It’s time for Start Sit Week 8 in Fantasy Football! Which players should you be starting this week, and which players should you consider benching? We will cover it all in this weekly article!
Every week of the NFL season, fantasy gamers juggle players to insert into lineups at each position. Are you questioning which players face easy matchups and which players face tougher paths to production? You are in the right place! For seasonal leagues, DFS, and more, this week’s must-start and must-sit picks can give you some guidance on setting your lineups.
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Quarterback Start Sit Week 8
Start: C.J. Stroud
Sometimes fantasy football is too much, “What have you done for me lately?” Sitting at QB17 with just one 20-fantasy-point week, it’s been something of a sophomore slump for Stroud. Things haven’t gotten easier for Stroud lately, as he has lost Nico Collins, but this matchup is just what he needs to turn things around. The Colts allow the ninth-highest yards per pass attempt and the seventh-highest completion percentage to quarterbacks. Despite their porous rush defense, they’re allowing 62.5-percent (10th) of their touchdowns through the air.
The first sign that it was going to be a long day for Houston’s offense.
An endzone catch that Tank Dell makes 9/10 times on a second-reaction play with the accuracy that’s made CJ Stroud one of the game’s best.
Incomplete. Houston settles for 3 points #HTownMade pic.twitter.com/rLnTFDRYoE
— John Crumpler (@JohnHCrumpler) October 21, 2024
The Texans’ passing game is in desperate need of a get-right spot to get their groove back, and this is just that. What better way to get your swagger back than picking apart your division rival?
Honorable Mentions (Starts): Geno Smith, Jared Goff, Anthony Richardson
Sit: Kirk Cousins
Game script is a huge issue for quarterbacks in fantasy football, even more so for Kirk Cousins. Even in neutral-to-negative game scripts, Cousins has been tough to rely on outside of Weeks 2 and 5 (against Tampa Bay). In the Falcons’ one win by more than one score, Cousins scored 12.5 fantasy points. With the Bucs missing Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, I don’t think they keep this game within one score.
Tampa is also allowing the third-highest yards per carry in the league, so Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier should be able to find success once they have the lead. Conversely, Tampa will likely look to slow the game pace down to limit how many successful offensive drives they’ll need to get a win. I expect a gross game that Atlanta controls from start to finish, with Cousins putting up a tepid 14 fantasy points.
Honorable Mentions (Sits): Baker Mayfield, Patrick Mahomes, Dak Prescott
Running Back Start Sit Week 8
Start: Javonte Williams
The thesis behind this matchup is pretty simple. Carolina is giving up the most fantasy points (PPR or otherwise) to running backs this season. They’re terrible, so teams are certainly running a lot. They’re also just a poor run defense, allowing 4.7 yards per rush attempt and the most touchdowns to the position with 14. The Broncos’ offense has been competent of late, and they are particularly looking to feed Javonte Williams. He’s certainly the most talented back in the group, and he’s needed for the Broncos’ offense to move with the passing game struggling. He’s seen at least 15 opportunities in three of the last four games, and is earning a 13.6-percent target share (sixth among RBs) on the season.
In a rare game where the Broncos are looking at a positive game script, Williams is actually a must-start this week. He has the potential to find the end zone multiple times and catch five balls if the game remains relatively tight.
Honorable Mentions (Starts): Chase Brown, Rachaad White, Raheem Mostert
Sit: Nick Chubb
Nick Chubb’s return to the NFL was awe-inspiring. Some thought his career was over after sustaining a brutal knee injury last season, but Chubb returned in great time and looked pretty good for someone just getting back into NFL action. Chubb earned 11 carries and 3 targets, but only mustered 32 total yards on 2 yards per carry. It’s clear there’s still a ramp-up period that needs to be had before we get a version of Nick Chubb that is anything close to what we’re used to. The Browns have their bye week coming up in three weeks and face the rush-funnel Saints defense. That is when the breakout happens. Until then, they’re likely to ease him in.
This is especially true agains the Ravens, the league’s fiercest rush defense. The Ravens allow the least rushing yards per game, the lowest yards per rush attempt, and the 6th lowest rushing touchdowns as a percentage of their total scores allowed. Not much gets done on the ground against this defense. Don’t expect that to change this week.
Honorable Mentions (Sits): Zack Moss, Tank Bigsby, Rico Dowdle
Wide Receiver Start Sit Week 8
Start: Tank Dell
After a 9 target, 7 reception performance where Dell found the endzone for the first time this season, Dell dropped a big stinker on Sunday in what was a great matchup on paper. Knowing just how badly the Texans operated last week, I’m treating their performance as an anomaly across the board. Maybe, if the Texans had a tough matchup, I wouldn’t be so bullish on them. However, they’re lining up agains the Colts who have been horrendous on the defensive side of the ball. The Colts are allowing over 7 yards per pass attempt, giving up the 6th most yards per reception, and the 3rd most yards per target.
Tank Dell tormenting DBs pic.twitter.com/Tm1wpojTXe
— JetPack Galileo (@JetPackGalileo) October 15, 2024
Dell is earning a 25-percent Target Share without Nico Collins this season. He’s going to get volume in what is a clear get-right spot for the Texans passing game. This offense runs through the passing game and, more importantly, the confidence and swagger of C.J. Stroud. I trust Bobbly Slowik to take advantage of their division rival.
Honorable Mentions (Starts): Chris Olave, Tyler Lockett, Ladd McConkey
Sit: Terry McLaurin
Terry McLaurin is having a hell of a season so far, but even stars have their off days. We saw just a few weeks back what Jaylen Johnson and the Bears’ smothering secondary did to Diontae Johnson. McLaurin is headed for a similar treatment. Considering Terry rarely lines up in the slot, his chances of being shadowed are even higher.
To pair with the bad secondary matchup, the Commanders will likely be without Jayden Daniels for the week. Even if he does suit up, I would imagine they try to draw up quick reads and more “easy buttons” to keep Daniels upright. When this happened earlier on this season, McLaurin was at his fantasy worst. This is shaping up to be a run-heavy Commanders script this weekend.
Honorable Mentions (Sits): Diontae Johnson, Josh Downs, Rashod Bateman
Tight End Start Sit Week 8
Tight ends are perhaps the most disgusting they’ve ever been for fantasy football. If you have one of these guys, you’re probably looking to just start them every week and hope for the best:
If not, consider these options:
Start: David Njoku
Jameis Winston is starting, which means we actually get to see TE1 David Njoku at work. Last week, he drew 14 targets (three in the red zone) and converted 10 into receptions for 76 yards and a score. Against Baltimore’s bottom-of-the-barrel pass defense, we should see the same usage. First, it’s going to be tough to lean on the run versus the Ravens. Secondly, the Browns should be playing from behind all game.
This is the best spot we’ve had for a tight end all year. There’s really no logical reason we won’t see Njoku draw 10+ targets this week.
Honorable Mentions (Starts): Cade Otton, Dalton Kincaid, Tucker Kraft
Sit: Kyle Pitts
In a similar facet to my Kirk Cousins call, I’m also not interested in playing Kyle Pitts this week. He’s earned eight and nine targets in two of the past three games, but one was an outlier performance and the other was a heavily negative game script. I don’t expect either of those to occur this week. I expect his usage to mirror what he saw in more neutral or positive scripts like Week 6 (10 fantasy points) and Week 4 (0 fantasy points). He’s simply not very involved unless the team is hyper pass-heavy.
There are tight ends with better matchups and higher upside I’d rather target than Pitts this week.
Honorable Mentions (Sits): Zach Ertz, Cole Kmet, Dalton Schultz
Set Your Lineups!
It is time to set lineups! Fire up those fingers and plug in your productive players (and bench the sits!). Check back for weekly must-starts and must-sits based on the action that unfolds this season. Need some more options? Check out PlayerProfiler’s Upside Finder or DM me on Twitter! It’s time again for a season full of ups and downs. Buckle up!
