This is Week 8 NFL Takeaways! Quarterback injuries is what’s grabbing the Week 8 headlines and will certainly be the talk of the town as we look ahead to Week 9!
QB Injuries from Week 8
Kirk Cousins
Matthew Stafford
Desmond Ridder
Kenny Pickett
Tyrod Taylor/Tommy Devito/Daniel Jones
All of these quarterback situations are going to have massive fantasy implications going forward.
However, before we dive into that, let’s dive into the Quick Takes Starting Lineup!
Quick Takes Starting Lineup
QB: Will Levis! 4TDs against Atlanta’s Top 5 Defense!
RB: Even with Zach Wilson, Breece Hall can still be a difference maker.
RB: If only someone told you about Alvin Kamara!
WR: DeAndre Hopkins had three TDs just so he can get traded before Tuesday.
WR: Jahan Dotson, like I said last week, is not dead!
TE: New year, but the same Taysom Hill. Go get this guy!
FLEX: Is Javonte Williams back!?
SFLEX: Sam Howell belongs in this league and in your lineups!
Takeaway No. 1: Sell Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson for Whatever You Can Get
Right after Week 1, I said you needed to buy Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson and that these guys were going to win you fantasy championships. While that looked true these past couple weeks, one play in the NFL can change everything.
With Kirk Cousins likely out for the year after sustaining an achilles injury, it might be Jaren Hall under center for the time being. As a prospect, Hall was drafted in the fifth round out of BYU and was PlayerProfiler’s QB8 in the 2023 Class.
Personally, I’m highly skeptical about Jaren Hall‘s passing prowess. In his final season at BYU, Hall’s QBR was 79.5 (No. 76 among all QBs) and his yards per attempt was 8.4 (No. 64). Going to that from a situation where Cousins was No. 1 in both passing attempts and passing touchdowns is catastrophic for the value of Addison and Hockenson.
Plus, with Jefferson set to return sooner rather than later, these two are going to take even more of a back seat when it comes to their expected target share.
Jaren Hall
Now, could Jaren Hall be the second coming of Brock Purdy? Sure, anything is possible in this league, but there’s no guarantee that Hall even plays. Nick Mullens is coming off the IR soon, and they have Sean Mannion on the practice squad. Both are terrible options.
The Vikings could sign or trade for a veteran QB like Jacoby Brissett, Jameis Winston or Teddy Bridgewater, but those guys would be lucky to give you half of what Kirk Cousins was giving this Vikings pass offense.
My advice going forward would be to wait on trading these guys and see if the Vikings do acquire a veteran quarterback by Tuesday’s trade deadline. If they do, maybe you can sell a little bit higher. If they don’t, you either pray that Hall can be a guy because we know Mullens and Mannion aren’t.
Either way, it’s a terrible situation all the way around, and we were robbed of seeing what these guys could have been down the stretch.
Takeaway No. 2: What to do With This Indianapolis Colts Backfield?
I’ll admit that I’m a little surprised that this is still a 50/50 backfield between Zack Moss and Jonathan Taylor.
Here are their splits by game since JT came back and was really implemented into the game plan:
Zack Moss
@ JAX: 7 carries, 6 receptions
Vs CLE: 18 carries, 1 reception
Vs NO: 11 carries, 1 reception
Total: 36 Carries, 8 receptions, 39 PPR Points
Jonathan Taylor
@ JAX: 8 carries, 5 receptions
Vs CLE: 18 carries, 3 receptions
Vs NO: 12 carries, 1 reception
Total: 38 Carries, 9 receptions, 43 PPR Points
This is literally the definition of a 50/50 backfield in terms of workload. Even when you look at the production, it’s still fairly even.
Taylor has 282 total yards and one TD compared to Zack Moss‘ 195 total yards and two TDs. So yes, Taylor has more yards, but everyone knows that touchdowns are king in fantasy football.
At the end of the day, Jonathan Taylor is obviously the more talented back. However, the Colts have shown a real desire to keep Zack Moss heavily involved. If Taylor was going to fully take over this backfield, I feel like this would have been the week it would have happened.
If you were going to buy either of these guys, I’d definitely buy Zack Moss given the fact he’s going to cost you a lot less for very similar production.
I’m trading guys like D’Onta Foreman, James Cook, Emari Demercado, and Najee Harris.
Takeaway No. 3: Burrow and the Bengals are Back! BUY BUY BUY!
All the reports coming into Week 8 were that Joe Burrow was completely healthy for the first time this season. Now sometimes these reports are exaggerated. However, considering that Burrow had four times as many rushing yards in Week 8 than he did in all of his previous games combined, I’d say he’s just fine!
Oh, and Burrow’s passing line? Just a slight 28/32 (87.5-percent), 283 passing yards, and three TDs.
Ja’Marr Chase: 10/100/1
Tee Higgins: 5/69/0
Joe Mixon: 16/87/1
Keep in mind this was all against the 49ers, not a bad defense by any means.
Now as far as acquiring these guys go, I’m not afraid to buy high on Burrow and Chase. They obviously have a connection, and I’m predicting they will finish top 3 in scoring at their respective positions from this week onwards.
Potential Trades
For Burrow, I’d trade:
- Justin Hebert +
- Trevor Lawrence +
- Tua Tagovailoa
And to be honest, if someone offered me Patrick Mahomes for Joe Burrow straight up, I think I’d honestly take it!
For Chase, I’d trade:
- Any running back not named CMC or Travis Etienne
- Any wide receiver not named A.J. Brown or Tyreek Hill
Obviously, everyone’s roster is different, but if you have Raheem Mostert, I’m spam offering Mostert, my WR2, and a solid flex guy to see if I can pry Chase off a team that probably has a losing record.
For Higgins, I’d trade:
- Gabe Davis (in a heartbeat)
- George Pickens + (in a heartbeat)
- Gus Edwards (words can’t describe how fast I’d hit accept)
The bottom line is when Joe Burrow is healthy, he plays good. When he plays good, other’s play good. When other’s play good, your fantasy managers pay good.
These guys are worth the price, so go out and lock em up.
That concludes this week’s batch of takeaways. Make sure you check out Monday Night Tailgate on the PlayerProfiler Youtube @ 7:30pm ET.
I’ll be breaking down these takeaways in more depth, and I’m also handing out player prop LOCKS for Lions vs Raiders. It’s Monday Night Football!
Come hang out!
Thank you!
