NFL Fantasy Forecast Week 8: Busts, Breakouts, Sleepers, and More

Week 8 should be an interesting one in the NFL. Will veteran quarterbacks Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers bounce back from subpar performances in embarrassing losses? Will the New England Patriots make sense of their quarterback debacle and rebound from their ugly loss to the Chicago Bears?

Sportscasting’s staff has some Fantasy Football input regarding those questions and more. If you’re looking for Rodgers to finally get the Green Bay Packers back into the win column, you’ll probably have to wait another week.

Sportscasting’s Week 8 NFL Fantasy Football Forecast

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Quarterback Bust of the Week: Aaron Rodgers

Luke Norris: The Green Bay Packers are in trouble. And so is your fantasy football team if you play Aaron Rodgers this week. 

Think about this when setting that lineup. The two-time reigning NFL MVP could only muster 47 yards in the first half and a season-low 194 overall against an average Washington Commanders pass defense in an embarrassing 23-21 loss, Green Bay’s third defeat in a row. 

So how do you think it’s going to go for Rodgers on Sunday night against a much tougher Buffalo unit? While the 10-time Pro Bowler typically doesn’t throw many interceptions, he’s up against a team that leads the league in that department with 10 and picked off Patrick Mahomes twice. 

The Bills have also allowed the second-fewest passing touchdowns (five) and the fifth-fewest passing yards per game (205.3). They’re also at home and coming off a bye, so they’re well-rested. So, again, how do you think it’s going to go for Rodgers on Sunday night?

Player Prop of the Week: Kenneth Walker III over 13.4 PPR points

Jack Dougherty: After starting the season a brutal 0-3 in these props, I’ve managed to rebound by nailing my last four picks. Let’s keep it rolling with one of the hottest running backs in fantasy football: Kenneth Walker III.

Since taking over as the No. 1 RB for the Seattle Seahawks two weeks ago, Walker has turned 44 carries into 265 rushing yards and three touchdowns. He’s now scored 19.0 and 28.8 PPR points in two games as the starter.

The New York Giants are allowing the eighth-fewest fantasy points to running backs this season, but that doesn’t tell the whole story. New York is giving up 5.2 yards per rush this year, which ranks fifth-worst in the NFL. Walker should see another 20-plus carries in Week 8, and as long as he finds the end zone again, he should cruise over his 13.4-point projection.

Breakout Rookie of the Week: Chris Olave

Tim Crean: New Orleans Saints wide receiver Chris Olave already has two 100-plus-yard games this season and is quickly becoming the team’s most reliable threat with Michael Thomas on the shelf. 

In Week 8, the Saints take on the Las Vegas Raiders, a team that gives up the 12th-most receiving yards in the league. The Raiders D has also allowed 13 receiving touchdowns, tied for third-most in the NFL in 2022. 

The Saints offense isn’t the Drew Brees/Sean Payton unit we once knew, but they have to move the ball somehow. And in Week 8, they will move it through the air, targeting the Ohio State rookie. 

Defensive Disaster of the Week: Baltimore Ravens

Mike Thomas: How can the Ravens be the defensive disaster this week when they’re playing a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that couldn’t do anything offensively against the lowly Carolina Panthers? It’s a legitimate question, but that’s exactly why the Ravens are about to get lit up.

Tom Brady and the Bucs have struggled mightily this year, but their low point came as a double-digit road favorite in Week 7 against the Panthers. The Bucs welcome the short week and are eager to put last week’s disaster behind them. Thursday night is when the Buccaneers turn things around. 

Look for Brady to take out his frustration against the Ravens in a high-scoring affair in prime time. This game gets Tampa and Brady back on track.

Kicker Sleeper of the Week: Cade York

Adam Fromal: Can we manage to identify the top-scoring kicker in consecutive weeks after going with the Chicago Bears’ Cairo Santos in Week 7? Sure, why not! 

Fantasy managers are actually making this one pretty easy on us. In standard leagues, Cade York is the No. 8 kicker through the season’s first seven weeks, and he’s facing a Cincinnati Bengals outfit on Monday Night Football that has allowed more points to field-goal attempters than any other squad. Yet somehow, York is rostered in just 17.2% of ESPN leagues, which puts him behind 16 other players at his position. 

Don’t overthink this one. York is the easy play. 

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