Fantasy Football Week 8 Rankings: Top 50 Flex Players for Standard, PPR Formats
Filling a fantasy football lineup only gets tougher as the year progresses, but Week 8 might be the hardest all season with six teams on bye.
The Los Angeles Rams, Miami Dolphins, San Francisco 49ers, Baltimore Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants all have the week off, which takes away several of the top players across the league. Can you win without Le'Veon Bell or Odell Beckham Jr.—or even the red-hot Jay Ajayi?
The good thing about the NFL is there are always players available to take their place. Some of them feature more risk than what you are used to seeing, but the upside makes it worth the start when you need a win.
Injury situations could lead to a few changes as the week progresses, but these are early projections for flex rankings heading into Week 8 of the NFL season.
| 1 | David Johnson, RB, ARI | David Johnson, RB, ARI |
| 2 | Julio Jones, WR, ATL | Julio Jones, WR, ATL |
| 3 | Ezekiel Elliott, RB, DAL | A.J. Green, WR, CIN |
| 4 | DeMarco Murray, RB, TEN | Mike Evans, WR, TB |
| 5 | A.J. Green, WR, CIN | DeMarco Murray, RB, TEN |
| 6 | Melvin Gordon, RB, SD | Ezekiel Elliott, RB, DAL |
| 7 | Mike Evans, WR, TB | Larry Fitzgerald, WR, ARI |
| 8 | T.Y. Hilton, WR, IND | T.Y. Hilton, WR, IND |
| 9 | Larry Fitzgerald, WR, ARI | Melvin Gordon, RB, SD |
| 10 | LeGarrette Blount, RB, NE | Amari Cooper, WR, OAK |
| 11 | Devonta Freeman, RB, ATL | Rob Gronkowski, TE, NE |
| 12 | Amari Cooper, WR, OAK | Devonta Freeman, RB, ATL |
| 13 | Rob Gronkowski, TE, NE | Lamar Miller, RB, HOU |
| 14 | Lamar Miller, RB, HOU | DeAndre Hopkins, WR, HOU |
| 15 | Christine Michael, RB, SEA | Ty Montgomery, WR, GB |
| 16 | DeAndre Hopkins, WR, HOU | Greg Olsen, TE, CAR |
| 17 | Greg Olsen, TE, CAR | LeGarrette Blount, RB, NE |
| 18 | Spencer Ware, RB, KC | Jordy Nelson, WR, GB |
| 19 | Jordy Nelson, WR, GB | Spencer Ware, RB, KC |
| 20 | Brandon Marshall, WR, NYJ | Brandon Marshall, WR, NYJ |
| 21 | Marvin Jones, WR, DET | Christine Michael, RB, SEA |
| 22 | Matt Forte, RB, NYJ | James White, RB, NE |
| 23 | Dez Bryant, WR, DAL | Michael Crabtree, WR, OAK |
| 24 | Allen Robinson, WR, JAX | Marvin Jones, WR, DET |
| 25 | Jacquizz Rodgers, RB, TB | Dez Bryant, WR, DAL |
| 26 | Brandin Cooks, WR, NO | Allen Robinson, WR, JAX |
| 27 | Jeremy Hill, RB, CIN | Matt Forte, RB, NYJ |
| 28 | Michael Crabtree, WR, OAK | Jacquizz Rodgers, RB, TB |
| 29 | Kelvin Benjamin, WR, CAR | Brandin Cooks, WR, NO |
| 30 | Frank Gore, RB, IND | Giovani Bernard, RB, CIN |
| 31 | C.J. Anderson, RB, DEN | Julian Edelman, WR, NE |
| 32 | Giovani Bernard, RB, CIN | Jimmy Graham, TE, SEA |
| 33 | Jimmy Graham, TE, SEA | Kelvin Benjamin, WR, CAR |
| 34 | Ty Montgomery, WR, GB | Frank Gore, RB, IND |
| 35 | Terrelle Pryor, WR, CLE | Terrelle Pryor, WR, CLE |
| 36 | Emmanuel Sanders, WR, DEN | C.J. Anderson, RB, DEN |
| 37 | Matt Jones, RB, WAS | Emmanuel Sanders, WR, DEN |
| 38 | Latavius Murray, RB, OAK | Jeremy Hill, RB, CIN |
| 39 | James White, RB, NE | Jeremy Maclin, WR, KC |
| 40 | Demaryius Thomas, WR, DEN | Demaryius Thomas, WR, DEN |
| 41 | Mark Ingram, RB, NO | Bilal Powell, RB, NYJ |
| 42 | Julian Edelman, WR, NE | Alshon Jeffery, WR, CHI |
| 43 | Alshon Jeffery, WR, CHI | Duke Johnson, RB, CLE |
| 44 | Tyrell Williams, WR, SD | Matt Asiata, RB, MIN |
| 45 | Matt Asiata, RB, MIN | Davante Adams, WR, GB |
| 46 | Jeremy Maclin, WR, KC | Chris Thompson, RB, WAS |
| 47 | Davante Adams, WR, GB | Stefon Diggs, WR, MIN |
| 48 | Jonathan Stewart, RB, CAR | Darren Sproles, RB, PHI |
| 49 | Stefon Diggs, WR, MIN | Delanie Walker, TE, TEN |
| 50 | Delanie Walker, TE, TEN | Matt Jones, RB, WAS |
Notable Players to Watch
David Johnson, RB, Arizona Cardinals
No matter what rules you have in your league, how many teams there are or what the matchup is, David Johnson is the No. 1 player in fantasy football for the foreseeable future.
Even with high expectations coming into the season, the second-year player has exceeded them with outstanding performances every single game. So far in 2016, Johnson has 1,004 yards from scrimmage and eight touchdowns, excelling even against elite defenses.
Bleacher Report's John Middlekauff noted just how good the player has been:
Johnson couldn't get into the end zone in the Week 7 game against the Seattle Seahawks (neither could anyone else on either team), but he still managed 113 yards on 33 carries as well as eight catches for 58 yards.
The Carolina Panthers are hoping to play better coming off a bye, but there is simply no answer for Johnson with the way he is playing. With the Arizona Cardinals having the confidence to get him 41 touches in a single game, you should have the confidence to play him without abandon for the rest of the season.
As long as he is healthy, Johnson should be No. 1 in every game going forward.
Ty Montgomery, RB/WR, Green Bay Packers
Injuries to Eddie Lacy and James Starks forced the Green Bay Packers to get creative with their running back situation, which might have been the best thing to happen for this stagnant offense.
Ty Montgomery was moved from receiver to running back, becoming the ideal option for Aaron Rodgers in checkdown situations. The quarterback gave praise to the second-year player out of Stanford after the Week 7 win, via Green Bay's official Twitter:
Montgomery has caught 10 passes in each of the last two games on 25 total targets, making him a perfect fit for PPR leagues. Of course, he also added 66 receiving yards and 60 rushing yards in his first start at running back.
His ability to rack up yardage on the ground or through the air makes him a solid addition to your lineup in standard leagues, but he could be a legitimate star in PPR, especially if the Packers continue to throw the ball as often as they have lately.
There is a possibility Knile Davis could make a bigger contribution in Week 8 after getting more acclimated with the offense, but Montgomery has played too well to disappear.
Allen Robinson, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
While the stock is moving up for Johnson and Montgomery, the same cannot be said for Allen Robinson.
The Jacksonville Jaguars receiver was a high pick in a lot of leagues after a breakout 2015 season where he finished with 80 catches for 1,400 yards and 14 touchdowns. Through six games in 2016, he has just three touchdowns and 296 yards on 26 catches.
Despite favorable matchups over the last two games against the Chicago Bears and Oakland Raiders, Robinson had just five catches for 58 yards combined.
What made Robinson such an ideal fantasy player last season was his ability to get touchdowns. All of a sudden, though, Jacksonville has a hard time even sniffing the end zone, ranking 27th in yards per game and 24th in points per game, according to ESPN.com.
Robinson is also averaging just 11.4 yards per catch this year after a 17.5 mark a year ago.
A lot of these issues come down to Blake Bortles' struggles at quarterback, and he doesn't appear likely to turn around anytime soon. An upcoming matchup against the Tennessee Titans will not be an easy one, which means Robinson could move to your bench if you have better options.
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