Three of Dulcich’s catches occurred on the final two drives, and his first catch occurred in the two-minute drill at the end of the first half. Malik Willis seemingly only looks his way when playing quickly. Maybe the coaching staff should address that, because Dulcich played effectively in those situations. The Dolphins face the Lions’ fantasy-friendly pass defense next week, potentially elevating Dulcich to high-end TE2 status.
Mahomes posted a strong box score for fantasy managers and took care of the football with zero turnovers. He also took just two sacks, but the second was one that will haunt Chiefs fans for a while. After marching the offense down to the goal line under the two-minute warning, the Chiefs found themselves on fourth-and-goal. They initially got the score via a strike to Rashee Rice, but the play was blown dead via a false start. The Broncos’ pass-rush got to him on the second try, taking Mahomes down for a game-ending sack. On the whole, it was another dink-and-dunk game plan from Mahomes, who failed to get the deep ball going once again. Luckily for him, Emmet Johnson averaged 25.6 yards per catch and turned a short toss into a 73-yard touchdown in the first half. The Chiefs get a bounce-back spot against the Jets next week in a game where Mahomes will be just inside the QB1 ranks.
He added one carry for 15 yards. Johnson racked up the bulk of his production on a 73-yard touchdown grab in the first half. The Broncos sent pressure and Patrick Mahomes perfectly lofted the ball to Johnson, who saw nothing but green grass ahead of him. The turf monster nearly took him down at the 10-yard line, but Johnson stayed upright enough and lost one final defender on his way into the end zone. He also picked up a 38-yard catch just before halftime to set up a last-second field goal. Johnson had more than two touches in just one of his previous three games headed into Week 8. Though he’s not going to challenge Kenneth Walker for RB1 duties anytime soon, this breakout performance should earn him a few more touches in Week 9. He will be have some value as a boom/bust FLEX play versus the Jets.
Maye’s two-yard touchdown run was a thing of beauty. The Patriots quarterback took off to the right side of the field, faking a pitch to Rhamondre Stevenson, which caused a Dolphins defender to fully bite on it, running right past Maye while the Patriots’ quarterback darted into the end zone. Maye’s first touchdown pass was thrown to Kyle Williams on a post route. It was well-placed, allowing Williams to secure the ball in stride just before entering the end zone. Maye later linked up with DeMario Douglas via play action for his second score. The Patriots’ quarterback is a QB1 against the Packers next week.
Coleman out-carried Dobbins 11-7 and was the only Broncos running back to earn a target, of which he saw five. Most importantly, Coleman was on the field for goal line duties, and he cashed in with a touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Though he only averaged 3.7 yards per carry, Coleman was a handful for Chiefs defenders to bring down, routinely creating missed tackles while racking up yards after contact. Coleman’s best rep of the day was a 51-yard catch-and-run to set up his touchdown on the next play. Coleman saw all of the high-value touches in the backfield while leading the way in carries and targets. The takeover is all but complete, putting Coleman in the RB2 ranks for Week 9 against the Panthers.
Butker missed a 54-yard field goal late in the fourth quarter. It would have made the game a one-point deficit instead of four for the Chiefs’ final drive. Kansas City was ultimately rebuffed at the goal line and lost the game. Having missed a field goal in all but one game this year, we suspect Andy Reid will throw in the towel on Butker after today’s performance. Justin Tucker, recently signed to the Chiefs’ practice squad, will likely get called up for Week 9.
Good things happen when the Patriots get Williams involved downfield. He only caught one pass, but he made it count. Williams got open on a post route way downfield and was able to haul in the well-aimed pass from Drake Maye for a 43-yard score. The play was initially ruled incomplete because Williams accidentally kneed the ball out of his own possession as he entered the end zone, but coach Mike Vrabel smartly challenged the ruling of the play and won. Williams indeed crossed the plane before losing control of the ball. Williams’ workloads are frustratingly unreliable. He’s a boom-bust FLEX next week against the Packers.
Dobbins got the Bronocs’ first touch on offense and immediately took a backseat to Jonah Coleman. The rookie tallied 11 carries and five targets. He also became the first Bronocs running back to hit 100 yards from scrimmage in a game this year. Dobbins was not targeted and was not on the field at the goal line, where Coleman was heavily involved. Coleman ultimately punched in a goal line touchdown for the game-winning score after setting himself up with a 51-yard catch. The short-yardage role used to belong to Dobbins, but the rookie appears to have taken that as well. Without any high-value touches to work with, Dobbins is a between-the-20s grinder averaging a little over three yards per carry this season. He is falling back into the RB4 ranks for his Week 9 date with the Panthers.
The Patriots rolled with 12 personnel on their first play from scrimmage, so Douglas began his day on the sideline. Hunter Henry suffered an apparent foot injury early on, which likely afforded Douglas extra snaps via 11 personnel. He made his opportunities count. Douglas critically picked up a first down, powering through contact on 4th-and-2 on the Patriots’ eighth drive. He showed up again on the Patriots’ ninth drive, securing a play-action pass along the right sideline before juking a Dolphins safety and slipping a shoestring tackle attempt from JuJu Brents before racing into the end zone for a 48-yard touchdown. Douglas is a FLEX option against the Patriots next week.
Gray extended his streak of catching at least two (but no more than three) passes to five games. He also got in the end zone for the first time this year on a four-yard strike from Patrick Mahomes. Gray is a solid real-life tight end, but his role is too limited to be worth a look, even in deep fantasy leagues. He is not on the fantasy radar headed into Week 9.
McDuffie missed Weeks 6-7 with a groin injury that he suffered in practice. He played through a questionable tag this week after three straight limited practices. Until we get an official update, McDuffie should probably be considered questionable to play in Week 9 against the Commanders.
Chism drew the start opposite Kyle Williams in the Patriots’ victory over the Dolphins. Dolphins LB Jacob Rodriguez punched the ball out of Chism’s possession on the wide receiver’s first catch, during the Patriots’ second drive, but the wide receiver corps’ short-staffed state meant coach Mike Vrabel could not bench him. Chism chipped in three catches on the Patriots’ touchdown-scoring eighth drive, including a clutch eight-yard catch on 1st-and-goal from the Dolphins’ 15-yard line that helped set up Drake Maye’s end zone plunge. Chism will be FLEX against the Packers next week if A.J. Brown (knee) remains sidelined.
Atwell made the biggest play of the day for the Rams, catching a perfectly placed 40 yard pass from Matthew Stafford. Atwell was second on the team in targets behind Puka Nacua, who had 12 targets on the day. Atwell should remain on waiver wires ahead of the Rams’ Week 9 game against the Commanders.
McConkey was fully back from various injuries that kept him sidelined for much of the season’s first month and a half. He led the Chargers in all receiving categories, and had the team’s biggest play of the game — a 54-yard gain on a nicely thrown ball from Justin Herbert. McConkey will have a solid matchup in Week 9 against a struggling Houston secondary and should remain in 12-team league lineups. It remains to be seen whether he has any sort of ceiling in a pitiful LA offense.
The Patriots’ rookie tight end got involved early, chipping in a five -yard catch on the team’s first drive. He earned a target at the Dolphins’ five-yard line on the next play, but the pass was thrown inaccurately by a scrambling Drake Maye. Hunter Henry suffered a foot injury in the first half, which allowed Raridon to run as the Patriots’ top tight end. Although he earned a few more targets as the game progressed, unfortunately, Raridon’s lone box score contribution thereafter was a false start on the Patriots’ eighth drive. Despite Raridon’s quiet Week 8 outing, he will warrant streaming TE1 treatment next week against the Packers if Henry is unable to play.
This is particularly unfortunate because Henry was playing well early on, catching 3-of-3 targets for 30 yards. Drake Maye told reporters after the game that he is “worried” about his No. 1 tight end, but added that Henry was “walking around fine” with “a smile on his face” in the locker room post-game. Eli Raridon will be a streaming TE1 against the Packers next week if Henry cannot play.
Coming off their bye week, the Chargers looked worse than ever on offense, with Herbert apparently confused as to where to throw the ball or how to conduct OC Mike McDaniel’s complex pre-snap motion scheme. Herbert had a negative EPA per drop back. Both of his picks were of the mind blogging variety, thrown directly to Rams defenders in the open field. Frustrated and dejected, Herbert continues his worst pro season for the winless Bolts. As usual, Herbert — who ranks 33rd in fantasy points per game — won’t be a fantasy option in Week 9 against the Texans.
McGowan actually out-gained Jonathan Taylor on the ground in a game the Colts trailed 28-0 at halftime and 42-7 heading into the fourth quarter. No. 3 back DJ Giddens was called upon for six carries, which he turned into 43 yards. Fantasy managers are stuck in a holding pattern as they await Taylor’s Colts fate ahead of the Nov. 10 trade deadline, but McGowan remains worth a speculative stash in most 12-team leagues.
Coming off 10/200/3 over the past two weeks, Tucker somehow commanded only one target in a game where the Raiders scored 38 points. It was the first time since the opener he caught fewer than four passes. Tucker has definitely benefitted from some garbage time production, but he is not typically going to be a zero waiting to happen. He can still be trotted out there as a low-end WR3 for a Week 9 matchup where the Raiders are going to have to pass to compete with the 49ers.
Kyren Williams led the LA backfield with 16 carries for 56 yards. Corum was much more efficient as a rusher against the Chargers, regularly bursting through the line of scrimmage and shedding tacklers on a couple second half runs. The Rams have been run heavy since Davante Adams went down with a serious hamstring injury a few weeks ago. That’s generated more opportunity for Corum, who last week had 17 rushes. He ranks 44th among running backs in expected fantasy points per game in 2026. That kind of usage should make Corum flex-viable for now. He gets the Commanders in Week 9.
This was Mayer’s fourth five-catch outing of the season. Only Brock Bowers caught more passes this afternoon. It could have been a bigger day in fantasy, but Mayer’s unconverted look was an inaccurate goal-line pass he short-armed. Mayer has a reasonable enough PPR TE2 floor, but his spiked week potential remains limited enough that he is not a very exciting streamer.
Nailor’s touchdown was his first as a Raider. It went down for all of two yards. In addition to the score, Nailor posted new season highs in yards and receptions, which obviously tells you all you need to know about his WR4 value: He doesn’t have any heading into Week 9 against the 49ers.
This update comes straight from the Lions’ organization. Campbell was taken to a local hospital shortly after being taken off the field on a stretcher. He is reportedly resting now. The team will provide further updates as it has them. We hope he recovers quickly and completely.
It was another disappointing outing for Higbee. This one came with Colby Parkinson (ribs) sidelined. Davis Allen had two catchers on two targets for eight yards. Higbee now hasn’t had more than 25 yards receiving in a game since the beginning of October, and has lost opportunities with the Rams going run heavy in recent weeks. Higbee won’t be a fantasy option in Week 9 against the Commanders.
Nacua, with Davante Adams (hamstring) sidelined, again dominated targets in the newly run-heavy LA offense. No other Rams pass catcher saw more than four targets on the day. Nacua’s touchdown came on a well-designed screen in the second half at the end of a long drive for the run-first Rams offense. Nacua, who had 41 targets over his prior four games, is among the safest players in fantasy football. He matches up against the Commanders in Week 9.