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Raven safeties and linebackers have struggled in coverage and the defense overall has not been great at tackling. Tyler Conklin is the fourth-highest targeted receiver in a Vikings offense that entered Week 8 with the fifth-most team pass plays in the league. Conklin is a good gamble to take against a struggling defense on a pass-favorable team.

Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, and Tim Patrick combined for nine receptions last week. Heading into Week 8, Sutton led the league with 928 (No. 1) Air Yards, but subsequently had 480 (No. 1) Unrealized Air Yards. Both Patrick’s and Sutton’s Target Accuracies and yards per target ranked outside the top 25 receivers entering Week 8. Meanwhile, Jeudy has just returned from injury. The Broncos receivers are victims of mediocre QB play and will struggle to put up fantasy numbers against a solid Dallas secondary.

Jeremy McNichols has a leg up on Adrian Peterson (for now) as the incumbent back, and is a capable pass-catcher. He should see a good deal of work this week, but predicting the usage starting in Week 10 is difficult. If I could roster one of the two, I would take McNichols, but you want exposure to both backs. This could end up being an ugly committee backfield, but one of the two has a shot at RB2 production the rest of the way. 

If Kyle Pitts were not Kyle Pitts, Pat Freiermuth would have a lot more buzz right now. He is flashing and looks like a potential future top-five fantasy TE. Right now, he should be viewed as a streamer/bye-week fill-in, but he could be a locked-in fantasy starter by playoff time if his role stays the same.

Enjoy Mike White’s performance. Don’t expect it to continue, but today showed us that in an emergency, go ahead and break the glass that is any starting NFL QB. Even in really bad matchups, when you have to take a chance, you have to take a chance.

Like the Jets, lean on Michael Carter. He fits today’s NFL. He’s agile, quick enough, and a solid pass catcher. Receiving backs will always put up stats. He has now proven himself a high-floor, high-ceiling rookie. Winning or losing, the Jets will give him the ball.

Daniel Jones and the Giants have been up and down, but have shown the ability to hang around and produce close games. Sterling Shepard and Kadarius Toney have gobbled up targets and have been solid WR2’s. Devontae Booker has been quietly effective as the temporary lead back, but looks to improve on a stretch of RB3 performances.

There’s not much to say about the Chiefs. While the offense has struggled recently, this is the perfect get-right spot. They elite playmakers weren’t leaving lineups regardless. Other players like Darrel Williams and Mecole Hardman are high risk/high reward.

Kalif Raymond is top-25 among wide receivers in Yards After Catch Per Target (3.38) and Yards After Catch Per Reception (5.08). Why is this important? The Eagles defense is allowing a completion percentage of 74.36-percent of all passes and their 821 Yards After Catch allowed is 12th-most in the NFL. If Terry McLaurin can’t get his yards through the air, he’ll have a difficult time getting it after the catch. The Broncos have allowed 653 (third-fewest) Yards After Catch this season.

This brings us to the Rams’ opponent, the Houston Texans. Their defense has allowed 1149 (No. 4) Completed Air Yards and have allowed an Average Target Distance of 8.7 (ninth-most in the NFL). There aren’t many wide receivers available in free agency that have six consecutive weeks of 25+ Routes Run. Scoop up Van Jefferson and start him this week!

The midway point of the season approaches; it is now time to batten down the hatches, so to speak. For championship contenders, the playoff push has already begun. No information can be missed during this time, and lucky for fantasy managers The Infirmary is here to assist!

Austin Ekeler was added to the injury report late in the week. That’s never a good sign. However, reports indicate it was due to soreness and he’s likely to play. If he misses, Justin Jackson becomes an obvious play but don’t forget about Joshua Kelley. While rookie Larry Rountree began the season as the No. 3 back, it’s been Kelley the past two weeks. He’s a worthy flier if Ekeler should miss any time. Don’t forget about the potential in that player profile…

The Titans-Colts matchup is always the highest scoring. However, two of the past three have hit at least 51 points. Aside from Jonathan Taylor, it’s typically the studs from each team who garner the points. Derrick Henry, A.J. Brown, Michael Pittman, and T.Y. Hilton generally are the players who succeed in these matchups. However, with all the injuries to both teams, it’s tough to predict who will be successful on either side. 

Chris Godwin could smash against Chauncey Gardner-Johnson while Mike Evans struggles against Marshon Lattimore like he typically does. Tom Brady is in play primarily because the Saints run defense is elite. There aren’t too many situations where Brady doesn’t rack up fantasy points. If Winston turns the ball over a ton, Brady could have five touchdowns. If this DFS Week 8 matchup becomes a shootout, Brady could have five touchdowns. The only way he doesn’t is if the Saints run defense falters. 

At first glance it seems crazy to take the UNDER on Joe Burrow, who just torched the Ravens for 416 yards. Not only does Burrow rank bottom-4 with 30.4 Team Pass Plays Per Game, but also the Jets have been playing from behind more than any other team, shown by a -11.65 Game Script score. Consequently, the Under on a passing yards line is encouraged when the opposing team has a poor offense. 

Jalen Hurts will put the team on his back by effectively moving the ball through the air and on the ground against one of the worst defenses in the NFL. Hurts has a high-rushing floor, accounting for 44.19-percent of the Eagles’ rushing yards. Also, his 361 rushing yards ranks No. 2 among all QBs this season. His rushing ability will be on full display against a Lions defense is bottom-12 in rushing yards allowed per game. And when it comes to defending the pass, the Lions aren’t much better, allowing the 8th most passing yards to offenses through Week 8.

The High Value Touch DFS Index is here to help you find the best plays for the dollar in DFS. This is done by looking at leaders in Carries Inside The 10-Yard Line Per Game and Targets Inside The 10-Yard Line Per Game and comparing their prices on DraftKings and FanDuel to create a rating. We look at these touches close to the end zone because touchdowns lead to fantasy points, and fantasy points lead to cashing our lineups in DFS!

Jonathan Taylor, Najee Harris, and Leonard Fournette face some of the top rushing defenses in the league. This means that their floor will be lower than if they were facing weak opponents, but their work inside the 10-yard line gives them upside, where they could score a couple of touchdowns and boost your DFS lineup this week. Zack Moss is a GPP play because he doesn’t get enough volume to be viable for cash. Remove Mike Davis from your player pool. 

Heading into Week 8, Cooper Kupp leads all NFL WRs in receptions (56), targets (81), receiving yards (809), touchdowns (9), and of course, Fantasy Points Per Game (27.2). Kupp is poised to easily smash his career best 1162 yard and 10 touchdown season that he posted on 94 receptions in 2019. Trending way up in 2021, the 28-year-old Kupp’s dynasty stock accrues 19.29 Lifetime Value points (the most of any WR in the latest rankings update) to move six spots to WR15.

After struggling in last week’s match-up against the New York Giants, Sam Darnold was shown the bench early in the fourth quarter. Since he posted the top QB performance in Week 4, the wheels have fallen off. Darnold has thrown five interception in the last three games, averaging a mere 4.7 Yards Per Attempt. On the season, he has an underwhelming Accuracy Rating of 7.2 (No. 29) with a True Completion Percentage of 68.6-percent (No. 28). Darnold loses 8.10 Lifetime Value points (the biggest QB faller this week) and five spots to slip to QB29 in the dynasty rankings.