• Bo Nix was a top three quarterback: Over the last four weeks, Knicks has scored 88.7 fantasy points, which ranks third among quarterbacks.
• Cedric Tillman was the best receiver in recent times: His 47 PPR points over the last two weeks are six more than any other receiver.
• Unleash your benefits with a PFF+ subscription: Get full access to all of our seasonal fantasy tools, including weekly ratings, WR/CB Matchup Schedules, weekly forecasts, Start-sit optimizer and much more. Register now!
Estimated reading time: 26 minutes
With Week 8 of the 2024 NFL season almost complete, here are the key players to watch when opting out of fantasy football. Here we’ll look at options for smaller and deeper leagues, and highlight players to avoid.
Go to position group:
KB | RB | WR | THAT
Defender
Bo Nix, Denver Broncos (Included in 36.2% of leagues on ESPN)
The Knicks are constantly working from a fantasy standpoint. He has emerged as one of the best rushing quarterbacks in the league, with 29 carries for 149 yards and two touchdowns over the past four weeks. Nix did it with a great passing game, racking up 870 yards and seven touchdowns. That combination of passing and rushing has been enough to earn him a top-10 fantasy finish in three of the last four games.
The Knicks are arguably the best option at quarterback simply because of how well he plays, but they also have a relatively good schedule for quarterbacks the rest of the way. On top of that, he has the best matchup for quarterbacks among waiver options next week. He faces Baltimore Ravenswhich allowed the third-most fantasy points to quarterbacks through the first seven weeks and just allowed a top-10 finish Jameis Winston at 8 weeks.
Sam Darnold, Minnesota Vikings (46.5%)
Darnold has been an incredibly consistent fantasy quarterback this season, averaging 17.4 points per game. His only bad game was against New York Jets ‘protection. If anything, we expect him to improve further as a tight end. TJ Hockenson activated to the 53-man roster.
Darnold has some very favorable matchups over the next month and a half, including Indianapolis Colts next week and Jacksonville Jaguars a week later. He should be the clear fantasy starter both weeks. Unfortunately, Darnold has one of the worst schedules for a quarterback in fantasy playoffs, but he can still contribute to teams working toward a playoff spot.
Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins (47.7%)
Tagovailoa returned to the Dolphins’ starting lineup and played well in his first game. He completed 28 of 38 passes for 234 yards and a touchdown. Although on paper it was a good match against Arizona CardinalsThe offense played much better than it has in recent weeks. Tagovailoa was a top-10 fantasy quarterback last year and in Week 1. Although he moved down the per-game rankings, he had some hot streaks and some bad streaks.
Tagovailoa is worth acquiring in case he goes on a hot streak in the second half of the season.
Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams (18.5%)
Stafford has been disappointing for most of the season, but the Rams’ wide receivers Puka Nacua And Cooper Coup returned to play this week. They combined for 12 receptions for 157 yards and a touchdown, helping Stafford pass for 279 yards and four touchdowns.
The Rams have one of the worst schedules for quarterbacks the rest of the season, with seven straight games against top-12 teams that don’t allow quarterbacks to score fantasy points from Weeks 10 through 16. However, Stafford was a top-five fantasy quarterback in 2021, and with his receivers at full strength, there’s always a chance he’ll return to his old form.
Jameis Winston, Cleveland Browns (3.3%)
Winston is Cleveland Browns‘ new calling signal now this Deshaun Watson out for the season. There was some concern that Dorian Thompson-Robinson could have become the starter at some point sooner rather than later, but after Winston led the Browns to a win over Baltimore Ravensthis should be his job for the rest of the season. He completed 27 of 41 passes for 334 yards and three touchdowns. It was the Browns quarterback’s first 300-yard performance this season, despite the team missing the Amari Cooper.
Unfortunately, Cleveland has a terrible fantasy schedule. They’ll face five top-10 teams in the next six weeks that won’t allow fantasy points to quarterbacks, and they’ll have a bye week. However, it might be worth stashing Winston for the fantasy playoffs to prepare for much more favorable matchups in Weeks 15 and 16.
Daniel Jones, New York Giants (14.7%)
Jones had a slow start to the season, but he ran the ball more often and had a star rookie receiver. Malik Nabers averages 16.2 points from Weeks 3 to 6. He was benched at the end of Week 7 but will start playing on Monday Night Football in Week 8. Ideally, he can continue to run at a high speed and the passing game can score more consistently with Nabers. At the very least, Jones has a high offensive level. His 50 carries through the first seven weeks were the fifth-most among quarterbacks.
There’s no guarantee he’ll keep his job until the end of the season, but if he does, he’ll have the most favorable schedule for quarterbacks. The Giants will only face one team that doesn’t produce above-average quarterback scores. Four of their next six opponents are among the top six teams in fantasy points to quarterbacks. Jones’ three playoff starts are the third-most among quarterbacks.
He has the best chance of any quarterback widely available to become a fantastic starter for the rest of the season.
Andy Dalton, Carolina Panthers (3.2%)
Dalton missed that week after being injured in a car accident and had a memorable week seven. But from weeks three through six, he scored the 19th-most points among fantasy quarterbacks. By the time Dalton returns to the field, he will ideally have Adam Thielen back to wide receiver and Jonathon Brooks as an option when running back.
Dalton is on this exception list due to the Panthers’ fantasy playoff schedule. He faces Dallas Cowboys, Arizona Cardinals And Tampa Bay Buccaneers — three of the six worst teams allowing fantasy points to quarterbacks. No defenseman has a better schedule during this stretch. The Panthers will likely remain a pass-heavy team, and Dalton could put up a lot of points against those teams.
running back
Tyrone Tracy, New York Giants (46.2%)
Tracy was the Giants’ starting running back in Week 7, no matter the situation, despite Devin Singletary returning.
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