Fantasy Football Week 8 Rankings: Projections and Matchups to Love

It's all about the fantasy football matchups in Week 8 of the NFL season. 

Owners saw this plain enough on the latest edition of Thursday Night Football. Even over the course of a 40-0 defeat at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens, Kenny Stills of the Miami Dolphins posted a solid scoring day thanks to the matchup, even in the face of a third-string quarterback getting him the ball. 

Of course, the on-paper outlook doesn't always work out so well. But knowing the matchups is one part of a much bigger picture necessary to pick up wins, so let's rank the top positions based on 12-team Yahoo leagues. 

Week 8 Schedule

Minnesota at Cleveland

Atlanta at N.Y. Jets 

Carolina at Tampa Bay 

Chicago at New Orleans

Indianapolis at Cincinnati 

L.A. Chargers at New England 

Oakland at Buffalo

San Francisco at Philadelphia 

Houston at Seattle 

Dallas at Washington

Pittsburgh at Detroit

Denver at Kansas City 

Quarterbacks

Player	Projected Points
Tom Brady	22
Kirk Cousins	20
Carson Wentz	19
Andy Dalton	18
Drew Brees	17
Russell Wilson	17
Cam Newton	16
Dak Prescott	15
Philip Rivers	15
Matt Ryan	15
Deshaun Watson	14
Jameis Winston	12
Tyrod Taylor	12
Alex Smith	12
Derek Carr	12

It's a Carson Wentz sort of week. 

The Philadelphia Eagles quarterback joins the usual suspects as an obvious top scorer coming off a 32.02-point outburst via four passing touchdowns. 

Wentz figures to regress, sure, though it's important to point out he's now thrown 11 touchdowns over his last three games while scoring a minimum of 21.38 points. Week 8 looks like it won't stunt his production too much thanks to a game against the San Francisco 49ers, the team allowing the second-most points to opposing quarterbacks on average. 

While a bit riskier, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton also looks like a great option as he heads into a game against the Indianapolis Colts. 

Those Colts permit the sixth-most points to quarterbacks on the season and don't have anyone who can stick with A.J. Green. Dalton has a high of 28.34 points this year but has been erratic mostly due to odd coaching decisions and tough matchups. 

This gift of a scenario would be hard for any coaching staff to flub, though, making Dalton a top streaming target. 

Running Backs

Player	Projected Points
Le'Veon Bell	20
Ezekiel Elliott	19
Devonta Freeman	19
Kareem Hunt	18
Melvin Gordon	17
LeSean McCoy	17
Chris Thompson	15
Jordan Howard	14
Jerick McKinnon	13
Carlos Hyde	12
Christian McCaffrey	12
Alvin Kamara	12
Mark Ingram	12
Joe Mixon	11
Lamar Miller	11
LeGarrette Blount	11
Duke Johnson	11
Doug Martin	11
Ameer Abdullah	10
Tevin Coleman	10
Dion Lewis	10
C.J. Anderson	10
Bilal Powell	8
Jalen Richard	8
Latavius Murray	8

It's a tough week for running backs from a matchup perspective, with a few of the worst teams against the spot on bye. 

Still, guys like Atlanta Falcons running back Devonta Freeman sit in great spots and can help ease some concern. 

Freeman hasn't scored double digits since Week 3, yet a game against the New York Jets should mean stellar production considering they cough up the eighth-most points to backs this year. 

On paper, the Falcons should look to get ahead on the road against a dangerous Jets team and then ride the ground game. Most of those totes should go Freeman's direction. 

This sort of week also inflates a name like Chris Thompson of the Washington Redskins. Arguably the league's best pass-catching back, Thompson already has five trips to double digits this year, including two outbursts north of 22 points. 

Thompson now gets the Dallas Cowboys, a team ranking in the middle of the pack against backs, yet one that struggles mightily against receiving options like Thompson.

Wide Receivers

Player	Projected Points
Antonio Brown	20
A.J. Green	20
Julio Jones	18
Mike Evans	16
Kelvin Benjamin	15
Michael Thomas	14
Keenan Allen	14
Alshon Jeffery	14
Doug Baldwin	13
Tyreek Hill	13
Michael Crabtree	12
Chris Hogan	12
Dez Bryant	12
T.Y. Hilton	12
Brandin Cooks	11
Tedd Ginn	11
Adam Thielen	11
DeAndre Hopkins	11
Pierre Garcon	11
Devin Funchess	10
Amari Cooper	10
Nelson Agholor	9
Marvin Jones	9
DeSean Jackson	8
Demaryius Thomas	8
Stefon Diggs	8
Will Fuller	8
Jermaine Kearse	7
Tyler Lockett	7
Mohamed Sanu	7

Other than highlighting a guy like the aforementioned Green, this is a big week for big names who don't always produce. 

Kelvin Benjamin is a good example. The Carolina Panthers wideout has only scored in double digits twice this year, yet owners are well aware of the damage he can do when given chances. He's seen plenty of those lately, with six or more targets in each of his past three outings. 

With Greg Olsen sidelined, Benjamin once again figures to be a top option against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a team coughing up the second-most points to wideouts this year. 

Another option like this making an appearance near the top of the charts this week is Los Angeles Chargers wideout Keenan Allen. 

Normally only a boon in points-per-reception (PPR) leagues, Allen is a safe gamble in standard formats as well against a New England Patriots defense allowing the fourth-most points to the position. 

With the Chargers likely playing from behind, the fact Allen has double-digit target tallies in four games this year and no fewer than seven in each game outright speaks volumes to the value he presents owners this week. 

Tight Ends

Player	Projected Points
Rob Gronkowski	11
Zach Ertz PHI	11
Travis Kelce	10
Kyle Rudolph	10
Austin Seferian-Jenkins	10
Tyler Kroft	9
Kyle Rudolph	9
Jimmy Graham	8
Cameron Brate	8
Jason Witten	7
Jordan Reed	7
Jared Cook	7
Jack Doyle	7
Zach Miller	6
George Kittle	6

Look at what a matchup against the Cleveland Browns can do for a player. 

Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph has had a quiet season, scoring in double digits once and reaching the endzone twice. Yet his outlook does a complete 180 against a Browns defense allowing the third-most points to the spot. 

These Browns have coughed up huge games to Jesse James and Tyler Kroft. Considering Rudolph has a minimum of seven targets in each of his past three outings, he looks like a lock for a big day. 

Wentz's favorite target, Zach Ertz, hasn't had any problems gaining attention. He's sitting on three consecutive performances of at least 12.1 points and has four touchdowns over the same span. 

Like Wentz, a regression only seems natural—but he's playing the 49ers. The defense does rank among the best in the league against the position, but playing against names like Luke Wilson, Derek Carrier, Jermaine Gresham and Brandon Williams tends to inflate numbers. 

Defense/Special Teams

Unit	Projected Points
Minnesota Vikings	11
Cincinnati Bengals	10
Philadelphia Eagles	9
Kansas City Chiefs	9
Pittsburgh Steelers	8
Denver Broncos	7
New Orleans Saints	7
Seattle Seahawks	6
Buffalo Bills	6
Carolina Panthers	6

Those Vikings are the latest fortunate enough to capitalize on the quarterback carousel in Cleveland. 

Browns quarterbacks have already thrown seven touchdowns against 17 interceptions, which is nothing but a good thing for a Vikings defense boasting 21 sacks and seven interceptions entering the contest. 

The woeful state of the Browns offense has helped four units post double-digit production and none fewer than six points. Over the past two outings alone, opposing defenses have combined for 34 points. 

Expect one of the league's better defenses to keep the trend alive. 

Kickers

Player	Projected Points
Stephen Gostkowski	10
Jake Elliott	10
Harrison Butker	9
Matt Bryant	9
Chris Boswell	8
Wil Lutz	7
Kai Forbath	7
Randy Bullock	6
Matt Prater	6
Steven Hauschka	6

The Jake Elliott show isn't going to stop now, folks. 

The Eagles' rookie kicker with four conversions from more than 50 yards out has scored at least 10 points in each of his past five games, including an outing of 19 points. 

Elliott figures to have plenty of chances against a 49ers team allowing the fifth-most points to kickers this year. Though really, Elliott has started to become a matchup-free play. 

But a little insurance with a cupcake here makes the rookie one of the top kickers to know.

All scoring info, points-against info and ownership stats courtesy of Yahoo standard leagues.