2016 Fantasy Football Week 8 Rankings

Remember when the bye week was just a handful of teams?  Well the NFL is ready to screw your fantasy team over the next couple of weeks because there are 6 teams on a bye in both of them.  Then the two weeks after that, 4 more teams will be on a bye each time.  This could be a difficult few weeks to navigate depending on your byes, and you should keep a close eye on the waiver wire because other owners will likely be dropping guys they've been holding onto all year.

With so many players having the week off, I've narrowed down my lists.  It's kind of hard to rank 50 RBs that I can honestly recommend even owning in a 12 team league.  Also, it's Week 8.  You should have a couple of these running backs and WRs I've ranked in the top-40. If not, I'm not sure my rankings are going to help your team anyway.

So with that, let's get to the rankings!

BYE: Baltimore, Los Angeles, Miami, New York Giants, Pittsburgh, San Francisco

QBs 1.Tom Brady  2.Matt Ryan  3.Aaron Rodgers   4.Andrew Luck   5.Drew Brees    6.Cam Newton 7.Russell Wilson    8.Derek Carr  9.Marcus Mariota  10.Jameis Winston   11.Andy Dalton   12.Matthew Stafford  13.Kirk Cousins  14.Tyrod Taylor   15.Alex Smith  16.Dak Prescott  17.Carson Palmer 18.Ryan Fitzpatrick  19.Brock Osweiler 20.Blake Bortles   I was off with a lot of my picks versus the ESPN experts yet again last week.  Starting with the QBs, I was high on Derek Carr (ESPN #14, ME #5) and down on Alex Smith (ESPN #12, ME #18).  Carr barely finished as a top-20 fantasy quarterback, and Alex Smith ended up with top-10 numbers.  Let's see if I can do better with my signal callers in Week 8. I'm high on: Marcus Mariota (ESPN #14, ME #9) For the second week in a row, for some reason I really like the guy in ESPN's #14 spot, and I really dislike the guy in the #12 spot (more on that in a second).  In Weeks 5-7, only a couple of QBs have outperformed Marcus Mariota.  He has 9 total TDs and only 1 interception combined in those games, and he also has 138 rushing yards in that span.  Jacksonville's defense is pretty soft, and I like Mariota as a top-10 play tomorrow night. I'm down on: Carson Palmer (ESPN #12, ME #17)  I was wrong about Alex Smith in this same #12 spot for ESPN last week, but let's try it again with Palmer in Week 8.  In his last 4 games, Carson has been outside of the top-25 fantasy QBs and I don't think he can be considered a QB1 in fantasy until he proves otherwise.  He has a nice matchup against Carolina this week, but this has become the David Johnson show.  I'm not so sure Palmer is going to be an elite fantasy QB this season. RBs 1.David Johnson  2.Ezekiel Elliott 3.DeMarco Murray    4.Spencer Ware 5.Christine Michael  6.Lamar Miller  7.Devonta Freeman   8.Melvin Gordon  9.Matt Forte   10.Devontae Booker       11.Jacquizz Rodgers  12.LeGarrette Blount  13.Frank Gore  14.Giovani Bernard  15.Latavius Murray  16.Mark Ingram   17.Jeremy Hill     18.Jonathan Stewart                             19.Isaiah Crowell     20.Matt Jones       21.James White     22.Ryan Mathews     23.Mike Gillislee 24.Jerick McKinnon   25.Chris Ivory   26.Theo Riddick       27.Matt Asiata    28.Jordan Howard   29.Chris Thompson    30.Duke Johnson    31.TJ Yeldon  32.Ka'Deem Carey  33.Rob Kelley 34.Dwayne Washington 35.Darren Sproles 36.Knile Davis 37.DeAndre Washington  38.C.J. Prosise 39.Peyton Barber 40.Alfred Blue I whiffed on both of my RB picks versus ESPN last week too.  I was high on Knile Davis in his first game as a Packer (ESPN #42, ME #35), thinking he would get involved right away on Thursday night.  He did not.  In fact, he should not have been in my rankings or ESPN's.  Maybe this week will be different, but Green Bay seems content with Ty Montgomery in the backfield.  I was down on C.J. Anderson (ESPN #11, ME #20), saying that Devontae Booker had been getting more involved in the offense every week (and also pointing out C.J.'s lack of production of late).  Booker actually outsnapped Anderson on Monday night, but both running backs produced against the Texans.  C.J. Anderson was in the top-10 and Devontae in the top-15, so I was obviously wrong about Anderson.  That being said, if you took what I wrote to heart and possibly picked up Devontae Booker, that could be reaping huge benefits now that Anderson is dealing with a knee issue... I'm high on: Giovani Bernard (ESPN #20, ME #14) Sure, Jeremy Hill had a big day against the Browns in Week 7.  But did you notice that it was Bernard who was in on more snaps than Hill (33 to 21)?  Hill had a big 40 yard run and then the 74 yard touchdown.  And I'm not discounting those, but I am seeing them as outliers.  I'd start Gio over Hill this week in London, though I could surely see both backs having value against my Redskins. I'm down on: Mike Gillislee (ESPN #18, ME #23)  Everyone is assuming LeSean McCoy either doesn't play or is limited against the Patriots this week, and that's fine.  I'm also assuming that.  But Gillislee is limited in practice this week too with a foot injury, and he only had 5 rushes for 20 yards last week (Reggie Bush actually had the late 4th quarter touchdown AND 2 point conversion against Miami).  New England is a top-10 defense against fantasy running backs, and I just don't trust Gillislee as much as the ESPN experts this week. WRs 1.Julio Jones  2.A.J. Green      3.Mike Evans 4.TY Hilton   5.Brandon Marshall  6.Amari Cooper  7.Larry Fitzgerald  8.DeAndre Hopkins   9.Michael Crabtree   10.Doug Baldwin    11.Randall Cobb      12.Marvin Jones Jr.   13.Jordy Nelson  14.Emmanuel Sanders   15.Brandin Cooks   16.DeMaryius Thomas  17.Allen Robinson   18.Ty Montgomery  19.Terrelle Pryor, Sr.  20.Alshon Jeffery    21.Jordan Matthews  22.Kelvin Benjamin  23.Dez Bryant  24.Julian Edelman  25.Jeremy Maclin  26.Davante Adams    27.Golden Tate  28.Will Fuller   29.Stefon Diggs 30.Quincy Enunwa   31.Michael Thomas   32.Jamison Crowder  33.Willie Snead  34.Donte Moncrief 35.John Brown  36.Tyrell Williams  37.Brandon LaFell  38.Cameron Meredith 39.Michael Floyd   40.Travis Benjamin  At least I got one super right with Brandon LaFell (ESPN NOT RANKED, ME #39) who found the endzone for a third straight game on his way to a top-10 finish.  I was down on Willie Snead (ESPN #29, ME #37), thinking that Cooks and the rookie Michael Thomas would continue to outperform him.  Well I was right there because both of those guys were top-25 fantasy WRs in Week 7, but Snead wasn't too bad himself and finished as the #33 WR.  I'll continue to rank Cooks and Thomas ahead of Snead, and this week all of them will be slightly down as they face Seattle's tough secondary. I'm high on: Jordan Matthews (ESPN #28, ME #21) This is somewhat of a gut call, but up until last week, Matthews had been consistently putting up fantasy points.  And let's be honest, no wide receivers are putting up numbers against the Vikings this season.  This week, the Eagles get a much more favorable matchup as they travel to Dallas.  In fact, Jordan put up big numbers and found the endzone in both games against the Cowboys last year.  He also scored in Dallas in his rookie year.  Though somewhat hard to trust, I actually think he could be in for a big game this week. I'm down on: DeSean Jackson (ESPN #35, ME NOT RANKED)  At some point, you just have to stop ranking a guy if he's not producing.  DeSean certainly has that big play ability, but he hasn't shown it since Week 3 against the Giants.  In fact, Jackson only has 130 yards (and zero TDs) in his last 4 games COMBINED.  If you're looking for a Redskins WR to start this week, I'd suggest Jamison Crowder. TEs 1.Rob Gronkowski  2.Jimmy Graham   3.Greg Olsen  4.Delanie Walker  5.Jordan Reed  6.Kyle Rudolph   7.Travis Kelce  8.Jack Doyle   9.Martellus Bennett  10.Gary Barnidge  11.C.J. Fiedorowicz   12.Julius Thomas  13.Hunter Henry  14.Tyler Eifert   15.Coby Fleener    16.Cameron Brate   17.Zach Miller  18.Charles Clay  19.Jason Witten  20.Eric Ebron Last week I was high on Cameron Brate (ESPN #13, ME #9) and down on Antonio Gates (ESPN #14, ME #19).  Wrong and wrong.  Although I will say that while Gates finished as the #16 fantasy tight end, that still was only good for 5 catches for 38 yards.  It was the first time he had more than 30 receiving yards in a game all season, but I'm still not trusting him (or ranking him highly) moving forward.  IF Hunter Henry is out with a concussion this week, maybe.  But if Henry is active, no way am I starting Gates right now.  As for Brate, he only had 3 catches for 29 yards.  He's a boom or bust type of player, but he still warrants a higher ranking than someone like Gates. I'm high on: C.J. Fiedorowicz (ESPN #21, ME #11) The young tight end wasn't a factor in Houston's first 3 games of the season, but he has been a top-10 fantasy tight end in his last 4 games.  He's averaging about 7 targets per game in those last 4 contests, and Detroit is giving up the 3rd most fantasy points to the position this season.  I like for Brock to dump it off to his tight end a lot in this game, and C.J. easily has top-10 potential. I'm down on: Zach Ertz (ESPN #15, ME NOT RANKED)  Ertz has just 3 targets in each of his last 3 games, which he has turned into a combined 5 catches for 73 yards.  That's in 3 games, people!  This is a nice matchup in Dallas, as I mentioned above with Jordan Matthews.  But I'm not trusting Ertz until his rookie quarterback starts looking his way more often. DEF 1.Vikings  2.Broncos   3.Cardinals   4.Patriots  5.Eagles  6.Chiefs  7.Titans  8.Jets   9.Bengals  10.Seahawks 11.Cowboys 12.Lions  Last week I was high on the Tennessee Titans (ESPN #18, ME #13) and down on the New York Giants (ESPN #8, ME NOT RANKED).  I almost couldn't have been more wrong here.  The Titans missed a golden opportunity to put up fantasy points against the Colts, as they gave up 28 points and only sacked Luck twice.  As for the Giants, they picked off Case Keenum 4 times and scored a defensive touchdown.  They were second only to the Eagle D in Week 7.   I'm high on: Philadelphia Eagles (ESPN #11, ME #5) I know Dallas isn't giving up a ton of fantasy points to opposing defenses this season, but Philly is the #2 fantasy D after Minnesota.  They get to the quarterback, force a ton of turnovers, and give up less than 15 points per game.  Dak Prescott went a long time without an interception, but so did Wentz.  Both have started to get the rookie turnover bug, and I think that'll continue in this game for both teams.  I hope somehow they both lose. I'm down on: Carolina Panthers (ESPN #10, ME NOT RANKED)  The Panthers are coming off a bye, and Arizona is coming off a 6 point offensive performance.  Otherwise, I've run out of positive things to say about Carolina this week.  In fact, I don't really like them because they've only held an opponent to under 20 points once this season and have just 1 takeaway and 3 sacks in their last two games combined.  I don't think they'll get much going against the Cardinals and will continue their disappointing post-Superbowl season. Good luck to everyone in Week 8!   (Except you, Jimmy...) Cheers, Bart

2016 Fantasy Football Week 7 Rankings

With the significant lack of time last week due to the recent birth of my child, I skipped my position picks versus the ESPN experts.  My Week 5 picks were terrible, so it wasn't the worst thing in the world to have the week off anyway.  I'm back at it this week though, as our family of three (OK, four if you count the dog) has started to get in the groove and are actually getting a little bit of sleep.

Believe it or not, we're nearing the midway point of the fantasy season.  And if you consider the fantasy regular season, we ARE half way.  Time to buckle down and get some Ws.

To the rankings!

BYE: Carolina & Dallas

QBs 1.Tom Brady  2.Matt Ryan  3.Matthew Stafford  4.Aaron Rodgers   5.Derek Carr  6.Andy Dalton  7.Drew Brees  8.Andrew Luck  9.Philip Rivers  10.Blake Bortles   11.Marcus Mariota  12.Kirk Cousins   13.Russell Wilson   14.Tyrod Taylor  15.Brian Hoyer  16.Jameis Winston   17.Eli Manning  18.Alex Smith  19.Carson Palmer 20.Colin Kaepernick  I'm high on: Derek Carr (ESPN #14, ME #5) Carr has been a top-10 fantasy QB through 6 weeks, and he has been top-5 outside of two games.  One of those games was at Tennessee in Week 3, and the Titans have a much improved defense in 2016.  The other poor performance came last week against the Chiefs, and we all know how good Andy Reid's teams are coming off a bye when they have that extra prep time.  This week the Raiders travel to Jacksonville, and I think Carr is a locked in QB1 and obviously I like him as a top-5 play.  Meanwhile, the ESPN experts would rather you start a guy like Alex Smith... I'm down on: Alex Smith (ESPN #12, ME #18)  Everyone had Alex Smith as a top QB last week, as the Chiefs were coming off a bye and facing a Raider defense that gives up a ton of fantasy points to opposing QBs.  Smith threw for just over 200 yards and had zero touchdowns.  This week, one would think he should shred the Saints D, but I think it'll be the running backs doing the damage yet again.  I don't like him as a QB1, even against New Orleans. RBs 1.DeMarco Murray    2.David Johnson 3.LeSean McCoy   4.Le'Veon Bell   5.Melvin Gordon  6.Lamar Miller  7.Devonta Freeman  8.Christine Michael 9.Todd Gurley    10.Mark Ingram 11.Spencer Ware  12.Frank Gore  13.Terrance West  14.Jacquizz Rodgers     15.LeGarrette Blount   16.Jay Ajayi  17.Jordan Howard   18.Isaiah Crowell                                19.Matt Jones  20.C.J. Anderson      21.Tevin Coleman    22.Jamaal Charles   23.Giovani Bernard       24.James White 25.Jerick McKinnon               26.Jeremy Hill   27.Matt Forte        28.Ryan Mathews   29.Rashad Jennings     30.Chris Ivory  31.Theo Riddick   32.Mike Davis 33.TJ Yeldon 34.DeAndre Washington  35.Knile Davis  36.Bilal Powell  37.Duke Johnson    38.Devontae Booker  39.Jalen Richard       40.Darren Sproles  41.Matt Asiata 42.Shaun Draughn  43.Arian Foster 44.Chris Thompson   45.Bobby Rainey   46.Ka'Deem Carey   47.Zach Zenner  48.Derrick Henry  49.Rob Kelley  50.Wendell Smallwood   I'm high on: Knile Davis (ESPN #42, ME #35) I had a hard time finding a RB I was really high on versus the ESPN experts, but I thought I could talk about basically the only healthy RB on the Packer roster as of this writing.  Green Bay traded a conditional pick to get Knile Davis earlier this week, and that's because Lacy and Starks are both expected to miss extended time.  Ty Montgomery will certainly be in the backfield mix, but I think the Packers will throw Knile into the game right away.  It's also possible Green Bay is up big in this game and could use the second half as an opportunity to pound the rock with their new addition. I'm down on: C.J. Anderson (ESPN #11, ME #20)  After a hot start to 2016, Anderson has cooled off quite a bit in his last four games.  He's only averaging 41 rushing yards in those contests, and overall he's outside of the top-25 in that time frame.  Also, those opposing run defenses weren't teams like the Ravens or Seahawks.  We're talking about the Bengals, Bucs, Falcons, and Chargers.  Meanwhile, Devontae Booker has been getting more involved in the offense every week.  I just don't see C.J. as a RB1 this week (or maybe any week moving forward). WRs 1.Julio Jones  2.A.J. Green      3.Odell Beckham, Jr.   4.Mike Evans  5.Jordy Nelson   6.Allen Robinson  7.Antonio Brown    8.TY Hilton  9.Amari Cooper   10.Marvin Jones Jr.  11.Brandon Marshall   12.Brandin Cooks  13.Jarvis Landry 14.Jeremy Maclin  15.Alshon Jeffery    16.Michael Crabtree   17.DeMaryius Thomas    18.Terrelle Pryor, Sr.   19.Larry Fitzgerald  20.Randall Cobb  21.Emmanuel Sanders   22.DeAndre Hopkins   23.Doug Baldwin   24.Cameron Meredith   25.Julian Edelman    26.Stefon Diggs  27.Travis Benjamin  28.Jordan Matthews  29.Golden Tate  30.DeSean Jackson  31.Ty Montgomery  32.Mike Wallace   33.Kenny Britt     34.Tyrell Williams  35.Michael Thomas   36.Allen Hurns  37.Willie Snead 38.John Brown  39.Brandon LaFell  40.Robert Woods    41.DeVante Parker 42.Jamison Crowder  43.Quincy Enunwa  44.Will Fuller   45.Sterling Shepard   46.Anquan Boldin  47.Sammie Coates   48.Michael Floyd    49.Tavon Austin   50.Torrey Smith I'm high on: Brandon LaFell (ESPN NOT RANKED, ME #39) A couple of weeks ago, I whiffed in a similar spot when I talked up Kenny Stills and he laid a big fat goose egg.  While Stills relies on that big play for fantasy points, LaFell has actually averaged 7 targets in his last three games and has 3 TDs in his last two.  I like Andy Dalton a lot at home against the Browns, and I don't think Eifert will be rushed back just yet.  The running backs will likely get a lot of points in this one, but I think LaFell could find the endzone for a third straight game.  Meanwhile, the ESPN experts didn't even rank him in their top-60 WRs! I'm down on: Willie Snead (ESPN #29, ME #37)  Michael Thomas has been a top-10 WR in the last 4 weeks, but Snead has fallen off the fantasy scene as he has battled back from injury.  Snead's first two games of the season were fantastic, but his last two have been subpar.  I trust Brees a lot more at home than on the road, and I'm not feeling Snead at Arrowhead this week. TEs 1.Rob Gronkowski  2.Jordan Reed  3.Jimmy Graham  4.Travis Kelce 5.Delanie Walker  6.Zach Miller  7.Martellus Bennett   8.Kyle Rudolph 9.Cameron Brate 10.Hunter Henry  11.Coby Fleener   12.Dennis Pitta  13.Julius Thomas  14.Gary Barnidge   15.Charles Clay  16.Jack Doyle  17.Zach Ertz   18.C.J. Fiedorowicz    19.Antonio Gates    20.Jesse James I'm high on: Cameron Brate (ESPN #13, ME #9) Vincent Jackson landed on the IR this week, and Jameis will need to throw the ball to someone other than Mike Evans against the 49ers.  I think that guy will be his tight end, and Brate should easily be in the TE1 mix this week. I'm down on: Antonio Gates (ESPN #14, ME #19)  Hunter Henry.  So hot right now.  Meanwhile, old man Gates hasn't had more than 30 receiving yards in any game this season.  He's always a threat for a TD, but Antonio may find himself out of the top-20 very soon.  DEF 1.Broncos 2.Vikings    3.Bills 4.Patriots  5.Bengals  6.Cardinals  7.Ravens   8.Rams  9.Packers    10.Eagles  11.Chiefs 12.Seahawks 13.Titans 14.Texans   15.Jets I'm high on: Tennessee Titans (ESPN #18, ME #13) In case you hadn't noticed, the Titans have been a top-12 fantasy defense this season.  Not only that, but they've been very consistent.  They've only given up more than 17 points twice, and they have 6 sacks in each of their last two contests.  This week they face Andrew Luck, who has been sacked a league-high 23 times.  I think he might hit the 30 mark this week against Tennessee. I'm down on: New York Giants (ESPN #8, ME NOT RANKED)  I don't know what's to like about the G-Men, but apparently the ESPN guys like this defense against the Rams in London.  New York has 4 games this year in which they haven't forced a turnover, and they only have 6 total sacks in 6 games.  LA has given up a lot of points to opposing fantasy defenses, but they've also put up 37 points in Tampa (Week 3) and 28 in Detroit just last week.  I don't see the Giants stopping the Rams much, and I just can't see them as a top-10 fantasy defense until they prove me otherwise. Good luck to everyone in Week 7!   (Except you, Bird...) Cheers, Bart