Considering the injuries and massive amount of bye weeks, I think it’s safe to say Week 7 didn’t go all that bad. Sure, we had a few crazy games and a couple more injuries on the pile, but we’ve already seen much worse this season. Even better: Nobody is on bye in Week 8, which should make for some great options on the waiver wire. Here are the players I’ll be targeting this week.
Pro Tip: Remember the bye weeks. Because of depth issues, managers may have to drop players that they usually wouldn’t. Last week, the Carolina Panthers, Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys, New York Jets, Tennessee Titans, and Houston Texans were all off. Make it a priority to check the waiver wire for players from those teams that should not be available.
Quick Note: All players listed are available in at least 50% of ESPN leagues. While not everyone plays on ESPN, studies show most do. So, if they’re available there, they’re likely available on your Week 8 Waiver Wire. Pick ‘Em Up!
Week 8 Waiver Wire
Quarterbacks
Normally, I don’t advocate blowing FAAB on QBs. There is always plenty to choose from in free agency after waivers, and you should just stream the position. This list will usually be small, but if you’re desperate, this is who I would prioritize this week.
C.J. Stroud (50% Available)
Stroud is still the QB15, even after a week off. He gets a beatable Carolina team coming off his bye and should launch himself back into the top-12 conversation.
Matthew Stafford (50% Available)
After the return of Cooper Kupp, Stafford has slowly climbed the rankings and now sits as the QB17. He’s scored 15 or more fantasy points in each of his last four games and should keep that streak alive with games in Dallas and Green Bay before a Week 10 bye.
Running Backs
D’Onta Foreman (51% Available)
The biggest question in football right now might be, “Why wasn’t D’Onta Foreman the starter to begin with?” He just torched the Raiders for three TDs and was the RB1 on the week. It won’t be like that every week, but we could get another pop game against the Chargers in Week 8. I still like his backfield mate, Roschon Johnson, but it’s clear he won’t be taking over this backfield.
Kareem Hunt (54% Available)
With Jerome Ford hurt, Hunt will take over the bell-cow duties in the Cleveland backfield. The Browns travel to Seattle in what should be another run-heavy script. Hunt is averaging 15 points per game since the Browns came out of their bye.
Darrell Henderson (87% Available)
It appears that Henderson will once again rule the Rams’ backfield while they wait for Kyren Williams to return. He managed a TD in Week 7 after essentially being picked up off the street and not activated to the main roster until Saturday. A full week as the starter in practice should only help him improve.
Gus Edwards (50% Available)
I’m not quite sure why nobody in fantasy wants Ravens’ RBs on their roster, but here we are. Edwards was a top-10 RB last week and is averaging almost nine fantasy points per game. He is the lead back in Baltimore and needs to be rostered. You can also add Justice Hill, who is still handling most of the passing-down work.
Tyler Allgeier (50% Available)
Yes, we all hate Arthur Smith after his shunning of Bijan Robinson but don’t let that hide the fact that Tyler Allgeier is the RB27 on the season, averaging 8.8 points per game. He’s also an injury, or mystery illness, away from a top-15 ceiling, as illustrated in Week 8.
If you missed our new Monday Hangxiety show, you missed a great time! Josh and Ryan, with special guest Mark Fritter, recapped Sunday’s action, and we let you know whether it’s time to panic or Chill TF Out! We’ll be live every Monday at 11 AM EST. Check out last week’s episode now!
Wide Receivers
Rashee Rice (52% Available)
I kept this simple last week, and I’ll do so again: Rice is the WR1 in Kansas City, and you want a piece of this offense. He’s averaging 10 points per game on the season and over 13 per game during his last three matchups.
Josh Downs (65% Available)
Downs is playing the perfect complement to Michael Pittman, and Gardner Minshew is getting him the ball. He registered over six targets and 13 fantasy points in each game with Minshew as the starter and was a top-10 WR last week.
Tank Dell (50% Available)
Dell went into the bye week injured, making him an easy drop in most leagues. He should return to form with the three weeks he’s had to get healthy. He is still a top-50 WR despite playing two fewer games than most of his counterparts.
Kendrick Bourne (75% Available)
While it’s hard to trust this offense, they have a clear leader. Bourne is the WR24 on the season and is averaging over seven targets per game.
Romeo Doubs (50% Available)
Doubs scored a TD in Week 7 and almost had another. He dropped a ball that bounced perfectly to his teammate Jayden Reed for a TD in one of the cooler highlights of the week. Doubs already leads the team in targets and has scored four TDs this season. With Christian Watson dealing with yet another injury, Doubs is a safe WR3 with upside from here on out.
Tight Ends
Much like QB, I don’t usually recommend blowing any waiver priority or FAAB on a tight end, either. You can generally wait until Wednesday and play the streaming game. However, early in the season, there are sometimes players that should be rostered, and leagues are missing out. These are those players.
Dalton Kincaid (68% Available)
Dawson Knox will likely miss a couple of weeks, and we might finally get to see what this first-round TE is capable of. He reeled in eight catches for 75 yards last week on the way to his first top-10 finish.
Be sure you’re following Ryan on Twitter! Also, you can find our Week 8 rankings here and the rest of our Week 8 content here!