Quarterbacks

Matt Moore, KC – With Patrick Mahomes (kneecap) facing a multi-week absence, Moore (0 percent owned) will likely take over starting QB duties in KC for Week 8 against the Packers. Moore was decent on Thursday after taking over for Mahomes, completing 10 of 19 attempts for 117 yards and a touchdown. The Chiefs could add someone from free agency or via trade, but Moore gets first crack and should be a mid-tier QB2 until the team gets their star QB back.

UPDATE: This will be the first week Moore gets any practice reps with the first unit, and while the injury to Mahomes could have the star QB back soon, Moore is likely to be the guy this week.

Jacoby Brissett, IND – Brissett (45-65 percent owned) has been solid this season and had a huge game in Week 7, completing 26 of 39 passes for 326 yards and four touchdowns in Sunday's 30-23 win over the Texans. He added six yards on five rushing attempts and lost a fumble but has now thrown multiple passing TDs in five of six games this season, with a 14:3 touchdown to interception ratio overall. The Colts host the Broncos in Week 8 in another favorable matchup, so Mahomes owners in shallow formats looking for a temporary fill-in could find what they need in Brissett.

Derek Carr, OAK – Despite missing some crucial offensive weapons on Sunday, Carr (15-30 percent owned) finished with 293-2-1 on 22-for-28 passing in the 42-24 loss to Green Bay. The stat line belies a few glaring mistakes, though, as he fumbled out of the end zone on a pylon-reaching scramble and killed a drive with an INT on a badly underthrown ball. Still, the matchup with the Texans in Week 8 could lead to another decent fantasy line, as the Houston secondary and overall pas defense has struggled this season.

Teddy Bridgewater, NO – Aside from Week 5 versus Tampa Bay, Bridgewater (20-30 percent owned) had his best game of 2019 on Sunday, completing 23-of-38 pass attempts for 281-2-0 during the Saints’ 36-25 win over the Bears. It was a tough road matchup in Chicago, but Bridgewater – only a temporary solution for fantasy owners since Drew Brees is nearing a return – completed passes to eight different receivers while averaging 7.4 yards per attempt. He’s now averaging 278 passing yards over the last three games and looks forward to an excellent home matchup against the Cardinals next Sunday. He’s one of many possible streaming options in Week 8 that could make for some exciting waiver wire action.

UPDATE: Brees (thumb) plans to resume practicing this week, but with a bye coming in Week 9 and Bridgewater undefeated this season, it seems silly they’d rush their franchise QB back into action.

Other QBs to consider: Ryan Tannehill, Andy Dalton, Mitchell Trubisky

Updates:

Josh Allen, BUF – The Bills are 5-1 and notched a win, but Allen (70-80 percent owned) looked a little shaky in the first half. He finished with 202-2-0 on 16-for-26 passing in the 31-21 Week 7 win over the Dolphins and gets another favorable matchup at home against the Eagles in Week 8.

Kirk Cousins, MIN – Cousins’ ownership (35-50 percent) is about half that of Allen’s in ESPN leagues – and the much-maligned veteran QB had an even better game on Sunday, completing 24 of his 34 pass attempts for 337 yards and four touchdowns during the 42-30 win over the Lions.

Sam Darnold, NYJ – UPDATE: Terrible, just terrible. Darnold (11-for-32 passing for 86-0-4), who posted a pitiful 1.9 QBR this week, was just chucking the ball into the secondary and hoping for a good result. He was apparently “seeing ghosts” as the microphone revealed during a contemplative moment on the sidelines after one of his four INTs. He was also sacked four times and lost a fumble.

Running Backs

Chase Edmonds, ARI – We talked about Edmonds’ standalone value last week in the updates, and while David Johnson got the green light to start on Sunday, he only had one carry for 2 yards. Enter Edmonds (25-40 percent owned), who responded with 126 yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries (2-24-0 receiving) during the 27-21 win over the Giants. We could see Johnson get spelled a little more frequently in the wake of this performance, so stay tuned as this story develops leading up to Week 8’s matchup with New Orleans.

UPDATE: Both Spencer Ware and Jay Ajayi worked out for the Cards this week, which means that DJ’s back must be pretty bad. Even if they add a free agent back, the Cards will be looking to Edmonds to carry the load in Week 8.

Latavius Murray, NO – Murray (50-70 percent owned) was included in my RBs to consider last week and after Alvin Kamara was ruled out, he passed Sunday’s test against a tough Bears defense with flying colors – rushing for 119 yards and two TDs and adding 5-31-0 receiving. After a performance like that and Kamara dealing with multiple injuries, he could be RB2 option against a weak Cardinals defense in Week 8.

Ty Johnson, DET – UPDATE: Johnson rushed for 29 yards on 10 carries and added four catches for another 28 yards in Detroit’s Week 7 loss to the Vikings after Kerryon Johnson exited the game with a knee injury (week-to-week). We don’t know much about what's going on with Kerryon, but it’s likely he misses at least Week 8 against the Giants, and possibly a few more games. Ty Johnson slides into the lead role on early downs, while the capable J.D. McKissic will be featured more on passing downs.

Mark Walton, MIA – Walton (just 3.7 percent owned in ESPN leagues) probably isn’t going to pile up the fantasy points for you, but I could see a few more decent yardage totals in his future. He rushed for 66 yards on 14 carries Sunday in the loss to Buffalo. This was the largest workload of the season for Walton – who should build on this success and secure a larger role heading into a Week 8 Monday night matchup versus the Steelers. He’s approaching must-own territory in 12-team leagues.

Other RBs to consider: Gus Edwards, Boston Scott, Darrell Henderson

Updates:

Benny Snell, PIT – The Steelers were on a Week 7 bye and get the Dolphins in Week 8. Stay tuned to the injury updates for the banged-up Steelers backfield to see if Snell (5-15 percent owned) sees a more significant role. He could get a he workload if the Steelers jump out in front and the other RBs need some rest.

Duke Johnson, HOU – Johnson (60-70 percent owned) rushed for 34 yards on seven carries and caught two of five targets for 22 yards in Sunday’s 30-23 loss to the Colts. He’s option 1B for the Texans with Carlos Hyde claiming starting RB duties, but he might see some extra work this week against the Raiders, who gave up huge chunks of yardage on passing plays to the Packers RBs in Week 7.

Jamaal Williams, GB – Speaking of Packers RBs, Williams (50-65 percent owned) stayed involved on Sunday with 4-26-1 receiving on five targets, even if he wasn’t running the ball much (5 yards on three carries).

Wide Receivers / Tight Ends

Corey Davis, TEN – Davis (40-60 percent owned) posted season-best marks in both targets and receptions in Ryan Tannehill’s first start for the Titans, finishing with 6-80-1 on seven targets. He’s shown immediate rapport with Tannehill and could be in line for more consistent production moving forward. The Titans face a weak Bucs’ pass defense in Week 8 and Davis will be a hot commodity on the waiver wire.

Mohamed Sanu, NE – UPDATE: Recently acquired by the Pats from Atlanta for a 2020 second-round pick, Sanu (50 percent owned in ESPN leagues) is a proven offensive performer who adds another element of versatility to the Pats playbook, as if they needed it. Sanu should step in right away in Week 8, though his package will likely be limited to just a few plays – and then gradually become a regular part of the offense. His fantasy upside increases with this move, and the Josh Gordon injury should hasten his immediate impact.

Cole Beasley, BUF – I mention John Brown below in WRs to consider (since his ownership is around 65-75 percent and he’s the preferred option in Buffalo), but I do really like Beasley in deeper formats. The “Beas” is just 25-40 percent owned and caught his first TD in Week 8 (3-16-1 on six targets) – and the veteran slot receiver now has 30-283-1 on 45 targets through six games.

Kenny Stills, HOU – Stills is starting to make his mark in Houston. He caught four of five targets for 105 yards in Sunday’s 30-23 loss to the Colts and should be a viable albeit boom-or-bust option with big-play ability moving forward. He may not see a huge target volume and has plenty of other WRs to compete with, but he does have upside with the Raiders coming to town in Week 8.

Alex Erickson, CIN – Wow! Erickson caught 8-137-0 on a ridiculous 14 targets in Sunday’s 27-17 loss to Jacksonville, and while we must take note of this performance heading into a Week 8 matchup with the Rams, it could have been because of a hole in the Jags secondary that Bengals play callers decided to exploit.

Zach Pascal, IND – Pascal isn’t always a great play but he with promising rookie WR Paris Campbell out this week, he caught six of seven targets for 106 yards and two touchdowns in the 30-23 win over the Texans. He’s almost universally available and seems to be improving his rapport with Brissett. Worth a look in deeper formats.

TE Kyle Rudolph, MIN – Tight end is a thin position this season, so we have to acknowledge that Rudolph hauled in five of six targets for 58 yards and a touchdown during Sunday’s 42-30 win over the Lions. He’s about 20 percent owned in fantasy, so he’s likely available and has a favorable matchup in Week 8 against Washington.

Other WRs/TEs to consider: John Brown, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Danny Amendola, Demaryius Thomas, Preston Williams, TE Dallas Goedert

Updates:

TE Hunter Henry, LAC – Henry (now almost 90 percent owned in ESPN leagues after his Week 6 breakout) hauled in six of his eight targets for 97 yards in Week 7 against the Titans. He’s now had excellent performances in his two games since returning from injury and is a must-own in all formats.

Robby Anderson, NYJ – UPDATE: The Jets were a mess against the Pats and Anderson came away with just one catch for 8 yards (on 10 targets!) – shut down by CB Stephon Gilmore. I loved him last week after the win over Dallas, but if Darnold is seeing ghosts we have to downgrade Anderson.

Golden Tate, NYG – Tate caught 6-80-0 on 11 targets in Sunday’s 27-21 loss to Arizona and appears to be the Giants No.1 wideout in the absence of Sterling Shepard.

Darius Slayton, NYG – Slayton started alongside Tate at WR on Sunday but contributed just 2-28-0 on two targets. He’s probably seen his highest output of the season unless we have more injuries.

DeVante Parker, MIA – Just 8.5 percent owned in ESPN leagues, Parker is a talented WR on a bad team. He saw 10 targets on Sunday and hauled in 5-55-1 and will look to post another strong performance against the Steelers in a Week 8 Monday night matchup.

Duke Williams, BUF – Now the Bills’ third WR, he suffered a shoulder injury during Sunday’s win over Miami but returned a few plays later and was taken for X-rays following the game. Stay tuned.

TE Dawson Knox, BUF – Knox caught 2-22-0 on Five targets Sunday and with Tyler Kroft back in action could see his fantasy relevance seriously diminished.

Zay Jones, OAK – Jones was inactive in Week 7 (coach’s decision) and the Raiders went with Hunter Renfrow, Keelan Doss and Trevor Davis against the Packers with Tyrell Williams out. I like Jones, but he’s off to a dubious start in Oakland.