Fantasy Football: 5 Situations To Watch Coming out of the Week 8 NFL Bye

It’s that time of year. Fantasy Football owners are scrambling to fill holes in their lineup as Atlanta, Chicago, Green Bay, Oakland, New York (Jets) and Tampa Bay are on bye.

Here are some things to keep an eye on from the bye teams when they get back to action.

1. Will the Packers shut it down early?

It is likely that the Packers wrap up the division fairly quickly. They have a two-game lead and Detroit is trending in the wrong direction. Their offense is playing as well as any offense in recent memory. If their defense can return to form, I don’t see anybody challenging them.

If the Packers have home field clinched by Week 15, that could lead to an interesting situation in fantasy leagues as they head into the championship. I’m not saying to trade away your Packer players, but it is something to keep in mind.

2. Will Carson Palmer be a serviceable fantasy option?

I know his Raider debut was a disaster of epic proportions. Cut the guy a little slack. He probably shouldn’t even have been thrown to the wolves with so little prep time. This bye week couldn’t have come at a better time. Not only does it allow Palmer extra time to get familiar with the offense and his players, but it gives Darren McFadden time to heal.

Carson Palmer’s glory days are probably behind him, but he could still have some moments.

3. What is Atlanta’s identity?

It seems the Falcons are confused. When they drafted Julio Jones to pair with Roddy White, it looked like they wanted to establish an offense that can run with the likes of Green Bay and New Orleans. Matt Ryan averaged 260.4 passing yards through the first five games. Michael Turner averaged 72 yards. 214 of those yards came in the first two weeks. They found themselves 2-3.

They got back to basics and running the football in the two games leading up to the break. Ryan averaged 190.5 yards. Turner averaged 130.5. They walked away with a “W” in both games.

Going forward, I see this as a team that tries to have a balanced attack. Julio Jones should return after the bye, which will make Matt Ryan’s life easier. It won’t, however, mean that Michael Turner will be a forgotten man. It’s important that he gets his looks.

4. Can Shonn Greene continue to improve?

After a terrible start that saw him average 39.3 rushing yards in the first four games at a brutal clip of 3.1 ypc, Greene has averaged 89.7 ypg at a much better 4.3 ypc clip. Rex Ryan was serious about running the football more as Greene has had at least 20 carries in each of those games.

The Jets have two games against Buffalo, one against Denver and another against Philly in their remaining games. There should be some nice days ahead for Greene.

5. Will Tampa Bay’s offense wake up?

When you look at some of the biggest disappointments this year, Josh Freeman and Mike Williams have to be included. Freeman has four more interceptions than he had all of last season. The good news is that even though he threw four picks the last time out, he has thrown for multiple touchdowns in his past two games.

Though he has just one touchdown and is averaging a little over 45 yards per game, Williams has been better of late. LeGarrette Blount should return after the bye to give the offense some balance.

Also check out:

• Week 9 Fantasy Football QB Rankings
• Week 9 Fantasy Football RB Rankings
• Week 9 Fantasy Football WR Rankings
• Week 9 Fantasy Football TE Rankings
• Week 9 Fantasy Football Sit/Start Advice