Week 8 features a nice 11-game NFL slate on Sunday afternoon. Eight games kick off at 1:00 p.m. ET for a fast start to the day, with three more games getting underway in the late window. It should be another very entertaining Sunday afternoon of fantasy football action, so let’s take an early look at Sunday’s slate and see which players the projections are pointing to as values to target this week.
From a game-script perspective, the Dallas Cowboys are a good place to start since they have the highest implied team total on the board as they host the Cardinals. The Bills-Ravens game matches that Cowboys-Cardinals matchup for the highest over/under on the board, with no other game within eight points of the 54.5-point over/under. While kickoff is still a few days away, it’s never too early to start strategizing for your NFL DFS lineups for Week 8. Even in the middle of the week, some potential values are already popping in our early projections, and you definitely want to have them on your radar.
Throughout the season, every Wednesday, I’ll be taking a look at the players who are standing out as top values for the coming week by using the early projections in our NFL Player Models. Of course, these models update frequently.
Things will likely change between now and Sunday, but it’s still good to have a plan of attack.
If there’s news between now and lock — and there will be — the models will update to reflect that.
As always, they’re powered by Sean Koerner — one of the most accurate fantasy rankers in the industry.
And don’t forget about the tools that FantasyLabs has to offer, like our Lineup Optimizer to effortlessly create up to 300 lineups, or use our Lineup Builder if you like to hand-build your lineups.
Or you can just use our NFL DFS sims to effortlessly create advanced lineups.
Finally, make sure to check out all the projections available for purchase within the FantasyLabs Models. Subscribers now have the option to purchase Derek Carty’s THE BLITZ from our Marketplace.
You can also combine them to create your own aggregate projections:
NFL DFS Quarterback Values
Dak Prescott ($6,300) Dallas Cowboys (-6.5) vs. Arizona Cardinals (54.5 total)
In the FantasyLabs Consensus projections, Dak Prescott has the highest Projected Plus/Minus at quarterback by one of the biggest margins of any value play this season. Prescott is coming off a strong showing on Monday Night Football after salaries came out for this contest, and he’s in a great spot against the Cardinals’ secondary.
On the Week 8 main slate, Prescott is tied with Josh Allen for the most Pro Trends, and he has the second-highest ceiling projection on the slate, even though six QBs have higher salaries than he does.
Prescott had 23.28 DraftKings points in Dallas’s 38-21 road win in Philadelphia, completing 15 of his 27 pass attempts for 212 yards and three touchdowns. It was a nice bounce-back for Dak after he threw just one touchdown in each of his previous four games, with multiple interceptions in losses to the Bucs and Packers.
This season, he’s averaging 19.9 DraftKings points per game and is now up to 13 touchdowns to go with five interceptions. He has at least 17 DraftKings points in five of his last six games, showing his solid floor to go with his high ceiling.
The Cardinals have allowed the fourth-most fantasy points to QBs this season, allowing an average of 243.7 passing yards per game and a total of 17 passing touchdowns in seven games, along with a pair of rushing scores.
Prescott has a pair of premium receivers in CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens who can be paired with him in a nice QB-WR stack as the Cowboys look to build on their momentum from last Monday’s win and get back to .500 for the season.
NFL DFS Wide Receiver Values
Chris Godwin Jr. ($4,800) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-2.5) vs. Atlanta Falcons (45.5 total)
In an important NFC South contest this week, the Buccaneers host the Falcons. The Bucs were without top receiver Emeka Egbuka (concussion) last week for the return of Baker Mayfield, which made Chris Godwin Jr. a strong option against the Panthers. Godwin has the highest Projected Plus/Minus at wide receiver in the FantasyLabs Consensus projections this week, although Egbuka’s status could impact that as the week goes on.
The Buccaneers got out to a big early lead against the Panthers last week and didn’t have to throw the ball very much. Mayfield only attempted 11 passes, completing seven for 64 yards and a touchdown. Godwin caught over half of those completions, finishing with four catches on five targets for 27 yards.
Godwin has posted two straight games with four catches, and he has at least that many receptions in three of his last four games overall. He has been a reliable PPR option but has only averaged 9.0 yards per reception this season and has yet to find the end zone.
If he gets another game as the team’s top receiver, though, he brings very strong value at this price point. Godwin has faced the Falcons 15 times in his career, totaling 10 touchdowns and 81 catches for 1,082 yards. That breaks down to an average of 5.4 catches for 72.1 yards per game against Atlanta.
The veteran is a steady option with a good ceiling, especially if Egbuka is out for Week 8.
Be sure to check out all the pick’ems Sleeper has to offer with our Sleeper promo code.
NFL DFS Running Back Values
Bhayshul Tuten ($5,900) Jacksonville Jaguars (-9.5) vs. Indianapolis Colts (46.5 Total)
In another divisional matchup, the Jaguars return from their bye week to host the Colts, who are wheeling and dealing as we approach the NFL trade deadline. The Jaguars are building some good momentum and have a comfortable lead in the division at 4-2. They have relied heavily on Bhayshul Tuten in the backfield, and the second-year running back has stepped up.
Tuten has the second-highest Projected Plus/Minus at running back in the FantasyLabs Consensus projections for this week after he exceeded salary-based expectations in each of his last five games.
He had his best game of the season in Week 6 before the bye, totaling 24.7 DraftKings points with a pair of receiving touchdowns on his four catches for 48 yards. He only had 39 rushing yards on his 12 carries, but he had over 70 rushing yards in three straight games before that against the Patriots, Bengals, and Eagles.
Tuten is sharing work with Chris Rodriguez Jr., but his involvement in the passing game makes him a good value play under $6,000. He brings an elite ceiling against the Colts, who struggled against the run in the last few weeks even before they started trading away pieces from their defense.
NFL DFS Tight End Values
Greg Dulcich ($3,200) Miami Dolphins (+7) vs. New England Patriots (44 total)
The Dolphins haven’t been a source of much fantasy football goodness this season, but they did break through last week and get their first win of the season against the Jets. The return of Caleb Douglas helped Malik Willis have a solid showing against New York, and the emergence of Greg Dulcich as a solid option at tight end makes him an interesting bargain tight end in Week 8 against the Patriots.
Dulcich has the fourth-highest Projected Plus/Minus of all tight ends this week after exceeding salary-based expectations in three of his last four games. He didn’t get a single target in his down game against the Vikings during that stretch, but he has over 9.5 DraftKings points in the three games in which he was involved.
The fifth-year tight end from UCLA posted a season-high 13.6 DraftKings points in the win over the Jets last week, corralling all five of his targets for 86 yards. He led the team in catches, receiving yards and targets, and he could continue to emerge as a go-to option for Willis, who is searching for playmakers in the passing game.
The Patriots rank in the middle of the pack against tight ends this season, but they have allowed 10 catches to the position in two of their three most recent games, and the Bears tight ends had 10 catches for 97 yards and a touchdown against them in Week 7. Dulcich will look to attack the same space and continue his emergence as a top value option at the position in Week 8.
Pictured: Dak Prescott
Photo Credit: Imagn
