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FanDuel’s Week 8 Main Slate features 16 games and will kickoff at noon ET.
We have five powerhouse offenses on the slate with team totals north of 40. Oklahoma (48), Clemson (42), Texas (42), Wisconsin (41), and LSU (40) should put up a lot of points. The stars from these teams are very strongly in play but we do have to worry about the potential for blowouts. Aside from LSU (-18.5), each of these teams is favored by at least three scores. If we are going to pay way up for these stars, we want them in the game for as many possessions as possible. Balancing the fear of blowout potential with the massive upside in great match-ups for these teams is going to be the key to the slate.
This slate breakdown will go position-by-position, highlighting the top options and giving an overview of the toughest choices we face this week. The top options are broken down into two categories. Players listed as Core Plays are those who you can play with high confidence in both cash games and tournaments. Players listed as Worth Considering are viable as cost-saving options in your main lineup or high-upside options for tournaments
Quarterback
Positional Overview
This is one of the toughest weeks of the season at quarterback. The top options like Jalen Hurts ($11,800), Joe Burrow ($11,000), and Sam Ehlinger ($10,700) have been priced way up. There is also some reason in each case to believe we won’t see a ceiling game from any of them given how heavily favored their teams are this week.
It would be a great week to try to save some money at the position but the highest-upside plays in the second tier — Charlie Brewer ($10,000), Kellen Mond ($9,900), and Brock Purdy ($9,800) — aren’t coming at much of a discount. Jayden Daniels, Quentin Harris, Sean Clifford, Bryce Perkins, and Jett Duffey are each priced between $8,400 and $9,200 and have shown upside in the past but feel risky in difficult matchups.
This could be the rare week were it makes more sense to just play a single quarterback and take advantage of the multitude of strong options at running back in the Superflex position.
Core Plays
Jalen Hurts, Oklahoma ($11,800)
At this point, it feels almost redundant to write about why Hurts is a core play week after week. This is pretty simple. Oklahoma has the nation’s #1 ranked SP+ offense and Hurts is the triggerman for a high-powered passing offense and also far and away the leading rushing threat as well. The efficiency numbers are stunning. Hurts is averaging 12.8 yards per attempt and 14.3 adjusted yards per attempt (which takes into account his 17-to-3 TD-INT ratio). He is also averaging 8.5 yards per carry. Hurts is averaging 105 rushing yards and 1.3 rushing touchdowns per game (18.5 fantasy PPG as a runner). West Virginia has the 65th-ranked SP+ defense and is allowing opponents 73.3 offensive snaps per game. There is a risk Hurts will only play three quarters given that Oklahoma is favored by 33.5 points. However, if Oklahoma builds a big enough lead to pull the starters, Hurts will likely have had a big hand in getting there because, in addition to throwing for all non-garbage time touchdowns, he has also scored over half of Oklahoma’s non-garbage time rushing touchdowns.
Joe Burrow, LSU ($11,000)
Burrow had his worst fantasy performance of the season last week against the excellent Florida defense. He still put up 28 fantasy points, proving his floor is sky high. It looks like LSU’s passing offense can do no wrong. Burrow is completing 79.6% of his passes, averaging 11.6 yards per attempt, and has thrown 25 touchdown passes. LSU is one of five teams on the slate with an implied team total of 40 or more points and the only one of those teams who is favored by fewer than three touchdowns. Mississippi State should be just good enough to force Burrow to play a full four quarters, which makes him a safer option than Sam Ehlinger and Trevor Lawrence. The only negative here is that Burrow’s salary continues to creep up, which makes it extremely difficult to fit both Burrow and Hurts into the same lineup so difficult decisions have to be made.
Others to Consider
Sam Ehlinger, Texas ($10,700)
Given the slew of injuries Texas is dealing with on the defensive side of the ball, Saturday night’s matchup with Kansas has some sneaky shootout potential. The line has moved a couple points towards Kansas since opening, though the Longhorns are still favored by 21 in a game with an over/under of 62.5. Kansas has an implied team total of 20.8 points and if the Jayhawks put up three or four touchdowns, Ehlinger is going to be forced to play aggressively for four quarters. He has massive upside in that scenario. Ehlinger has four rushing touchdowns over the past two weeks and we know he is also capable of big passing numbers (401 yards and 4 passing touchdowns against LSU). We should also be able to get Ehlinger at relatively low ownership numbers. Hurts and Burrow are going to be more popular and we are also likely to see a lot of lineups with running backs in the flex spot given how many great options there are at the position.
Trevor Lawrence, Clemson ($9,500)
Lawrence was my favorite play at the position last week and he was mildly disappointing with just 28.3 fantasy points. We are left to wonder what might have been if Florida State’s offense hadn’t been a disaster because all 28.3 fantasy points came in the first half. Louisville’s offense has been much more consistent than Florida State’s and the Cardinals are playing at home. Can they keep it interesting long enough to force Lawrence to play four quarters? The blowout risk makes Lawrence tough to trust as a cash play but this game has some shootout potential, which makes Lawrence a great GPP play. Lawrence has shown more rushing upside than some might expect. In fact, he has scored a rushing touchdown in all but one game this season (and that was in a laugher over Charlotte). The matchup provides a fantastic opportunity to potentially see what Lawrence’s fantasy ceiling is. The Cardinals defense ranks just 87th nationally in yards per pass and allowed 423 passing yards and 5 passing touchdowns to Wake Forest last week.
Running Back
Positional Overview
Whenever Jonathan Taylor ($10,800) and Chuba Hubbard ($10,500) are on the slate, they are going to be top options. Taylor looks especially promising this week with a fantastic matchup against Illinois. Those prices are difficult to make work, however. In the mid-tier, Travis Etienne ($8,700) stands out as a real bargain after a string of pedestrian fantasy performances pushed his price way down. Cam Akers ($9,400) and D’Andre Swift ($9,200) may go overlooked due to the focus on Taylor, Hubbard, and Etienne despite having strong matchups.
We are desperate for value on this slate and there are some solid options at running back. Freshmen Breece Hall ($6,000), Zamir White ($6,300), and Isaiah Spiller ($6,900) are no guarantees for heavy workloads but potentially worth rolling the dice on to fit in some of the top options at other positions.
Core Plays
Travis Etienne, Clemson ($8,700)
It just feels like we are due for an explosive game from Etienne and the price looks fantastic. He was solid last week in a little more than two quarters of work against Florida State (130 total yards and 1 touchdown) but he hasn’t really gone off since Week 1 (208 total yards and 3 touchdowns). We know he is capable of huge fantasy outings. Last season, Etienne had five different games in which he ran for at least 150 yards and scored two or more touchdowns. He rushed for 153 yards and a score against Louisville last season on just eight carries in what ended up being a 77-16 Clemson romp. Etienne should see a much heavier workload this season. Louisville has proven to have an explosive offense and is fresh off of scoring 62 on the road against Wake Forest. Clemson isn’t going to feel comfortable taking the foot off of the gas too early. The spread is 24 points so there is some blowout risk here but we can say the same about many of the other top running backs on the slate. The matchup looks great on paper. Louisville is allowing 175 rushing yards per game and the defense ranks just 88th in FEI ratings.
Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin ($10,800)
With the way Wisconsin is playing, this looks like a spot where they can name their score. Wisconsin has a massive 41-point team total. Illinois is allowing 205 rushing yards per game against a soft schedule. The best rushing offense the Illini have faced to date was Minnesota and the Gophers rushed for 332 yards. Taylor has been absolutely incredible this season. He has already racked up 961 yards and 18 touchdowns in just six games, which means he is averaging 152 yards and 3 touchdowns per game. In this dream matchup, it isn’t hard to imagine Taylor topping those season averages. The only real question is how many quarters we can expect to see Taylor. Wisconsin is favored by 30 points and has a huge matchup against Ohio State looming next week. It would make sense to keep Taylor as fresh as possible. However, if the game gets out of hand early, it will likely be because Taylor has already racked up some huge numbers. Plus, it seems Wisconsin is trying to make sure Taylor has the stats to get an invite to New York for the Heisman Trophy ceremony because he has stayed in some games longer than necessary. Overall, Taylor looks like a fantastic option as long as you can fit in his salary.
Others to Consider
Breece Hall, Iowa State ($6,000)
Prior to last Saturday, Hall’s career numbers were 18 rushes for 84 yards and 0 touchdowns. He’d been pretty much a non-factor. His breakout performance against West Virginia (26 carries for 132 yards and 3 touchdowns) came out of nowhere, especially considering that it had been looking like Johnnie Lang was well on his way to locking down the lead role in the backfield. One of the biggest lineup-building questions of Week 8 is whether Hall’s performance last week was a fluke or a legitimate coming out party. There are arguments to be made on both sides of the issue. The argument against relying on Hall is the scattershot usage we have seen when it comes to Iowa State’s skill position players this season. The committee at running back has been messy. Wide receiver Deshaunte Jones has gone from 10 catches one week to zero the next. It is scary to bank on any of these guys. On the other hand, it is worth noting that while Hall’s performance last week came out of nowhere considering the season to date, he is likely not a flash in the pan in the bigger picture. He was the rare 4-star prospect to commit to Iowa State. He generated plenty of buzz in the spring as the heir apparent to David Montgomery and ranked 57th on my list of the Top-100 pro prospects I put together in May. Rostering Hall this week isn’t for the faint of heart but we have to cut some salary corners somewhere and he looks like one of the best risk versus reward bets on the slate. Texas Tech allowing 186 rushing yards per game and Iowa State is a touchdown favorite on the road with a healthy 31.3-point implied team total.
Chuba Hubbard, Oklahoma State ($10,500)
Hubbard’s volume has been insane. In his last four outings, he has had 32, 39, 27, and 35 touches. That’s an average of 34.8 touches per game. He should see a similar workload in what should be a very competitive (Oklahoma State is favored by 3.5 points) game against Baylor. The Bears defense is no joke, ranking 23rd in SP+. However, if Hubbard is going to touch it 30+ times, it is hard to see him failing in any matchup. He is too talented and the deep threat of Tylan Wallace helps keep teams from stacking the box too heavily. While Hubbard’s expected workload is unparalleled, Taylor does have the much more favorable matchup this week. Can you fit both top backs in this week? It is hard if you also want a pair of good quarterbacks but not impossible. Hubbard also makes sense in the flex spot.
Wide Receiver
Positional Overview
Last week was all about the receivers, with three top pass catchers outscoring all of the running backs. While it is possible we see a repeat, this feels like a week where we could see the running backs dominate. Thus, we may want to allocate much of our cap to the other positions and try to save some money at wide receiver. Justyn Ross ($8,000) is one of the most cost effective options at WR1 or WR2. Value is tough to come by, which makes Braylon Sanders ($5,000) and George Pickens ($6,300) very attractive WR3 options. You probably need to roster at least one cheap wide receiver if you want to play guys like Jalen Hurts and Jonathan Taylor.
Core Plays
Justyn Ross, Clemson ($8,000)
Ross is again $1,000 too cheap and his mid-tier pricing is what makes him such a strong option in Week 8. He was well on his way to a breakout game last week against Florida State (5-61-2 in the first half) but a Florida State pick six to start the second half pretty much ended the game and Ross spent most of the second half on the bench. Louisville, playing at home, should have a better chance of forcing Clemson to play four quarters. The Cardinals offense ranks in the top-10 nationally in passing efficiency and 28th overall in offensive FEI ratings. If Louisville can just put a couple touchdowns on the board, Ross will play the whole game and have a good shot at a big fantasy outing. The Cardinals defense ranks just 87th nationally in yards per pass. Louisville allowed 423 passing yards and 5 passing touchdowns to Wake Forest last week, so this is an exploitable matchup.
Justin Jefferson, LSU ($9,700)
Jefferson may be the most consistent and reliable fantasy option at the wide receiver position this season. He has scored in every single game. In his three healthy games against FCS opponents, he has averaged 9.7 receptions, 147 yards and 2 touchdowns. He is getting an even bigger workload than normal with fellow starting receiver Terrace Marshall out. Jefferson and Ja’Marr chase combined to catch 17 of Joe Burrow’s 21 completed passes last week against Florida. The Tigers have an implied team total of 40 points on Saturday against Mississippi State and project to score approximately three touchdowns through the air. Jefferson projects to catch at least one of them. He looks like the top receiver on the slate given that this game has a spread of 18.5, whereas CeeDee Lamb and Oklahoma are favored by 33.5 and much less likely to play a full four quarters.
Braylon Sanders, Mississippi ($5,000)
We want to get some of the elite players like Jalen Hurts, Joe Burrow, Jonathan Taylor, Chubb Hubbard, Travis Etienne, Justin Jefferson, and CeeDee Lamb onto our rosters this week. To do so, it is an absolute must to take at least one flyer on a dirt cheap player. Sanders stands out as the top super-saver option at wide receiver. He entered the season expected to compete with Elijah Moore for the WR1 title for Ole Miss. Sanders had 5 catches for 73 yards before getting injured in Week 1. He appeared well on his way to a solid junior season. However, that hamstring injury has kept him sidelined for six weeks. All indications are that he will finally return to the starting lineup Saturday evening against Texas A&M. We will have to watch the news closely to make sure his probably status doesn’t change but assuming he does indeed play, he is a great option. Sanders should see at least a handful of targets, which is all that you can ask for when a guy is priced this low.
Others to Consider
George Pickens, Georgia ($6,300)
Pickens’ salary has risen to the point where he doesn’t quite fit into the stars and scrubs lineup build. However, he is still very cheap and comes with more of a floor than the sub-$6K wide receivers like Sanders. In fact, Pickens has emerged as the WR1 for Georgia. He leads the team in receptions (19) and receiving yards (283) and is coming off of a big Week 7 (7 catches for 98 yards). Fellow starter Lawrence Cager is listed as doubtful for Saturday’s matchup against Kentucky, so Pickens could see a few more targets than normal. This is also one of those situations where, when in doubt, it makes sense to bet on talent. Most of the cheap wide receiver options are nowhere near as talented as Pickens. He has made a strong early case to be considered the most talented true freshman wide receiver in the country, showing A.J. Green-like flashes of potential. Even in a game where Georgia isn’t likely to need to throw a bunch, Pickens has a solid floor and plenty of upside relative to his price.
Tylan Wallace, Oklahoma State ($8,900)
Wallace is one of the top fantasy wide receivers in all of college football. He has racked up 39 catches for 703 yards and 7 touchdowns through his first six games. There is a good case to consider him a core play, especially considering that his salary has fallen to under $9K for the first time in over a year. The only issue is that with freshman quarterback Spencer Sanders struggling at times, Wallace hasn’t shown slate-breaking upside of late. He has put up 20.3 or fewer fantasy points in four straight games. He is also facing a solid Baylor defense that is allowing just 5.25 yards per attempt through the air. Wallace feels less likely than some of the other top pass catchers to put up monster numbers this weekend despite his proven big-play ability but still has a great floor.
CeeDee Lamb, Oklahoma ($9,600)
Lamb has been the ultimate boom/bust option this season and is impossible to trust in cash game lineups when Oklahoma is a heavy favorite. The Sooners have shown a propensity to spread it around to a number of different pass catchers against easier opponents. For example, against Kansas, no Oklahoma receiver caught more than two passes. Lamb has caught two or fewer passes three times this season, so the floor here is surprisingly low. However, he remains near the top of our list for GPPs because his upside is unmatched. He has exploded for 40+ fantasy points in two of his last three outings. Lamb is electric with the ball in his hands, showing the ability to make tacklers miss and take it to the house if he gets even a small opening. If the Sooners decide to feature Lamb again, he should have another monster game against West Virginia’s subpar defense.
