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I wasn’t going to go rookie-heavy in this section for the second week in a row, but Nix has an advantageous matchup in Week 8 against the Panthers, who have a defense that is plunging to new depths on a weekly basis Its latest performance included allowing former castoff Marcus Mariota to go off for 196 fantasy points in relief of an injured Jayden Daniels Carolina has allowed nearly 20 FPPG to quarterbacks in its last four outings, and Nix is on the upswing, averaging almost the exact same output in his past three contests
He’s not a fantasy QB1 on a week with no byes, but I won’t be shocked if he continues to provide that type of productionRookies Ricky Pearsall and Jacob Cowing are also poised for more opportunities down the stretch Pearsall, a first-round talent, has a legitimate chance to break out with Aiyuk out of the picture, making him a priority add to see if he can seize the moment Pearsall made his NFL debut in Week 7, catching three of five targets for 21 yards after recovering from a serious gunshot wound in the offseason while playing 76% of offensive snaps
Jennings remains the top priority, but Pearsall could emerge as a breakout as the season progresses Meanwhile, Cowing caught two of three targets for 50 yards but saw limited snaps Heading into a Week 8 matchup with the Cowboys, Jennings is the only player you can confidently start, while the others are worth monitoring for potential upsideSterling Shepard Tampa Bay Buccaneers ROSTERED: 0
1%Monday night turned brutal for the Bucs, with Mike Evans exiting early and Chris Godwin departing late with an injury that is expected to end his season As the Bucs try to pick up the pieces, Trey Palmer, McMillan and Shepard figure to see significant bumps in opportunities McMillan is averaging a little over one catch per game in his rookie season, but he was targeted eight times against the Ravens, third-most on the team, and played 60 percent of the snaps It’s been several years since Shepard was relevant in fantasy circles, but he and Baker Mayfield go all the way back to their season together at Oklahoma, so it won’t be a surprise if the QB shows a lot of trust in his old friend now that the Bucs need other receivers to step up
If you’re desperate for WR help in a deeper league, there’s now fertile ground in TampaBiggest move: There was never any doubt that the Bears were going to keep Velus Jones Jr on the 53-man roster (which I predicted in both of my roster projections) after moving him to a hybrid receiver/running back role There aren't many surprises among the 37 players who were cut, but what stands out are the six defensive ends the Bears have plus backup edge rushers Daniel Hardy and Dominique Robinson, both making the roster after Chicago traded a sixth-round pick to Seattle for Darrell Taylor
-- Courtney CroninIn Week 6, Goodson flashed his potential with eight carries for 51 yards and caught four of five targets for 14 yards Building on that, he saw a career-high in touches the following week, rushing 14 times for 51 yards and scoring a touchdown However, he did not receive any targets, likely due to Anthony Richardson’s return at quarterback, who tends to avoid checkdowns Over the last three games, Goodson has averaged an impressive 5
07 yards per carry, compared to Sermon’s inefficient 330 After leading the backfield in Week 7, Goodson is the preferred option if Taylor remains sidelined While Taylor’s return remains uncertain, if he is out again in Week 8, Goodson should be viewed as a volume-based flex option, despite a tough matchup against the Texans
At 29 years old, Jones is still capable of providing good fantasy production He runs with power and can also make defenders miss, while also displaying breakaway ability As a versatile RB who can catch passes out of the backfield, he should operate as a viable fantasy RB2 for ample productionRomeo Doubs, WR, Green Bay Packers – After being highlighted in last week’s article for his impressive Week 6 performance, Romeo Doubs followed up with another standout showing
In Week 7’s win over the Texans, Doubs hauled in eight of 10 targets for 94 yards After making headlines for expressing dissatisfaction with his role, skipping practice, and serving a one-game suspension, the previously disgruntled receiver seems to have put his season back on trackDrake Maye New England Patriots ROSTERED: 5% The Patriots are bad right now, but Maye is looking like a pretty darn good fantasy QB two starts into his NFL career He’s averaging 20
2 fantasy points since being named QB1 prior to Week 6 That is starting-caliber production, and we know he’s going to be letting it fly plenty on a team that routinely plays from behind Now, I wouldn’t fully endorse starting him against a Jets defense that can be stingy to quarterbacks (at least those not named Russell Wilson), but if you feel like taking a big chance this week, be my guest New York’s defense took a step in the wrong direction on Sunday night, as injuries mounted in the secondary, and Maye should be rostered in more leagues
Jaylen Warren, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers – While Najee Harris will grab the spotlight with a dominant game-sealing touchdown drive, the story for much of Sunday night’s game was quite different Despite Harris starting and handling a significant workload, Jaylen Warren saw more field time than most expected In Sunday night’s win over the Jets, Warren ran 12 times for 44 yards and caught two of three targets for 15 yards After a slow start to the season, worsened by a knee injury that cost him two games, Warren looked far more explosive in this game
His 15 touches mark a season-high, even though he received fewer opportunities than HarrisBiggest move: Trading DE Trevis Gipson was a bit of a surprise since the team signed him in the offseason to be a reserve pass rusher behind Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker But Arik Armstead, whom the team signed three days before Gipson, will rush from outside as well as inside, so that was going to cut into Gipson's time -- Michael DiRocco
2 fantasy points since being named QB1 prior to Week 6. That is starting-caliber production, and we know he’s going to be letting it fly plenty on a team that routinely plays from behind. Now, I wouldn’t fully endorse starting him against a Jets defense that can be stingy to quarterbacks (at least those not named Russell Wilson), but if you feel like taking a big chance this week, be my guest. New York’s defense took a step in the wrong direction on Sunday night, as injuries mounted in the secondary, and Maye should be rostered in more leagues.Jaylen Warren, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers – While Najee Harris will grab the spotlight with a dominant game-sealing touchdown drive, the story for much of Sunday night’s game was quite different. Despite Harris starting and handling a significant workload, Jaylen Warren saw more field time than most expected. In Sunday night’s win over the Jets, Warren ran 12 times for 44 yards and caught two of three targets for 15 yards. After a slow start to the season, worsened by a knee injury that cost him two games, Warren looked far more explosive in this game. His 15 touches mark a season-high, even though he received fewer opportunities than Harris.Biggest move: Trading DE Trevis Gipson was a bit of a surprise since the team signed him in the offseason to be a reserve pass rusher behind Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker. But Arik Armstead, whom the team signed three days before Gipson, will rush from outside as well as inside, so that was going to cut into Gipson's time. -- Michael DiRocco
