It's officially Week 8, and the hero we needed may soon be here. Before we break down this week's starts and sits at the quarterback position, we have to talk about injuries. Last week, the most significant and perhaps most ironic was the noncontact one suffered by Deshaun Watson. You know what that means? Jameis Winston is back in our lives once more!
With the loss of Watson, fantasy managers should not have to worry this week, considering there are no teams on bye. Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has a real shot at returning this week in what is, on paper, a favorable matchup. Jayden Daniels also left last week's contest against the Panthers early but is expected to play this week.
Now that we have that out of the way, it's time to break down the RotoBaller Week 8 QB starts and sits.
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2024:- Quarterback fantasy football rankings
- Running back fantasy football rankings
- Wide receiver fantasy football rankings
- Tight end fantasy football rankings
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- Superflex fantasy football rankings
- IDP fantasy football rankings
- Dynasty fantasy football rankings
Week 8 Starts - Fantasy Football Booms
Jordan Love - Green Bay Packers at Jacksonville Jaguars
Jordan Love may be in for the top fantasy finish this week among quarterbacks as the Packers head down to Duval County to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Jacksonville was surrendering 23.52 fantasy points per game to the quarterback position and allowed 1,996 passing and 16 touchdown passes, both leading the league. Thus far, Love is averaging 22.2 fantasy points per game. However, that would be higher if not for the 15 interceptions (second-most). Luckily, the Jaguars only have one interception themselves.
Jordan Love is a sicko pic.twitter.com/lmdDQijwHa
— Eli Berkovits (@BookOfEli_NFL) October 21, 2024
There may not be another quarterback that is dealing the way Love has over the last five weeks. In three of the previous five, he tossed at least three touchdown passes, and in each of those five contests, Love has recorded multiple passing touchdowns.
Since the start of the 2023 season, Love's 45 touchdown passes are more than any other quarterback. This is one of those matchups that is made for fantasy. Fun fact: Love's worst fantasy week so far was a 17-point performance. Patrick Mahomes' best fantasy performance was... 17.4.
C.J. Stroud - Houston Texans vs. Indianapolis Colts
In two games that the Texans offense has been without Nico Collins, C.J. Stroud has thrown for just 278 total yards. With Collins, he was averaging 277 yards passing per contest. Against the Packers, Stroud finished with less than six fantasy points. That's not good. Good news: The Texans play the Colts this week, a Colts team that allowed Tim Boyle to complete eight of 13 passes.
The truth is, the Colts are a matchup that comes at the right time for Stroud and his passing-catching options. Heading into Week 8, the Colts allow 17.47 fantasy points per game to opposing signal callers and 31.2 fantasy points per contest to opposing wide receivers.
As bad as Stroud's play has been as of late, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Indianapolis allowed 10 passing touchdowns, two rushing touchdowns to quarterbacks, and 1,658 passing yards.
Last season, Stroud posted a top-12 fantasy performance 53% of the time. This season, it's down to 29%, with just two such performances in seven weeks. If fantasy managers are scared, I get it. However, this has all the makings of a "get right" game.
Caleb Williams - Chicago Bears at Washington Commanders
The start of the Caleb Williams era in Chicago got off to a somewhat tumultuous start. In his first two career starts, he threw for 267 yards and completed just 56% of his passes. Since then, the former Trojan completed 69.9% of his passes for 1,050 yards, averaging 262.5 passing yards per game, with all nine of his touchdown passes coming in his last four contests.
#NFL QB Efficiency (Weeks 5-7) pic.twitter.com/mFTlx5UG0O
— Daniel Griffis (@DanDGriffis) October 21, 2024
From Weeks 3-7, Williams averaged 21 fantasy points per game and was the QB7 for fantasy over that period. The Commanders' defense has improved dramatically over the last four weeks. However, they still allow 15.75 fantasy points per game, which is borderline solid fantasy quarterback production.
Williams may not be a top-12 fantasy quarterback for the rest of the season. Still, it appears he will at least be in the conversation, and with a potential head-to-head matchup with Jayden Daniels this week, he has a little added incentive to put together another productive fantasy performance.
Week 8 Sits - Fantasy Football Busts
Aaron Rodgers - New York Jets at New England Patriots
You can put lipstick on a pig, and it's still a pig. That's how I feel about Aaron Rodgers and this New York Jets offense. Perhaps I am a scorned lover and letting my Raiders fandom fuel my hatred just a little more than I should, but it's part of my grieving process.
Before I let my emotions get the best of me, let's look at the facts. Rodgers completed 61.5% of his passes on Sunday Night Football against the Steelers for 276 yards. Also, 37.3% of those yards came courtesy of Breece Hall, with many coming after the catch.
Newly acquired Davante Adams had three grabs on nine targets for 30 yards, while Garrett Wilson caught five of his nine targets for 61 yards. Pittsburgh was a tough matchup, allowing the eighth fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks this season, but New England is sitting 12th, allowing 15.13 per game.
There's no reason to trust Rodgers, as his 15.1 fantasy points per game have him down as the QB21 in fantasy. Rodgers isn't winning in fantasy, and he isn't winning on Sundays, as the Jets have now fallen to 2-5. In 2023, New York was 4-3 through seven games, and Zach Wilson led that team.
Things were supposed to get better replacing Zach Wilson with Aaron Rodgers… they’ve gotten worse. 😬 pic.twitter.com/wpacl4qAEN
— theScore (@theScore) October 21, 2024
Jayden Daniels - Washington Commanders vs. Chicago Bears
Jayden Daniels left last week's contest against the Carolina Panthers early with a rib injury. There was no need to rush Daniels back as the Commanders would go on to win that contest 40-7.
You know Daniels will do whatever is necessary to make himself available as the 5-2 Commanders head to Chicago to face the No. 1 overall pick in last April's draft, Caleb Williams, in one of the more anticipated quarterback battles of the season.
I know you aren't sitting Daniels, assuming he plays this week, but those fantasy expectations should be tempered. Chicago has allowed the second-fewest fantasy points per game to the quarterback position over the last four weeks, just 8.53 fantasy points per. They have allowed seven touchdowns on the season and averaged just 202 passing yards per game.
Kyler Murray - Arizona Cardinals at Miami Dolphins
It's hard to predict which Kyler Murray we are going to get from week to week. I hate to say it, but Murray has become a matchup-based starter for fantasy managers. This week's matchup is not one to risk a spot start on.
Arizona heads to Miami to take on a Dolphins secondary that has been allowing just 164.6 passing yards per game through the first six weeks of the season. Miami has allowed a league-low 8.54 fantasy points per game to the quarterback position while allowing the fewest fantasy points to opposing receivers (22.67) and third-fewest to tight end (6.43).
The expectation is that the Cardinals will attempt to keep the ball on the ground this week, as the Dolphins are allowing the seventh-most fantasy points. However, the possible return of Tua Tagovailoa may force their hand.
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