Week 8 Fantasy Football Rankings: Ranking the Top 25 Players

Week 7 was an injury-riddled nightmare for both real and fantasy teams alike. Unfortunately for fantasy owners, there are still NFL bye weeks going on.

This week, Atlanta, Chicago, Green Bay, Oakland, Tampa Bay and the New York Jets are enjoying their week-long respite.

Week 8 means it's just about crunch time for fantasy regular seasons, so it's all the more important to make sure your team is starting the right guys on a weekly basis.

25. RB Ahmad Bradshaw

Ahmad Bradshaw has been a solid RB2 this season and really had a big-time performance in Week 6 against the Buffalo Bills.

In Week 8, he faces a Miami Dolphins defense that has surrendered 98 or more yards in five out of six of their games.

Although the Dolphins have allowed just two rushing touchdowns all season, with Bradshaw's added receiving abilities, this he should be one of Week 8's top performers.

24. WR Vincent Jackson

Philip Rivers hasn't been playing like his normal All-Pro self, and Vincent Jackson has struggled because of it.

The return of Antonio Gates from injury should help open things up for Jackson, despite his one-catch performance in Week 7.

V-Jax won't be playing the likes of Darelle Revis every week.

With two serious receiving threats in the San Diego offense again, Jackson should finally become the player owners hoped they would be getting.

23. TE Jimmy Graham

Jimmy Graham has emerged as fantasy football's No. 1 tight end this season.

The way he performed in Sunday night's absolute trouncing of the Colts only proved that.

This week, the Saints take on the St. Louis Rams and their 13th-ranked pass defense. Part of that is due to their run defense being the league's worst hands down.

But with the way New Orleans has been able to move the ball up and down the field all season, Jimmy Graham and Co. should have no problem moving the ball however they like on Sunday.

22. RB DeMarco Murray

That was one hell of a breakout performance for DeMarco Murray last week, rushing for 235 yards and breaking Dallas Cowboys rushing records in the process.

The problem is it was against that horrendous Rams defense I was just talking about. He faces some stiffer competition in the Philadelphia Eagles this week.

Still, through the first five weeks of the season, the Eagles allowed an average of 139 yards per game on the ground.

If Murray is the real deal, he will have no problem proving it this week.

21. D/ST Baltimore Ravens

As ugly as Monday night's game was, the Baltimore Ravens defense dominant.

The Ravens have the Arizona Cardinals coming to town on Sunday, minus Beanie Wells.

Baltimore boasts the league's top defense in total yards allowed per game, fumbles and points allowed per game.

With an uncertain situation and only Larry Fitzgerald to worry about in the passing game, Baltimore can really make a mockery out of this game.

20. WR Hakeem Nicks

Hakeem Nicks has been a top receiver when healthy this season.

The New York Giants' passing offense has improved along with Nicks' health.

The Dolphins are a somewhat-underrated defense against receivers, but when they face teams with elite receiving talent, they have struggled to keep up. 

This week will be no different—expect a touchdown or two from Nicks in this one.

19. RB LeSean McCoy

Normally, McCoy would be higher up than this, but this week he's up against the league's No. 1 run defense in the Dallas Cowboys.

McCoy is the main cog in the league's top-rushing offense, however, so this one should be interesting.

With his abilities on both the ground and the air, McCoy is a must-start no matter whom he's facing.

18. Larry Fitzgerald

The benefit of being your team's only offensive threat is, well, you're going to get the ball a lot.

Having Beanie Wells out means the Cardinals will have to air it out a bit more than usual.

Expect Fitzgerald to get a lot more targets this week. Kevin Kolb has struggled lately, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Fitzgerald will. 

17. QB Matt Hasselbeck

Okay, so last week wasn't so great for Hasselbeck and the Tennessee Titans.

In fact, he was awful, leading to rookie quarterback Jake Locker getting to come in on relief duty.

In Week 8, the Titans face the Indianapolis Colts and their abysmal defense that has given up 257-plus yards passing per game in their last five games.

As poor as the Titans looked in Week 7 against the Houston Texans, there's just no way their offense can look as bad against the Colts defense.

16. RB Chris Johnson

This is probably Chris Johnson's last hurrah in the top 25 if he doesn't snap out of the funk that he's been in all season.

Johnson will be facing the same sloppy defense that Hasselbeck is, and the Colts are even worse in their run defense.

Heading into this weekend's action, the Colts' run defense is ranked 31st in the league, allowing an average of 150.9 yards per game.

If CJ2k doesn't get things going this week, he never will.

15. WR Dwayne Bowe

Matt Cassell to Dwayne Bowe is a connection that opposing defenses should get used to, because the two have been lighting it up every week since opening day.

Bowe is averaging 95.8 yards and nearly a 0.8 touchdowns per game from Week 2 on.

In the Chiefs' first matchup against the San Diego Chargers, Bowe finished with four catches, 67 yards and one touchdown.

After the way Plaxico Burress manhandled the Chargers secondary, Bowe could improve on those numbers. 

14. QB Tom Brady

Tom Brady has slowed down from the incredible pace he was on early in the season.

The team has placed a heavy emphasis on becoming a more balanced offense.

It's not like he's not a top 5 quarterback anymore, though. He's this low on the rankings because his opponent in Week 8 is the No. 1 ranked Pittsburgh Steelers' pass defense.

The Steelers are one of the few—if not only—teams that have been able to consistently give the Patriots trouble.

But the way the Pats offense is clicking right now, Brady is still a safe start this week.

13. QB Michael Vick

Michael Vick isn't quite the superhuman we all saw last season, but he is an elite fantasy talent nonetheless. 

He'll be up against a Cowboys defense that hasn't allowed more than 289 yards passing since Week 1.

With the Eagles' big-play offense, Vick should still get his passing yards, and his running ability will only boost that.

He just needs to get a hold of his turnover woes in order to give himself and the Eagles a chance to produce results.

12. WR Mike Wallace

Mike Wallace is third in the league—behind Wes Welker and Steve Smith—in receiving yards with 730.

He has a real opportunity to leapfrog those two against his Week 8 opponent, the New England Patriots.

The Patriots are dead last in pass defense, meaning Wallace is probably having dreams of grandeur this whole week.  

11. QB Ben Roethlisberger

Ben Roethlisberger will be the lucky guy throwing to Mike Wallace and the rest of his receivers against the Patriots' porous secondary, and he has proven to be quite capable of taking advantage of weak pass defenses.

The Steelers' offensive-line play has improved over the last three weeks, giving Roethlisberger the time he needs to bomb it deep to Wallace. This game should be a real barn burner. 

10. QB Eli Manning

Eli Manning has really stepped his game up over the last four weeks, averaging more than 321 yards and just shy of two touchdowns per game.

The Dolphins haven't played a lot of top talent at quarterback, but when they have, they have not been very good. 

9. RB Ray Rice

Ray Rice only had eight carries on Monday night against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Don't expect that to ever happen again—the Arizona Cardinals will be the unlucky ones that see what happens when Rice is fed the ball.

The Cardinals have an above-average run defense, but when Rice gets his touches, he's pretty much unstoppable. 

8. RB Arian Foster

Arian Foster has been a man on a mission since he made his debut four weeks ago.

Only the staunch Baltimore Ravens defense has been able to contain him to this point.

This week, the Texans will be facing the division rival Jacksonville Jaguars, who boast the No. 10 run defense.

Unlike the Ravens, the Texans will not be afraid to hand the ball of to their All-Pro running back, and if Andre Johnson still isn't in the lineup, he'll be seeing a lot more touches through the passing attack as well.

7. RB Fred Jackson

Fred Jackson has been one of the breakout stars this season.

He has rushed for more than 100 yards four times this season and, coming off the bye, he's not showing any signs of slowing.

The Bills are up against the Redskins this week, and they are allowing more than 117 yards rushing per game this season.

There's a very good chance that with Ryan Fitzpatrick's diminishing effectiveness, Jackson will see a couple more touches in this one.

6. QB Matthew Stafford

Stafford's level of play has dropped off a bit from the first three weeks of the season, but he has still proven to be a top fantasy quarterback anyway.

The matchup this weekend is a juicy one against the 19th-ranked Denver Broncos pass defense.

Stafford is a bit of a question mark this week however, after suffering and ankle sprain last week. Shaun Hill took first team practice reps on Wednesday, so be sure to monitor the situation.

5. RB Adrian Peterson

The Minnesota Vikings have a rookie quarterback making his second start, and Adrian Peterson is Adrian Peterson.

He will get the ball, and Carolina is allowing more than 133 yards rushing per game this season.

I don't think anything else needs to be said.

4. WR Calvin Johnson

Megatron is on record-setting pace this season with 10 touchdowns in seven games.

He's on a roll right now with three consecutive 100-yard games.

The Broncos have had some staggeringly-bad games stopping receivers so far. Calvin will be the best receiver they've seen this year, so expect big things.

3. RB Frank Gore

The San Francisco 49ers have one secret to their success on offense—hand the ball to Frank Gore.

No matter what the score is, they just hand the ball to Gore and slowly claw their way back on top of their opponents.

Last week's stalemate with the Seattle Seahawks was the first time the Cleveland Browns haven't allowed more than 100 yards rushing all season.

Gore has rushed for 125-plus in each of the last three weeks. 

2. QB Cam Newton

The rookie sensation could just as easily be ranked No. 1 this week, but let's just consider this 1A. 

This week, he'll be taking on the 29th-ranked Minnesota Vikings pass defense. Newton is in a class of his own this season.

In standard scoring leagues, Newton's worst performance still netted fantasy owners 13 points.

He may not be the highest-scoring fantasy player, but his size, speed and throwing ability make him a huge threat in the air and on the ground.

1. QB Drew Brees

With no Aaron Rodgers around this week, the top spot was up for grabs.

Drew Brees' performance on Sunday night pretty much sealed the deal for him.

Brees has thrown for 325-plus yards in all but one game this season. Pick your jaws up off the floor and prepare to drool when you read that he'll be facing the St. Louis Rams this week.

Sure, the Rams have an almost-nonexistent run defense that may turn Brees into no more than the delivery boy for the team's stable of running backs. 

However, with the way the Saints' passing attack has been able to play pitch-and-catch against any defense they face, you have to believe Brees will still get his numbers.