Matthew Stafford, Golden Tate, Jeremy Ross' Post-Week 8 Fantasy Reaction

The Detroit Lions were without Calvin Johnson for the third straight week in Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons. For the third straight week, Golden Tate proved himself capable of being a top option.  

The former Notre Dame star picked up his fourth 100-yard game of the season, finishing with 151 yards and seven receptions in Detroit's 22-21 comeback victory over the Falcons in London. After struggling mightily in the first half against a shaky Atlanta defense, the Lions came alive in the second half.

Player	Receptions	Yards	YPC	TDs	Targets
Golden Tate	7	151	21.6	1	15
Jeremy Ross	3	31	10.3	0	3

Tate and Matthew Stafford connected on a 59-yard touchdown in the third quarter, making the latter the all-time passing touchdowns leader in franchise history. Stafford, who had only 85 yards at half, finished with 325 yards and two touchdowns. He also led the Lions on a game-winning drive capped by a 48-yard Matt Prater field goal. 

Completions/Attempts	Yards	YPA	TDs	INTs
24/47	325	6.9	2	1

It was the third straight game Detroit's offense did just enough to keep pace with its throttling defense. After allowing the Falcons to score touchdowns on three of their first drives, the Lions held their opponent scoreless the rest of the way. 

Matt Dunham/Associated Press

Detroit was also playing without Reggie Bush, Brandon Pettigrew, Eric Ebron and Joseph Fauria, so it's not hard to spot why things got off to a slow start. Add in Johnson's absence, and nearly every difference-maker on the depth chart was out minus Tate.

Luckily, Detroit's bye is coming at a perfect time. The Lions return from Sunday's game in London to a full week off, where they can lick their wounds and begin rebuilding the offense. Stafford should at the very least be able to count on a return from Johnson, who was ramping up practice activity before being ruled out for one more week.

With Megatron's return comes adverse consequences for every other Detroit pass catcher. Tate is an ideal sell-high candidate, with his numbers likely dipping from clear-cut WR1 down to the low-end WR2 or flex play area.

Matt Dunham/Associated Press

Jeremy Ross, who had 31 yards on three receptions, was basically irrelevant from a fantasy perspective coming into this week and remain such going forward. Despite Johnson's injury issues, no Lions wideouts other than Tate and Megatron had even so much as 20 targets. Stafford, for all his physical gifts, is very much the predictable sort with his football distribution. 

In a nutshell: Johnson is a top-five wideout on historical merit alone. Stafford re-enters the top-10 quarterback discussion with his top target back. Tate's value takes a major hit. Everyone else in the pass-catching game isn't worth owning outside the deepest leagues.

Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter