The notable Week 8 matchups for quarterbacks include plenty of low-cost options and chalk. Which quarterbacks do you prefer from each bucket?
Quality Matchups - The Chalk
- Deshaun Watson (vs. Oakland)
- Russell Wilson (at Atlanta)
- Jared Goff (vs. Cincinnati)
- Tom Brady (vs. Cleveland)
- Ryan Tannehill (vs. Tampa Bay)
- Daniel Jones (at Detroit)
- Derek Carr (at Houston)
- Josh Allen (vs. Philadelphia)
Jason Wood
Deshaun Watson -- The Raiders only have 10 sacks on the year, which bodes well for a Texans offense that flourishes when Deshaun Watson avoids pressure. The problem is Watson is near the top of the salary table this week, so you'll have to be judicious with your builds to use him. I think there are savings at other positions that make him a viable -- if not top tier -- option in cash games.
Russell Wilson -- Wilson is the most expensive quarterback on the slate, and faces a Falcons team in disarray. It's an interesting trade-off and chances are he returns value. However, there's also the chance the Seahawks can win with a conservative, ball-control offense where Chris Carson stars. Wilson isn't out of consideration, but he's my least favorite of the chalk plays at his price.
Josh Allen -- Allen isn't a dynamic passer, but he's more than capable of hitting deep vertical routes when they're available. The Eagles secondary is historically bad, with no solve in sight, and the way to beat them is throwing downfield. Meanwhile, the Bills defense is stout enough to keep the Eagles offense on its heels. It's a game script that bodes well for Allen.
Daniel Jones -- The Lions have a losing record but they've been the hard-luck franchise of the early season; they could easily have one of the NFC's top records. The Giants are a broken team struggling to field receivers with Sterling Shepard concussed and out indefinitely. Jones doesn't project as a top-8 value at the position this week.
Phil Alexander
Quality Matchups - The Chalk
- Deshaun Watson (vs. Oakland) - DraftKings did a nice job adjusting Watson's price for a home matchup against Oakland's pass-funnel defense. While Watson is expensive on his own, he can be stacked with his new WR2, Kenny Stills, to bring the overall investment down.
- Russell Wilson (at Atlanta) - Similar to Watson, Wilson's salary is up significantly across the industry due to the defense he's facing. The Falcons had all sorts of trouble with mobile quarterbacks recently, allowing big lines to Kyler Murray in Week 6 (340-3-0, 32 rushing yards) and Watson in Week 5 (426-5-0, 47 rushing yards). The only argument against Wilson -- and it's fairly thin -- is the Seahawks will be able to dictate the game script against a Matt Ryan-less Atlanta team. If Pete Carroll and Brian Schottenheimer have their way, Wilson's pass attempts (and fantasy upside) could be limited.
- Ryan Tannehill (vs. Tampa Bay) - The same script that worked for Tannehill last week -- short home favorite against a lousy pass defense -- is back in play. It's going to take time for Tannehill's salary, and especially those of his primary pass-catchers, to catch up to the new reality of a competent Tennessee passing game. 20-25 fantasy points are once again well within his range of possible outcomes.
James Brimacombe
Quality Matchups - Deeper Dive
Dan Hindery
Deshaun Watson feels like the best combination of floor and upside at the top end. Over the last three weeks, he has averaged just over 32 DraftKings points per outing. He is moving around well and has put up 111 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground over the last three in addition to the big numbers through the air. His matchup is fantastic too. The Raiders gave up 429 yards and 6 total touchdowns last week and then traded away one of their top cornerbacks. The talent simply isn’t there on that side of the ball, especially with some injuries and suspensions taking a toll.
Of the cheaper options, Ryan Tannehill is intriguing. At $5,100 on DraftKings and $6,900 on FanDuel, he opens up a lot of cap space to fit in some studs at other positions. The matchup against Tampa Bay is the key factor here. Prior to holding Kyle Allen in check in their last game, The Buccaneers had given up at least 314 passing yards in four straight games. That stretch included the following:
-333 yards to a struggling, injured, Cam Newton
-336 yards (and 4 total touchdowns) to Daniel Jones in his first career start
-517 yards and 2 touchdowns to Jared Goff
-314 yards and 4 touchdowns to Teddy Bridgewater.
This is a spot where Tannehill has a realistic shot to again put up 300+ yards and multiple touchdowns, which puts him firmly in play at his price. For tournaments, the fact that his top receivers Corey Davis ($4,400 on DK) and A.J. Brown ($4,100 on DK) are extremely cheap as well makes stacking him an attractive option.
If Drew Brees returns, it would be a small boost to the Saints pass catchers. While Teddy Bridgewater has been solid and shown that this team can win with defense and a more conservative approach. I wouldn’t expect them to start throwing it an inordinate amount of the time just because Brees returns but the efficiency could rise a bit.