Fantasy Football Week 8: Matt Camp's Fantasy Big Board
Winning a fantasy championship isn't all about finding players to permanently fill spots in your starting lineup. While it would be nice to use a majority of the same players every week, the obstacles of injuries, bye weeks, tough matchups and role changes will get in the way. Sometimes, it's about sticking with what works until it doesn't.
The bye week has come and gone for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and Le'Veon Bell still isn't with the team. That means James Conner gets another week to show his worth to both the Steelers and his fantasy teams as a locked-in RB1. Obviously, whenever Bell decides to come back, Conner's value would take a hit. Until that happens, he remains a strong fantasy asset.
If you bought into the Chicago Bears offense coming into the season, you knew Mitchell Trubisky had a chance to be a fantasy sleeper. A slow start may have knocked him completely off the fantasy radar, but the last month has turned him into a QB1. It's worth riding his surge in fantasy production, especially in an ascending offense.
Here's the first look at points-per-reception (PPR) rankings for Week 8. These will change throughout the week and up to Sunday's action as we get more information about injuries and limitations, so make sure to bookmark this page for my full rankings for all scoring formats.
Check out Matt Camp on his Fantasy Camp podcast available every Tuesday and Thursday. Click to subscribe or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
Top 100
1 of 7
I present my top 100 players (minus quarterbacks) for the week as a way to help determine your flex spots. You may favor a certain position or player over another based on his role and/or your scoring rules.
As an additional tiebreaker, here are the teams I like as a whole this week based on their matchups:
- Kansas City Chiefs (vs. Denver Broncos)
- Cincinnati Bengals (vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (at Cincinnati Bengals)
- Indianapolis Colts (at Oakland Raiders)
- Chicago Bears (vs. New York Jets)
Week 8 Top 100 PPR Rankings
Quarterbacks
2 of 7
Better Than Usual
Mitchell Trubisky, CHI (vs. NYJ)
If you're not a believer in Trubisky, you should be after what he did in Week 7. When the Chicago Bears lost to the New England Patriots, he didn't have a great day as a passer, going 26-of-50 for 333 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. However, he rushed for 81 yards and a touchdown on six carries to finish as the No. 2 quarterback with 31.4 fantasy points.
Over the last four weeks, no one is averaging more fantasy points than Trubisky at 34.1 per game. If you've been treating him as a streamer, it's time to upgrade him to the QB1 tier. His 245 rushing yards are second among quarterbacks, which is a major boost to his fantasy value, as evidenced by what he did last weekend. He shouldn't face much of a challenge from a New York Jets defense giving up the seventh-most fantasy points to quarterbacks in the last month.
Jameis Winston, TB (at CIN)
In two games as a starter, only Patrick Mahomes and Trubisky have scored more points than Winston. It wasn't pretty, but he had the No. 9 performance last week with 365 yards and two interceptions on 32-of-52 passing in addition to 55 yards and a touchdown on 10 rushes. Historically, Winston doesn't rely on his legs that often, so unlike Trubisky, it's not a reliable part of his fantasy value.
Of course, the reason to believe in him this week is because of the damage he should be do with his arm in a beatable matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals. In the last four weeks, they surrendered 1,331 yards and nine touchdowns to quarterbacks, which explains why they've allowed the fourth-most fantasy points per game to the position in that time. The Buccaneers have allowed the most fantasy points over the same span, which is why this has potential to be a high-scoring affair. Expect another big week from Winston.
Concern
Cam Newton, CAR (vs. BAL)
Newton had a slow start in Week 7, but he was able to rally the Carolina Panther back from a 17-point deficit to beat the Philadelphia Eagles. He connected on 25 of 39 passes for 269 yards with a pair of touchdowns and rushed seven times for 49 yards. He's the league's leading rusher at the quarterback position, with at least 29 rushing yards in each game. He has four games with at least 42 rushing yards. He enters Week 8 as the No. 7 quarterback on the season.
Unfortunately, Newton draws arguably the toughest possible matchup with the visiting Baltimore Ravens. Even though they lost last week, the Ravens held Drew Brees to just 16.8 fantasy points. For the season, the Ravens have been the second-toughest matchup for quarterbacks, as they've yielded just 13.31 fantasy points per game. While Newton also provides a tough matchup for Baltimore, expectations should be lowered this week.
Sleeper
Baker Mayfield, CLE (at PIT)
Much like his Week 7 counterpart in Winston, Mayfield's performance wasn't pretty, but it was good enough for strong fantasy numbers. He had just 215 yards on 23-of-34 passing, but had a pair of scores and added 43 yards on four carries. That was good enough for 20.9 fantasy points and the No. 6 spot for quarterbacks in Week 7. Since taking over the starting job in Week 4, Mayfield is the No. 14 quarterback, with 64 fantasy points (16 fantasy points per game).
He gets another chance to prove he's a good streamer when the Cleveland Browns meet the Pittsburgh Steelers in a rematch of their Week 1 tie. Tyrod Taylor started that game, so this is Mayfield's first chance at facing this division rival. On the year, Pittsburgh is the fourth-worst defense against fantasy quarterbacks at 23.86 fantasy points per game, so on paper this is a favorable matchup. Playing this one on the road won't be easy, but the matchup is good enough to give him a shot.
Week 8 Quarterback Rankings
| 1 | Patrick Mahomes (KC) |
| 2 | Aaron Rodgers (GB) |
| 3 | Kirk Cousins (MIN) |
| 4 | Andrew Luck (IND) |
| 5 | Jared Goff (LAR) |
| 6 | Ben Roethlisberger (PIT) |
| 7 | Drew Brees (NO) |
| 8 | Tom Brady (NE) |
| 9 | Andy Dalton (CIN) |
| 10 | Mitchell Trubisky (CHI) |
| 11 | Carson Wentz (PHI) |
| 12 | Jameis Winston (TB) |
| 13 | Deshaun Watson (HOU) |
| 14 | Cam Newton (CAR) |
| 15 | Matthew Stafford (DET) |
| 16 | Baker Mayfield (CLE) |
| 17 | Russell Wilson (SEA) |
| 18 | Joe Flacco (BAL) |
| 19 | CJ Beathard (SF) |
| 20 | Derek Carr (OAK) |
| 21 | Case Keenum (DEN) |
| 22 | Brock Osweiler (MIA) |
| 23 | Alex Smith (WAS) |
| 24 | Blake Bortles (JAC) |
| 25 | Eli Manning (NYG) |
| 26 | Sam Darnold (NYJ) |
| 27 | Josh Rosen (ARI) |
| 28 | Derek Anderson (BUF) |
Running Backs
3 of 7
Better Than Usual
Marlon Mack, IND (at OAK)
It's taken just two weeks for Mack to grab ahold of the starting job for the Indianapolis Colts, which has provided a much-needed boost to that backfield. He racked up 31 carries for 215 yards and a touchdown and provided the bonus of three receptions for 37 yards and a touchdown through the air on five targets in those two games for a total of 42.2 fantasy points.
Mack should have every chance to keep his hot streak alive in Week 8 when the Colts travel to Oakland. Over the last four weeks, no team has allowed more fantasy points to running backs. With the Raiders heading in the wrong direction, this should be a game the Colts can control, which means plenty of carries for Mack as one of the primary weapons in the offense. As long as the ankle injury he's battling doesn't become a major issue, he has top-12 potential this weekend.
Concern
Christian McCaffrey, CAR (vs. BAL)
When McCaffrey went off for 184 yards on 28 carries in Week 3, he seemed primed for a massive performance in 2018 with the big rushing numbers to go along with the already huge numbers as a receiver.
He returned after the Week 4 bye to post just 58 yards on 17 carries in Week 5 and then a total of 15 carries for 49 yards in the last two weeks. Luckily, McCaffrey does have 18 receptions for 132 yards and a TD over those three games, but it's fair to be somewhat disappointed by the dip in rushing production. He's still the No. 10 RB during that span at 16 fantasy points per game, yet it feels like he's capable of more.
This week's game with the Baltimore Ravens won't be the best chance for McCaffrey to get back on track. Last week, the Saints backfield managed to turn 29 carries into 96 yards and a touchdown and add just four receptions for 21 yards in a hard-fought win over the Ravens. Over the last month, no team has provided a tougher fantasy matchup for running backs than Baltimore. McCaffrey should be fine, but don't expect him to snap out of his rushing funk.
Sleepers
Raheem Mostert, SF (at ARI)
Matt Breida seems indestructible, although last week's five-snap, five-carry performance against the Los Angeles Rams showed he was human. He's battled through knee and ankle injuries throughout the season but has yet to miss a game. However, the ankle injury was too much to play through in Week 7, hence his limited action. That opened the door for Mostert to contribute seven carries for 59 yards and four receptions for 19 yards on four targets.
With 19 carries for 146 yards in the last two games, Mostert leads the team in rushing and could be called upon to play a bigger role this weekend when the San Francisco 49ers take on the Arizona Cardinals. Arizona struggled to corral Phillip Lindsay last week and has now allowed the fifth-most fantasy points to running backs in the last month.
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked about Breida on Wednesday and said: "He's looking a lot better these last two days than he did on Sunday. We're definitely giving him today off. We'll see how he is tomorrow. If he's good, we'll throw him in practice and evaluate him from there."
If Breida can't go, Mostert would get a significant bump in value with a chance to take advantage of a favorable matchup.
Ronald Jones II, TB (at CIN)
Jones hasn't gotten many chances as a rookie, but he may be in for more Sunday in Cincinnati. With Peyton Barber (ankle) out of Wednesday practice, head coach Dirk Koetter said Jones "got the majority of everything today," according to Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times.
Jones earned just one carry for three yards and three receptions for 16 yards on three targets coming out of the bye in Week 6. He played just 18.2 percent of the snaps. That snap share rose to 30.5 percent in Week 7 with one catch for 15 yards and six carries for 13 yards, including his first career touchdown. That's not much to get excited about, but using Jones would be about opportunity and the matchup. The Bengals allowed the fourth-most fantasy points to running backs over the last four weeks.
If Barber can't go, Jones wouldn't be a bad RB3/flex option. You should only consider using him if Barber is inactive.
Week 8 Running Back PPR Rankings
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Wide Receivers
4 of 7
Better Than Usual
Taylor Gabriel, CHI (vs. NYJ)
There's been too much overreaction to Gabriel's quiet performance in Week 7. After posting back-to-back 100-yard games, he managed just three receptions for 26 yards on four targets in a loss to the New England Patriots. While Gabriel can't be completely absolved of blame, Mitchell Trubisky didn't play particularly well in what's otherwise been a good season for the second-year quarterback and the Bears offense in general.
Gabriel still leads the team in receptions (30) and yards (329) with a pair of touchdowns, so while Tarik Cohen is coming on strong and Trey Burton continues to be one of the more consistent fantasy tight ends, Gabriel is very much in the mix and is arguably a better fantasy option than Allen Robinson.
Speaking of Robinson, the groin injury he played through last week kept him out of practice Wednesday, so it has to be a concern heading into Week 8 with a plus matchup against the visiting New York Jets. If Robinson is out or limited, Gabriel would get an extra boost against a defense that's given up the second-most fantasy points to wide receivers in the last four weeks.
The matchup is good enough to make this a bounce-back week for Gabriel, and his ceiling would rise if Robinson is unavailable.
Tyler Boyd, CIN (vs. TB)
Other than A.J. Green, none of the Cincinnati Bengals lived up to high expectations with what appeared to be a good matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs. Boyd had just four targets with three receptions for 27 yards. Since posting at least 91 yards in three straight games, Boyd has failed to top 62 yards in his last three. He's still second on the team in targets (56) and receiving yards (482) while being tied with Green in receptions (40).
If you're holding out hope for Boyd to bounce back, this week's matchup with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers couldn't come at a better time. In the last four weeks, the Buccaneers surrendered the fourth-most points to fantasy wide receivers. Over the season, they rank third in most fantasy points allowed to that position. Neither the Buccaneers nor the Bengals have much defense, so this has a chance to be a fantasy frenzy. Get Boyd back in your lineup with confidence.
Concern
Devin Funchess, CAR (vs. BAL)
Funchess hasn't been outstanding this season, but he has been solid. With a touchdown in each of the last two games, he's been a top-10 fantasy wide receiver. In games against the Washington Redskins and Philadelphia Eagles, he scored 36.6 fantasy points thanks to 11 receptions for 136 yards and two touchdowns on 19 targets. He's easily the top wide receiver for Cam Newton, yet there's reason to be concerned for Week 8.
Over the last month, only the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers have allowed fewer fantasy points per game to wide receivers than the Baltimore Ravens. In last week's loss to the New Orleans Saints, Baltimore yielded 10 receptions for 113 yards and a touchdown to those wide receivers, most of which came from Michael Thomas. Funchess is a good player but is nowhere near the level of Thomas.
You're better off lowering expectations to put Funchess in your lineup as a WR3/flex instead of expecting to keep up the strong performances of the last two weeks.
Sleeper
Tre'Quan Smith, NO (at MIN)
With Ted Ginn Jr. on the injured reserve, Smith has seen his role increase in a big way. Over the first four games of the season, he didn't play more than 37.1 percent of the snaps. Ginn was down for the last two games, which saw Smith play 66.7 percent of the snaps in Week 5 and 73.2 percent last week.
In the Week 5 victory over the Washington Redskins, Smith caught all three of his targets for 111 yards and a pair of scores. He had three more receptions in Week 7 on six targets but wound up with just 44 yards in a tough matchup with the Baltimore Ravens. The fantasy production is secondary for the time being since we're seeing a significant bump in snaps.
Smith could come through in a huge Sunday night matchup with the Minnesota Vikings. Top cornerback Xavier Rhodes (foot) and strong safety Andrew Sendejo (groin) missed practice Wednesday, so this could be a unit once again struggling to field its top players. Over the last four games, the Vikings have been an average matchup for wide receivers, so this shouldn't be the type of game that scares you away from using Smith. He's worth a look as a WR3/flex.
Week 8 Wide Receiver PPR Rankings
Tight Ends
5 of 7
Better Than Usual
O.J. Howard, TB (at CIN)
In his second season, Howard has developed into one of the more reliable fantasy tied ends through the first seven weeks of the year. Other than a knee injury limiting him in Week 4, he has at least 54 yards in five other games this season and has scored at least 11.7 fantasy points four times. At a time when good tight end help is hard to find, Howard is providing consistency and big-play potential all at once.
This week, he finds himself in a game that could produce a lot of fantasy points between two offenses that have the firepower to take advantage of bad defenses. The Cincinnati Bengals have allowed the second-most yards per game, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have given up the fourth-most yards per game. Both teams also rank in the bottom four of passing yards allowed per game.
Based on those numbers, it shouldn't come as a surprise that Howard gets to face a Bengals defense yielding the fourth-most fantasy points per game to tight ends in the last four weeks. He has a good chance to eclipse his 11.2 fantasy points-per-game average this weekend.
C.J. Uzomah, CIN (vs. TB)
Uzomah was pressed into a bigger role over the last three weeks following the loss of Tyler Eifert (ankle) to injured reserve and the absence of Tyler Kroft (foot). He posted six receptions for 54 yards on seven targets in Week 6 and followed that up with two receptions for 13 yards and a touchdown on his only two targets last week. If you aren't lucky enough to have someone reliable like Howard, Uzomah should be on your radar.
That's especially true with the Buccaneers visiting Sunday. Besides the aforementioned struggles as a defense overall, no team has allowed more fantasy points per game to tight ends than Tampa Bay. If this turns into the expected high-scoring affair we love in the fantasy world, Uzomah could be in the middle of it.
Concern
Rob Gronkowski, NE (at BUF)
Gronkowski's back flared up during last Friday's practice, so he was inactive for Week 7 after not even making the trip to Chicago. According to Michael Giardi of NFL Network, Gronkowski dealt with "painful back spasms," although it's believed to be a "short term thing."
He missed Wednesday's practice, although he'll have an extra day to get ready with New England facing the Buffalo Bills on Monday in New York. This is a situation to monitor, especially if his status remains in question Sunday.
Sleeper
Vance McDonald, PIT (vs. CLE)
Considering the lack of reliable options at the tight end position, McDonald could be sitting on your waiver wire with the Pittsburgh Steelers coming out of the Week 7 bye. If that's the case, snatch him up immediately.
McDonald gets a crack at the Cleveland Browns for the first time this season. He missed the opening-week tie against the Browns with a foot injury, but he has been solid since returning. In three of his last four games, McDonald has at least four receptions and 62 yards. Before the bye, he got the Bengals for 68 yards and seven receptions on eight targets.
The Browns gave up the eighth-most fantasy points to tight ends in the last month, so with McDonald quietly playing well, he could be a good plug-and-play option in Week 8.
Week 8 Tight End PPR Rankings
| 1 | Travis Kelce (KC) |
| 2 | Zach Ertz (PHI) |
| 3 | George Kittle (SF) |
| 4 | Rob Gronkowski (NE) |
| 5 | Eric Ebron (IND) |
| 6 | David Njoku (CLE) |
| 7 | Trey Burton (CHI) |
| 8 | Jimmy Graham (GB) |
| 9 | Jared Cook (OAK) |
| 10 | O.J. Howard (TB) |
| 11 | C.J. Uzomah (CIN) |
| 12 | Kyle Rudolph (MIN) |
| 13 | Jordan Reed (WAS) |
| 14 | Greg Olsen (CAR) |
| 15 | Evan Engram (NYG) |
| 16 | Vance McDonald (PIT) |
| 17 | Jack Doyle (IND) |
| 18 | Benjamin Watson (NO) |
| 19 | Cameron Brate (TB) |
| 20 | Dallas Goedert (PHI) |
| 21 | Ricky Seals-Jones (ARI) |
| 22 | Chris Herndon IV (NYJ) |
| 23 | Charles Clay (BUF) |
| 24 | Jesse James (PIT) |
| 25 | Nick Vannett (SEA) |
| 26 | Mark Andrews (BAL) |
| 27 | Vernon Davis (WAS) |
| 28 | Jeff Heuerman (DEN) |
| 29 | Erik Swoope (IND) |
| 30 | Gerald Everett (LAR) |
Defenses
6 of 7
Best Streaming Option
Indianapolis Colts (at OAK)
The Colts were a popular streamer last week and came through with two sacks, three interceptions, two fumble recoveries and just three points allowed to the Buffalo Bills. It's always nice to keep a streamer around for multiple weeks, which is what you can do with the Colts in this week's matchup with the Oakland Raiders.
For the season, Oakland has surrendered 17 sacks, eight interceptions, three fumble recoveries and a touchdown, while the offense is averaging just 17.3 points per game. The Raiders have given up the fifth-most fantasy points to defenses this season and only got worse over the bye with the loss of Marshawn Lynch to injured reserve and the trade of Amari Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys.
It should be another strong week for the Colts defense.
Ownership percentage: ESPN, 46.6; Yahoo, 45.0
Week 8 Defense Rankings
| 1 | New England Patriots (at BUF) |
| 2 | Chicago Bears (vs. NYJ) |
| 3 | Houston Texans (vs. MIA) |
| 4 | Philadelphia Eagles (at JAC) |
| 5 | Indianapolis Colts (at OAK) |
| 6 | Baltimore Ravens (at CAR) |
| 7 | Carolina Panthers (vs. BAL) |
| 8 | Pittsburgh Steelers (vs. CLE) |
| 9 | Jacksonville Jaguars (vs. PHI) |
| 10 | San Francisco 49ers (at ARI) |
| 11 | Washington Redskins (at NYG) |
| 12 | Arizona Cardinals (vs. SF) |
| 13 | Kansas City Chiefs (vs. DEN) |
| 14 | Miami Dolphins (at HOU) |
| 15 | Cleveland Browns (at PIT) |
| 16 | Cincinnati Bengals (vs. TB) |
| 17 | Detroit Lions (vs. SEA) |
| 18 | Seattle Seahawks (at DET) |
| 19 | New York Giants (vs. WAS) |
| 20 | Oakland Raiders (vs. IND) |
Kickers
7 of 7
Best Streaming Option
Ka'imi Fairbairn, HOU (vs. MIA)
Despite being tied for third in total fantasy points among kickers, Fairbairn is still available in many leagues. You'd be wise to scoop him up as a reliable option for the rest of the season.
Fairbairn has at least two field goals in six of seven games this season and has hit eight of his last nine attempts. Houston's offense hasn't been playing at the highest level, so he is getting consistent chances when the Texans stall before the end zone. Fire him up Thursday night.
Ownership percentages: ESPN, 42.2; Yahoo, 63.0
Week 8 Kicker Rankings
| 1 | Greg Zuerlein (LAR) |
| 2 | Harrison Butker (KC) |
| 3 | Stephen Gostkowski (NE) |
| 4 | Justin Tucker (BAL) |
| 5 | Dan Bailey (MIN) |
| 6 | Wil Lutz (NO) |
| 7 | Ka'imi Fairbairn (HOU) |
| 8 | Matt Prater (DET) |
| 9 | Randy Bullock (CIN) |
| 10 | Chris Boswell (PIT) |
| 11 | Cody Parkey (CHI) |
| 12 | Mason Crosby (GB) |
| 13 | Jake Elliott (PHI) |
| 14 | Adam Vinatieri (IND) |
| 15 | Jason Myers (NYJ) |
| 16 | Robbie Gould (SF) |
| 17 | Graham Gano (CAR) |
| 18 | Chandler Catanzaro (TB) |
| 19 | Brandon McManus (DEN) |
| 20 | Dustin Hopkins (WAS) |
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