a part here. Expect more yardage and a good chance to score again.

Jared Cook (TE, OAK)
There aren't many teams in which a tight end leads the way in targets but Oakland is one. Cook's 20% target share is one reason he's been among the most reliable TE options this season. The exile of Amari Cooper is enough to vault him back in the TE1 discussion. His season has been defined by two huge games in Weeks 1 and 4, with four mediocre performances sprinkled in. This week at least, Cook should see enough volume to approach those monster games.

Matchups We Hate:

Derek Carr (QB, OAK)
You probably know that the Raiders dealt their top receiver, Amari Cooper, to the Cowboys in order to continue their rebuilding process. Cooper's fantasy value was questionable but his absence leaves the team with Jordy Nelson and Martavis Bryant as starters, with Seth Roberts now operating in the slot. It may not be as huge a loss as expected since Cooper only accounted for 34 targets, or a 17% target share that is just one ahead of Nelson. The problem is that the Raiders lack a dynamic threat on offense and Carr himself has come under fire for his leadership ability. This is a situation that fantasy owners should be leery of altogether, even if the Colts are a mid-tier defense statistically.

Nyheim Hines (RB, IND)
Mack isn't just taking away the precious few carries Hines took in the first few weeks, he's stealing his thunder as a receiver too. Hines has three receptions the last two games, as does Mack. Hines is merely a change-of-pace back who will provide an occasional breather but no more. He can be dropped in all but the deepest PPR leagues.

Doug Martin (RB, OAK)
On a team that already has the sixth-fewest running plays this season, now enters a running back averaging 3.7 yards per carry. This is to be expected since Martin has posted only one season out of the last six with a higher Y/A. While starting running backs aren't a dime a dozen, you'd have to be desperate to plug the Muscle Hamster in your starting lineup. If Andrew Luck keeps firing away, the Raiders may not be in a position to establish the run. Not that they have all season.

Chester Rogers (WR, IND)
Here's a non-coincidence: in Weeks 1-3 with T.Y. Hilton playing an entire game, Rogers' targets were 3, 3, and 4. In Weeks 4-6 with Hilton out, Rogers saw 11, 11, 10 targets in order. Last week, with Hilton back, he dropped to four targets again. He reverts to a non-factor behind Hilton, Ebron, and potentially Doyle in the pecking order.

Other Matchups:

Jalen Richard (RB, OAK)
If there is a silver and black lining, it could be Richard. He is already second on the team in targets with 39 and should see his floor rise substantially without Marshawn Lynch in the backfield. His only appeal is in PPR leagues, however, as he is sure to run behind Martin (at first anyway) and has never seen double-digit carries in an NFL game. Gruden clearly views him as a pass-catching back only. If you want a few points from receptions with the chance for a big play (he does average 5.3 yards with plays of 75 and 52 yards under his belt over the last two years), Richard could serve you well this week.

Jordy Nelson / Martavis Bryant (WR, OAK)
As discussed already, there will be a minimal uptick in passes thrown toward the remaining Oakland wideouts so they are still matchup-dependent for fantasy value. The Colts corners haven't graded out particularly well but have managed to resist giving up big games to anyone outside of AJ Green, DeAndre Hopkins, Keke Coutee, and Jermaine Kearse. Nelson still has the wheels to get deep but with no RB to keep defenses honest, it's unlikely either will hit it big. Nelson could have a decent floor in PPR leagues while Bryant is completely touchdown-dependent unless the team suddenly decides to feature him.

Eric Ebron (TE, IND)
We need to remind ourselves that Ebron is just 25 years old and finally got a chance to prove himself outside of Detroit, where the tight end has not been a priority in the passing game since... ever? Averaging 51 yards and almost a touchdown per game, Ebron could be a set-it-and-forget-it option, except for Jack Doyle. Doyle was back to practicing fully this week and there's a chance he plays. If so, Ebron becomes riskier in PPR leagues, although not altogether worthless.

49ers at Cardinals

Matchups We Love:

David Johnson (RB, ARI)
Is it possible that DJ is... touchdown-dependent? He has rushed for even 60 yards in a game and has only topped 31 receiving yards once. Six touchdowns have kept him in lineups but this is definitely not what fantasy owners signed up for. The #FreeDavidJohnson movement should feel a sense of accomplishment now that OC Mike McCoy has been fired. There's a good chance Johnson sees his highest touch total of the season against a bottom-10 run defense. Keep him plugged in and hope better days begin now.

Matt Breida (RB, SF)
An image of the final scene of "The Lorax" always comes to mind when describing Breida's weekly outlook with the word "UNLESS" emblazoned on a pedestal. Breida should be in line for a great week UNLESS he gets hurt and exits early again. He left a bad taste in many mouths by starting in Week 7, carrying it five times for 15 yards and then leaving for good. He's still averaging a league-high 6.5 yards per carry but is running it less than 10 times per game. Oh, endless frustration. Once again, Breida is a potential home run hitter with his breakaway speed against a Cardinals defense that is the absolute worst against opposing RBs, allowing 29.3 fantasy points per game. He must be started, albeit with fingers crossed.

Christian Kirk (WR, ARI)
More than just a deep threat, Kirk has seen 13 targets in the last two games and an average of 6.4 per game over the last five contests. The Cardinals' playbook could open up this week, with more downfield shots than usual, which does benefit Kirk. A matchup with CB Greg Mabin also works in his favor. Kirk is on the flex radar this week and is far preferred over his HOF teammate, Larry Legend.

Marquise Goodwin (WR, SF)
It could be Garcon, not Goodwin, who sees the majority of Patrick Peterson this week, assuming he's still on the team. Goodwin came alive in Week 6 but was back to irrelevance in Week 7 with two catches for 24 yards. In fact, if you exclude his monster game, he is averaging 2.3 receptions and 26 yards per contest in his other three full games. He is truly a boom-bust play for those seeking potential upside at the expense of any sort of safety net.

George Kittle (TE, SF)
He's developed into a high-floor play as far as tight ends go and there's no reason to treat him otherwise this week. Kittle caught five passes for 83 yards back in Week 5 facing these same Cardinals. He can give you a secure feeling in PPR leagues even if he lacks the scoring upside of a few other TEs. He is tied for fifth in red zone targets at the position, so don't fear that the touchdowns won't come eventually.

Matchups We Hate:

Alfred Morris (RB, SF)
It doesn't matter. Morris was back in the mix with nine carries last week! The Cardinal defense is so bad, they allow 137 rushing yards per game to RBs! Adrian Peterson ran for 96 yards and Mike Davis put up 101 against them! Morris had his best game in Week 5 against the Cards! Doesn't matter. Morris saw 18 carries in that game because Breida (wait for it...) left with an injury. Morris will get a few carries but continue to average a paltry 3.6 Y/A just like he did in Week 5. He's got just one TD this year and catches one pass per game. Just drop him already.

Dante Pettis (WR, SF)
It appears Pierre Garcon will miss Week 8 with a knee injury, which turns out to be good timing for the rookie WR as he returns from his own similar injury. Pettis made a splash with 61 yards and a TD in his debut game. That said, he will likely face Patrick Peterson much of the day and is catching passes from a different quarterback now. Pass for now.

Other Matchups:

Josh Rosen (QB, ARI)
It's easy to hate what Rosen did last week, accounting for five turnovers against an embattled Broncos defense. He had only thrown one pick in his first three starts, however, and one in relief back in Week 3. With Byron Leftwich, former gunslinging QB for Jacksonville, running the offense now, it should help Rosen's development. It will be a process but it could start quickly with a 49ers defense that has allowed 16 passing TD and just one INT on the season. Rosen can only be considered in superflex or TwoQB formats due to limited upside but if there's a time to take a chance on him, it could be this week.

C.J. Beathard (QB, SF)
On paper, this is a tough matchup. The Cardinals are more than vulnerable vs the run and give up the third-fewest fantasy points to QBs. On the other hand, Beathard already put up 349 yards and two TD in his first meeting with Arizona. Beathard has run hot and cold, so expectations should fall somewhere in between. He isn't a strong enough candidate to land on the radar for single-QB leagues though.

Raheem Mostert (RB, SF)
If Breida doesn't make it through a full game or suffers a pre-game setback, Mostert is a sneaky good play this week given how bad Arizona's run D has been. Mostert proved his Week 6 performance in Green Bay wasn't a total fluke by averaging over eight yards a carry in Week 7. We don't know what he's capable of doing with a bigger workload since he entered this season with eight career rush attempts so take all this with a huge grain of salt, as being a change of pace is different from being the main ballcarrier. He's best left for DFS tournaments or desperation situations for now.

Larry Fitzgerald (WR, ARI)
Fitz has been in limbo all season, with a hamstring injury that hasn't been bad enough to keep him out of any games but is limiting him from his usual excellence. We can't blame QB play or play-calling because it was no different last year and he managed to post twice as much productivity. Listed as Probable, Fitzgerald will suit up again and try to do better than the two receptions and 35 yards he gained in Week 5. Fantasy owners should be able to do better.

Ricky Seals-Jones (TE, ARI)
We'll see how a new offensive coordinator figures into things but RSJ is still a desperation bye-week filler only. He's finished under 40 yards in five of their seven games and has just one touchdown to offset his lack of production. There's talent and potential but it's still a work in progress, much like his quarterback.

Sunday Night Football - Saints at Vikings

Matchups We Love:

Drew Brees (QB, NO)
He was held in check to some extent by the tough Ravens D last week (212 yards, two TD); this game promises to be far less of a slugfest. The Saints didn't show out very well in last year's road matchup against the Vikings, scoring 19 points. Brees threw for 291 yards and one score in that game. This is a different Minnesota defense, however, despite the potential return of Everson Griffen. Brees is a safe bet to be a top-10 fantasy QB once more.

Kirk Cousins (QB, MIN)
Captain Kirk has been less than stellar the last two weeks but he hasn't really needed to throw it much. Easy wins against the Cardinals and Jets can be overlooked. We could see something closer to his performance in Weeks 2 or 4 when the team had to keep pace with the Packers and Rams; Cousins went over 400 passing yards each of those games with seven total TD. We know the drill by now - New Orleans is great against the run and fourth-worst against the pass. Cousins could be your personal savior this week if he's in your lineup.

Alvin Kamara (RB, NO)
It should be expected that Kamara isn't performing at the same level since Ingram returned. He did combine for 75 yards and a touchdown last week at least, despite a tough road matchup. In a game that should be full of big plays, Kamara will try to make up for last year's dud when he totaled just 38 yards. It was his first game ever in the NFL and there was a dude named Adrian Peterson in the backfield mix too, so we can completely ignore that box score. The Vikings also allow the sixth-most receiving yards to RBs this season, which works in Kamara's favor.

Adam Thielen (WR, MIN)
In an effort to resist overly sarcastic comments about how starting the No. 1 fantasy WR against the worst-rated fantasy defense vs WR might be obvious, I'll just add this in: pay up every cent in DFS 50/50 games but avoid the chalk in tournaments because the ROI can't possibly be there. Yes, he'll probably be one of the top-scoring wide receivers this week but his game-high this season is 135 yards and he hasn't scored more than one touchdown in a game with Cousins at QB. The ceiling isn't that crazy, it's just that the floor is almost as high.

Michael Thomas (WR, NO)
All-Pro cornerback Xavier Rhodes is doubtful with an ankle injury and Thomas figures to benefit the most. His target count climbed back up in a win over Baltimore, although he still isn't anywhere close to his early-season dominance and likely won't be with Mark Ingram back to help the run game. Double-digit receptions and 100+ yards might be an unrealistic expectation at this point, but Thomas is easily a WR1 this week against a banged-up Minnesota secondary also missing rookie CB Mike Hughes.

Matchups We Hate:

Latavius Murray (RB, MIN)
The Saints are still allowing the fewest rushing yards in the league by far (286 total, 47.6 per game). Murray is not a breakaway threat and will depend on volume that he might not receive if game script turns pass-heavy for the Vikings. His guaranteed workload with Cook out again keeps him start-worthy, but temper expectations quite a bit this week.

Kyle Rudolph (TE, MIN)
It's finally to the point where Rudolph seems benchable. A one-catch game alone isn't cause for panic but it could be the final straw for frustrated owners. Rudolph hasn't seen the end zone since Week 3 and has only gone over 60 yards once this year. He kept a reasonably high floor based on his receptions totals but with a plethora of other TE options either back from injury (Greg Olsen, Evan Engram) or newly emerging (C.J. Uzomah, David Njoku, Vance McDonald), Rudolph is no longer a must-start.

Other Matchups:

Mark Ingram (RB, NO)
It's been tough sledding for Ingram thus far. In two games since his suspension, Ingram has 85 rushing yards on 28 carries, good for three yards a pop. Without reaching the end zone, his value seems fairly capped as a low-end RB2 or high-end flex play. The Vikings haven't allowed opponents to generate much of a run game thanks to their ability to put up points. Only a handful of teams have defended fewer rush attempts per game. Ingram is always a threat in this offense but not a particularly high one in this matchup.

Stefon Diggs (WR, MIN)
You'd think Diggs would be an automatic start based on matchup but I'm not sold. First of all, you can throw out last year's stat line of 93 yards and two TD in Week 1 because that was when Sam Bradford was behind center in Minnesota and the Saints team they faced wasn't the same. His highlight game-winner from the playoff game was a total fluke based on blown tackling. Diggs is still being targeted a ton but has been less effective, averaging a career-low 9.8 yards per catch. Shadow coverage from Marshon Lattimore isn't reason enough to bench him but should give some pause before automatically declaring him a top-20 fantasy WR simply because it's the Saints on the other side.

Tre'Quan Smith (WR, NO)
Sure to be on the mind of all who added him in the last couple of weeks as a flex possibility, Smith is a boom-bust play this week so proceed cautiously. He has great burst but isn't guaranteed a high target share. Eventually, his usage may resemble that of Kenny Stills circa 2013 when he caught 32 passes and averaged 20 yards per reception as a rookie. This could be a great spot for him to shine, given the weaknesses in the Vikings secondary so play him if you're looking for upside alone.

Benjamin Watson (TE, NO)
Just when we're ready to count him out, he catches a touchdown on six receptions in Week 7. The Vikings have been generous to tight ends this season, allowing 72 yards per game, but he shouldn't be counted on in all but the deepest leagues.