Welcome to mid-season as we gear up for week eight of
the NFL. By now, the landscape for most fantasy leagues will have a clear path
to who the front runners are and who sits among the bottom feeders in your
leagues. The important thing to note is that your season is never over and
receiving great fortune off the waiver can always catapult you back up the
standings. Injuries and bye-weeks continue to dictate our approach at finding
talent to either plug-and-play, or house on your roster as important depth pieces.
Roster maneuvering is extremely important to winning a championship and we may
have a few that will help the cause. Happy shopping this week, let’s get to it…
BYE WEEK: Falcons, Cowboys,
Chargers, Titans
Quarterbacks:
Brock
Osweiler (MIA) (3%)
Brock-Tober has been the phrase used when discussing
the Dolphins backup Brock Osweiler. Never being a fan of his body of work
ourselves, it’s tough to ignore what he’s been able to accomplish these last
couple weeks in replacing Ryan Tannehill. Coach Gase has found some magical conjunction
to motivate Brock allowing him to look efficient in the process. Keep in mind,
this level of success may not continue as we’ve witnessed Osweiler fall off a
cliff before and are almost expecting it. However, going up against his former team
(the Texans) Brock would love nothing more than to stick it to his former club
with distinction. If you need a bye-week replacement, Brock-Tober could be the
guy.
Case Keenum (DEN)
(20%)
Round two of the Broncos and Chiefs will transpire
this week at Arrowhead stadium where Denver is sitting on life support desperately
needing another win. The last time these teams met, Case had quite a lousy
outing leaving a lot of plays on the field. With that said, last week’s destruction
of the Cardinals should provide a rejuvenated approach to potentially knock-off
one of the best teams in the NFL. With Matt Ryan and Philip Rivers on the bye,
Keenum does look like a decent filler option.
On the Radar:
Baker Mayfield (CLE) (41%)
CJ Beathard (SF) (9%)
Sam Darnold (NYJ) (9%)
Doug Martin (OAK) (26%) / Jalen Richard (OAK) (26%)
With recent news that Oakland has sent Marshawn (beast-mode)
Lynch to injured reserve, the door has opened for two backs on this club to
take over carrying the rock. Our first contention would lean toward Doug Martin
being the first man up with the greater upside to carry the load with Richard
being placed as the third down pass catching back. This situation however will
be extremely fluid as the Raiders offense is vastly anemic and will be looking
for any spark. Martin should have every opportunity to showcase his abilities but
could be on a short leash. Richard is a talented back that will provide production
in the pass game making him extremely popular in PPR formats. Submit a claim
for both in hopes you get one would be our suggestion.
Chris
Ivory (BUF) (8%)
With LeSean McCoy still sitting in concussion
protocol, the next man up in this offense is the hard nose runner in Chris
Ivory. At this point it’s unclear on Shady’s week eight status and backing
yourself up with Ivory wouldn’t be the worst thing to do. Going up against the Patriots
on Monday Night Football will be an impossible task even in the comfortable confines
of New Era Field. Garbage time points might be where Ivory makes the most
impact as this contest should be over by the middle of the third quarter. With
the waiver getting that much leaner for running backs, Ivory has a shot to produce.
Raheem
Mostert (SF) (14%)
If you took our recommendations to sit Matt Breida
last week and play the new kid on the block in Raheem Mostert, he didn’t light
the world a blaze but gave you a decent outing. Matt Breida is dealing with an
ankle injury that should again force the hand of coach Shanahan to lean on
Raheem against a very beatable Cardinals team. A better matchup in PPR formats
you couldn’t ask for as Arizona gives up the most to running backs making
Mostert a must pick up and play for week eight.
On the Radar:
Frank Gore (MIA) (29%)
LeGarrette Blount (DET) (13%)
Ronald Jones II (TB) (16%)
D’Onta Foreman (HOU) (18%)
Marcus Murphy (BUF) (0%)
Spencer Ware (KC) (4%)
Wide Receivers:
The Green Bay Packers have seen a revolving door of
sorts at the receiver position as they have once again been hit with numerus injuries
but have overcome with good levels of success. Trending in the right direction
this week, both Allison and Cobb have the potential to suit up for this contest
giving the offense its original weapons back on the field. Our first thought
would sway toward Allison being the better pickup thus far as Cobb hasn’t been
able to generate much consistency when he has taken the field. Geronimo has
gained the trust of Aaron Rodgers and should again find his way to see good
production. Either way, it’s good to have any Packer receivers on your team as
upside remains high, but we’d side with Geronimo going into this week.
Tre’Quan
Smith (NO) (18%)
Rishard Matthews (NYJ) (6%)
Disgruntled former Titan receiving standout Rishard
Matthews has finally found a new home inking a deal with the New York Jets just
a few hours ago. Just in time for waiver claims, Matthews should be viewed as a
player that should have an impact on this Jets offense taking pressure off
rookie Sam Darnold becoming his safety blanket. It may take Matthews a few
weeks to assimilate properly, but he should have a role right out of the gates
with Quincy Enunwa dealing with a high ankle sprain limiting him for taking the
field. At worst, Rishard is a bench stash with very good PPR potential.
DeVante
Parker (MIA) (10%)
It pains us to say that the Dolphins DeVante Parker is
on our list as a possible waiver pickup as we literally have little faith in
his abilities. With that said, if Parker could get out of his own way and find
that passion for the game he once had, playing with Brock Osweiler could be a
match which could show some productivity. The Fins receiving core took a
massive blow with Albert Wilson finding his way into the medical room for the foreseeable
future, making DeVante a candidate to perform. There is a sidebar to this
pickup that also intrigues us, and it has to do with the NFL trade deadline. It’s
very possible that coach Gase will attempt to highlight Parker this week forcing
targets in his direction to inflate his market value. If Parker does find his
way to another team, the prospects could be very interesting. Doesn’t hurt to
hold him on the bench as a wait and see.
Courtland
Sutton (DEN) (5%)
We can already hear the naysayers on this suggestion,
but we will stand firm with our thoughts on the Broncos rookie Courtland
Sutton. This pickup and bench stash has everything to do with the upcoming NFL trade
deadline where rumors have been plenty suggesting Demaryius Thomas is actively
being shopped by General Manager John Elway. If by chance Denver finds a
trading partner to take on Thomas’ services, Sutton instantly becomes a
valuable and credible weapon on this offense needing to be rostered. Jump in
front of all other managers and hold Sutton in hopes that a trade comes to
fruition. If you think about this from the reactive perspective, Sutton will be
heavily sought after if Thomas is on another club, so remove that battle altogether
and snag him this week just in case.
On the Radar:
Willie Snead IV (BAL) (42%)
Christian Kirk (ARZ) (26%)
Donte Moncrief (JAX) (11%)
Tight-Ends:
With the Steelers coming off the bye going up against
the Browns, seeing tight-end Vance McDonald sitting on the wire with a 40%
ownership rate is very intriguing to us at ADF. Vance has proven he is more
than capable to garner solid statistics and would more than likely be a
handsome upgrade to the player you currently house in that position. A very
solid matchup with good potential in a high powered offense is quite easy for
us to endorse.
Welcome back Mr. Dickson from injured reserve. The
Seattle Seahawks have activated their tight-end and he has been seen on the
practice field working hard to shake the rust off his tires. Dickson will be a breath
of fresh air to this offense that is looking for any infusion of offensive production.
While we had great reservations on the Hawks run attack, we have been pleasantly
surprised with how well they have performed. This is very important to Dickson
as his role in the pass game while executing play action could allow him to
gallop free rather frequently. While we need to see the usage for Dickson
before we get overexcited, the potential has us licking our chops.
Michael Roberts (DET) (0%)
The Detroit Lions haven’t been able to highlight a
tight-end on this offense which we found to be very confusing. While we fully understand
the plethora of talent at the receiver position, having a play making tight-end
could make all the difference in becoming truly multi-dimensional. While we
agree it’s still early to endorse Roberts as a weekly starter, holding him on
your bench could be intelligent as he could be given four to five targets a
week moving forward. With a creditable run attack forming, the play action pass
will be working for Stafford which is good news for Roberts outlook. Low risk
high potential is here.
On the Radar:
Hayden Hurst (BAL) (7%)
Best Week 8 Defensive Streams:
Pittsburgh Steelers (41%) – Playing Cleveland
Detroit Lions (20%) – Playing Seattle
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