Fantasy Football Week 8 lineup tips: Who to bench, who to start and what to know

Week 8 of the NFL brings with it more bye weeks and more injuries to complicate your fantasy lineups. This week, the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers are on a bye week, which means no Patrick Mahomes and no Justin Herbert, two of fantasy’s best quarterbacks. It also means no Austin Ekeler or Travis Kelce. Then, you’ve got questionable injury statuses running rampant - Amon-Ra St. Brown, Deebo Samuel, Allen Lazard, to name a few.

This week would be a good week to make some decisions based on matchups. It’s of course impossible to predict with 100% accuracy, but there are some things that are nearly guaranteed (start anyone against the Lions defense) and others that we can deduce. Let’s take a look at some of the other players and what you should do about them in Week 8.

Tom Brady, QB Tampa Bay Buccaneers - sit him

Does a “GOAT” really need a reliable offensive line to perform well? Shouldn’t the “GOAT” make the o-line look good? Maybe, maybe not. Either way, Brady doesn’t have a reliable o-line and Brady has just eight touchdowns in seven weeks, which ain’t gonna get you far in fantasy (or in reality). He’s topped 15 fantasy points just twice this season and this week, he’s up against a rapidly improving Ravens defense. Not worth the risk.

Tua Tagovailoa, QB Miami Dolphins - start him

Like I said, start anyone against the Lions defense. Tagavailoa is back and he got off to a rusty start last week, but that’s to be expected. This matchup provides him the perfect opportunity to bounce back. The Detroit defense, who have allowed the fourth-most points to quarterbacks (20.8) each week, will struggle to stop the Dolphins’ speedy receivers and Tagavailoa should be able to get the ball away to them without the pressure this week.

Andy Dalton, QB New Orleans Saints - sleeper pick

He’s not a must-start and probably never will be this season. He’s only had one game with great fantasy numbers and that was last week when he finally did something in garbage time. The matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders this week is definitely more favorable, but still, Dalton is hard to trust. The Raiders have allowed more than 20 points to every quarterback this season. A risky sleeper start is where Dalton stands this week.

Tony Pollard, RB Dallas Cowboys - start him

With Ezekiel Elliott expected to miss this week’s game against the Chicago Bears, it’s Pollard who would see an increase in touches. The more touches he gets, the more chances he gets to run the ball. Even with Elliott in, Pollard was the back with the yardage last week with 109 yards on 12 carries and two targets. And even with Elliott in, Pollard has been putting up at least 12 points per game in three of the last six. The matchup is good, too as the Bears defense have given up 25.01 fantasy points per game to running backs, the ninth-most in the league.

AJ Dillon, RB Green Bay Packers - sit him

At this point, there’s no debate. Dillon needs to be on the bench. Aaron Jones may be the only Packers player worthy of a start this week against the Bills actually. The Bills have allowed the sixth-fewest points to running backs. Dillon was supposed to share the work with Jones this season, but that simply has not been the case. In the last three weeks, he has had no catches in two of the games and in two games, he has had six carries or less. He’s only a worthy start at any point this season if something happens to Jones. Otherwise, keep him on the sidelines.

Latavius Murray, RB Denver Broncos - sleeper pick

Murray is tending to get more touches near the goal line than Melvin Gordon. Last week, Gordon saw the majority of targets in general, but in Week 6, Murray dominated. Murray has also been more efficient at running the ball than Gordon has and the Jaguars defense is the second-worst in missed tackles on runs in the league. It’s a favorable matchup, but a risky start. That’s why he’s a potential sleeper.

DeVonta Smith, WR Philadelphia Eagles - start him

The Eagles are coming off a bye week so Smith should be well-rested. Before the bye, Smith had two games in a row of 15+ PPR points and 15+ in four of the last five. He shouldn’t have any issues against the Steelers, who have allowed 12 receivers to score at least 12 points this season.

Brandin Cooks, WR Houston Texans - flex start

The Texans are dealing with injuries when they face the Tennessee Titans this week, so that gives Cooks a bit of an advantage as far as targets. This may be his best opportunity for points yet after being a bust all season. Part of that is because the Texans just aren’t throwing the ball much. The Titans are one of the league’s worst pass defenses though, so now is their chance. They have allowed the third-most fantasy points to wide receivers and have given up nine touchdowns to receivers. Cooks is worth adding to your flex spot in Week 8. If it’s not this week, it’s not any week.

Rashod Bateman, WR Baltimore Ravens - sit him

Bateman has not done much since Week 2 and that’s simply because he’s not seeing the targets. Since Week 2, he has not had double-digit fantasy points and though the Buccaneers defense isn’t a huge threat, I still wouldn’t trust Bateman to put up any significant points with the lack of volume he’s seeing.

Dalton Schultz, TE Dallas Cowboys - sit him

The matchup against the Chicago Bears defense does Schultz zero favors. They have allowed just one touchdown to tight ends all season. Schultz may make some catches, but that’s where the production typically ends. Plus, he’s sharing tight end targets with Peyton Hendershot, who caught a touchdown last week and is faster than Schultz getting away from defenders.

Jakobi Meyers, WR New England Patriots - flex start

Meyers tends to produce regardless of who’s in at quarterback for the Patriots. He did well against the Bears until they stuck Kyle Gordon on him and rendered him completely useless. It’s very possible that the Jets will do the same thing to him this week, but he’ll likely stay in the slot to avoid that precise scenario. Meyers leads the Patriots in targets, catches, yards, and touchdowns. The Jets have only allowed one touchdown to a wide receiver in the last four weeks, but the hope is that Meyers will still get the targets. It’s worth starting him at your flex position.

T.J. Hockenson, TE Detroit Lions - start him

Hockenson had one wild game in which he got 40 fantasy points. Besides the though, he hasn’t done anything extraordinary, staying average with at least 8.8 fantasy points per game in three of the last four and seeing plenty of targets. This week, he and the Lions are up against a Miami Dolphins defense which gave up 15.5 fantasy points to tight ends, the sixth-most in the league. Start Hockenson in Week 8.

San Francisco 49ers Defense - start them

The Niners defense has had a rough last couple weeks. Really rough. Over the last two weeks, they have scored just three fantasy points. However, they are getting some of their players back from injury and can be forgiven for being ridden all over by the Chiefs offense. This week will be a different story as they face the Los Angeles Rams, a team they already faced in Week 4. That particular week, the Niners defense put up 21 fantasy points. The Rams have allowed 13.3 fantasy points to defenses this season. Start the Niners against them - the odds are good.

Arizona Cardinals Defense - sit them

The Cardinals did well last week with two interceptions and 17 total fantasy points against the New Orleans Saints. But this week, they play the Minnesota Vikings. And the Vikings have have allowed just 4 fantasy points to opposing defenses this season, the fourth-fewest in the league.

Other QB must-starts:

Josh Allen (Bills), Jalen Hurts (Eagles), Lamar Jackson (Ravens)

Other QBs to avoid:

Dak Prescott (Cowboys), Aaron Rodgers (Packers), Justin Fields (Bears)

Other RB must-starts:

Nick Chubb (Browns), Jonathan Taylor (Colts), Rhamondre Stevenson (Patriots)

Other RBs to avoid:

Najee Harris (Steelers), Devin Singletary (Bills), Kareem Hunt (Browns)

Other WR must-starts:

A.J. Brown (Eagles), Chris Olave (Saints), Tee Higgins (Bengals)

Other WRs to avoid:

Amari Cooper (Browns), Michael Gallup (Cowboys), Romeo Doubs (Packers)

Other TE must-starts:

Pat Freiermuth (Steelers), Dallas Goedert (Eagles), Irv Smith Jr. (Vikings)

Other TEs to avoid:

Tyler Higbee (Rams), Kyle Pitts (Falcons),

Other DEF must-starts:

Dallas Cowboys, Buffalo Bills, New England Patriots

Other DEFs to avoid:

New Orleans Saints, New York Giants, Indianapolis Colts