It’s easy to talk about Patrick Mahomes and how he’s the top quarterback in fantasy football. But let’s not overlook even when quarterbacks don’t play well, they can offer up some nice fantasy value.
Mitchell Trubisky was below-average in week 7, but still finished with the second-most fantasy points among quarterbacks, thanks to three touchdowns and 81 rushing yards. Andrew Luck, who has been one of the biggest steals this season, threw for just 156 passing yards, but totaled four touchdowns, giving him the fourth-most fantasy points among quarterbacks.
With six byes this week, there are some tough decisions to be made in the fantasy football world. Here’s the week 8 fantasy football start ’em, sit ’em guide for quarterbacks.
Start
Andy Dalton vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
At this point, I’d consider pretty much any quarterback squaring off against Tampa Bay.
The Buccaneers looked good for the first half against Cleveland in week 7, but once another injury occurred to Kwon Alexander, Tampa Bay fell apart in the second half against Baker Mayfield. Tampa Bay’s defense is rivaling Atlanta in how many injuries can occur in one season.
That’s not a good sign for a unit that has not been effective in recent years.
Dalton fell apart in week 7 against the Chiefs, throwing for less than 200 yards and tallying just one touchdown. He’s put up solid numbers this season, thanks to throwing a decent amount of touchdowns. He should get back on track against a weakened Tampa Bay defense.
Derek Carr vs. Indianapolis Colts
This has not been a good start to the 2018 season for Carr.
He’s been terrible, with an exclamation point in the week 6 loss to Seattle in London. However, the Colts have been one of the worst teams in recent weeks against the pass.
And Carr still has weapons, even with Amari Cooper moving on to the Cowboys. Oakland gets a home game in this instance, and Carr was quietly putting up decent numbers for a few games before he derailed in week 6.
The Colts are allowing the seventh-most fantasy points per game in the last four weeks to quarterbacks. They also rank in the bottom-half in the NFL in yards per pass attempt allowed. Carr should bounce back, and with several byes in week 8, Carr is definitely a QB1.
Case Keenum vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Before a blowout victory in week 7, Keenum was starting to catch fire at the quarterback position.
So I won’t hold a below-average performance in week 7 against Arizona. Before Keenum even stepped on the field, the defense had spotted him a 7-0 lead. The Broncos didn’t need to throw the ball, so they didn’t.
Against the Chiefs, that will change.
In weeks 5 and 6, Keenum generated more than 300 yards and two touchdowns in each of those games. The Chiefs showed some success in week 7 against Cincinnati, but that should have been expected in primetime. Keenum has progressively gotten better, so I’m backing him as a streaming option in week 8.
Sit
Baker Mayfield vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
I’ve been on the Mayfield bandwagon for the last few weeks, but I’m hopping off for week 8.
He looked bad in week 7 for the first half against a Tampa Bay defense incapable of stopping anybody. Only an injury allowed the Browns to start moving the ball in a more consistent fashion in the second half.
The Steelers are allowing just 6.4 yards per pass attempt in the last three games, tied with Baltimore. Mayfield has been a turnover-machine at times this season, so that should be a problem against a team that is one of the better blitzing teams in the NFL.
C.J. Beathard vs. Arizona Cardinals
It would be easy to believe Beathard would be a top streaming pick in week 8.
However, I’m not buying it.
The Cardinals have been decent against the pass, thanks to a rushing defense that is one of the worst in the NFL. This game feels more like a low-scoring contest, with plenty of running by the 49ers.
The Cardinals are allowing the fifth-fewest fantasy points per game in the last four games to quarterbacks. Beathard thrives in high-scoring games, where he can chuck it all around the field. Week 8 won’t be that kind of game.
Sam Darnold at Chicago Bears
Darnold showed some weakness against an above-average defense in week 7.
That should continue in week 8, so he should be off the radar in a week where there aren’t many options available in fantasy football.
Darnold had four turnovers in week 7, giving him multiple turnovers for the third time this season.
He’s had a turnover in every game but one this season, and that’s a bad sign against the Bears. Chicago is giving up the seventh-fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks during the last four weeks. Chicago has been opportunistic so far this year, so this is a bad matchup for a rookie quarterback.
