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Week 8 Top Playz - Wentz-ever Did You Mean?

QB:

• Carson Wentz, PHI (vs. SF) [CASH]  It's official Carson Wentz is rising to the status of an elite level Quarterback. Seems like he can do no wrong this season, he's performed well in every neutral or positive matchup, and his only blemishes have come against top defenses against the pass. This week he'll have what is likely the softest matchup he's seen all season, against the 49ers who have been allowing over 22 fantasy points a game to opposing Quarterbacks. The 49ers were just humiliated by the Dallas Cowboys last week, and the Eagles are currently favored by 13 points to win, but it should likely be closer than that, as the 49ers have had competitive games other than last week. Word of warning, wind could be an issue for this game.

• Cam Newton, CAR (@TB) [TOURNAMENT]  For a tournament pick, we're looking for a high upside play. Cam Newton just got embarrassed against the Chicago Bears last week, and is going to be out for revenge. Luckily for him, he's going against what is one of the worst pass defenses in the league. The Tampa Bay Bucs have been allowing 1.8 pass TDs and 302 pass yards per game to opposing Quarterbacks on the season. Cam Newton is also pretty much the goal line running back for the Panthers, and can pickup massive points on the ground. Look for determined Cam Newton to show up in week 8, and start smiling again after a few dabs in the endzone. Another word of warning, could be another windy game! 

• Andy Dalton, CIN (vs IND)  - Uncle Pete’s Contrarian Pick 🏌️ It's tough to go contrarian at QB this week, because of the number of good matchups for QBs on the slate. Hopefully Dalton will be somewhat overlooked and low owned due to his extremely poor season thus far. The Colts are allowing >310 yards passing and 1.5 TD's a game, and Dalton will be feeding AJ Green. The Bengals have had a difficult set of games to start the season, facing 4 of the top teams against the pass, and he'll want to make the most out of this matchup to turn around his season.

Other QBs to consider: 

• Philip Rivers, LAC (@NE) - This one is easy, New England has been the worst team against the pass until last week, when they shut down the Falcons.

• Mitchell Trubisky, CHI (@NO) - Only 7 pass attempts last game, but their defense won it. Trubisky will have to throw in this one.

• Kirk Cousins, WAS (vs DAL) - Captain Kirk is on the move, Washingtons' running game is non-existent and Dallas has been weak against the pass.

RB:

• LeSean McCoy, BUF (vs OAK) [CASH]He's been averaging over 18 rushes a game, and is finally coming into the easier part of his schedule which started last week. The Raiders have allowed 105 yards per game rushing on average to opposing running backs on the season, and while they aren't giving up a lot of touchdowns they are allowing an above average number of receptions per game to opposing running backs which is one of McCoy's specialties. LeSean McCoy has a lot going for him this week, he's been playing better in home games, and has seen 5 redzone targets over the past 3 games.

•  Joe Mixon, CIN (vs. IND) [TOURNAMENT]The Colts are allowing 1.1 TDs and 106+ yards per game to running backs. While Mixon really hasn't done much of anything yet this season, he's clearly the best running back for the Bengals. It's only a matter of time before he breaks out for a 100 yard game with a TD, and this has a good chance of being that game..  

• Tarik Cohen, CHI (@NO) [Contrarian]The Saints have allowed 60+ reception yards and 6.8 receptions per game to opposing running backs on the season, the highest of any team this slate. Benny Cunningham was inactive last week, and no news on him so far this week. If he's inactive again Cohen should see a good amount of targets in this game, where the Bears are likely to be down early.

Other RBs to consider: 

• Christian McCaffrey, CAR (@TB) - He's getting more and more snaps each week, Stewart is now an after thought in this offense. Short passes might be needed in a windy game.

• LeGarrette Blount, PHI (vs. SF) - If Vegas is correct, the Eagles are going to have a large lead and Blount will eat away the clock against a poor run defense.

• Kelvin Benjamin, CAR (@TB) [CASH]Kelvin Benjamin was a little beat up heading into the game against the Bears last week, where Cam Newton struggled to connect with anyone except for the Bears defenders. Luckily for Cam and Crew, they will be facing one of the worst teams in the league versus the pass. The Tampa Bay Bucs have allowed 1.2 TDs and 214 yards receiving to opposing wide receivers on the season. Over the last 4 games Benjamin has been averaging 7.3 targets a game, with 81.5 yards and a TD. Devin Funchess was limited in practice with a hamstring injury, if he's not fully healthy Benjamin could be in line for a lot of targets.

• Keenan Allen, LAC (@NE) [TOURNAMENT] This Patriots have had the worst pass defense in the league, until last game, and the Chargers have had 3 difficult matchups in a row, which should make the Patriots defense look like Swiss cheese. It is well known that Belichick loves shutting down the #1 offensive weapon, but that's a great part about the Chargers, there is no clear top option to stop. The Chargers have a top 10 running back, with an above average receiving corps.

• Josh Doctson, WAS (vs. DAL) [CONTRARIAN] Pryor has been a huge disappointment for Washington this year, he just doesn't look comfortable catching the ball, and the team seems frustrated. It sounds like Washington wants Doctson to start having a larger role in this offense, so look for more targets to start coming his way. It's a slightly above average matchup against Dallas who has been allowing 1.3 TDs and 145 yards receiving per game to opposing wide receivers.

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Other WRs to consider: 

• A.J. Green, CIN (vs IND) - After a tough game against a good defense last week, look for Dalton and Green to connect with a big game.

• Pierre Garcon, SF (@PHI) - The Eagles pass rush is no joke, Beathard will be forced to get rid of the ball quick, putting Garcon in line for a lot of targets.

TE:

• Jordan Reed, WSH (vs. DAL) (Cash): Is he finally healthy? When he was, games like last week were relatively frequent, and he was in the same class as Zach Ertz, who costs way more than him. Last year against the Cowboys he had 165 yards, 15 receptions and 2 touchdowns over 2 games. With the highest total of the week, Vegas thinks this will be a shootout, and I couldn’t agree more. Reed should be a big part of the offense this week as the Redskins have not been getting much production out of their receivers this season. 

• Hunter Henry, LAC (@NE) (Tournament): With the Pats favored by 7, the Chargers will likely be trailing and forced to throw against this weak pass defense. Enter Hunter Henry who either gets solid production or literally nothing. It’ll take awhile before I can be confident in his floor, but I love his ceiling. Henry has 5 red zone targets in the past 4 weeks which ties him for 5th in that category among tight ends. So the touchdown upside is there, but he also can rack up yards with 3 games of 70+ yards including each of the past two weeks. He didn’t catch a touchdown in any of those 3 games, but it’s not hard to believe he can combine the two against the Patriots pass defense, especially with the Chargers likely throwing the ball plenty.

Other TEs to consider:

• Zach Ertz, PHI (vs. SF): Super expensive, but he’s been a beast this year, and he gets a soft matchup. Two concerns here are the windy weather, and a potential blowout leading to the Eagles running the entire second half.

• Zach Miller, CHI (@NO): Of Trubisky’s 7 pass attempts last week, 3 went to Miller. The Bears might actually have to throw the ball this week, and Trubisky himself might not be able to name any of his other options.

DEFENSE:

• Philadelphia Eagles, (vs. SF) (Cash):CJ Beathard’s first start last week was a disaster. At home against the Cowboys, the 49ers allowed 5 sacks, fumbled the ball 3 times and didn’t score a touchdown until they were down by 37 points. This week Beathard gets his first road start against an Eagles defense that doesn’t need to blitz to get to the quarterback and stops the run as well as anyone. Many will be taking this defense, and I just don’t think the fade is worth it in cash games. Watch the weather as well; forecasts show that strong winds are likely.

• New Orleans Saints, (vs. CHI) (Tournament):The Saints D are the tournament play again this week. Last week wasn’t a great outing for their defense from a fantasy perspective, but this week they’ll be back home against a Bears offense that does not want to throw the ball. The upside here is if the Saints can get an early lead and force Trubisky to throw the ball to his no-name receivers, then the Saints will have a great shot at the top defense of the week. If that doesn’t happen, the Bears will likely run the ball 80% of the time, not giving the Saints much opportunity to rack up fantasy points. This defense deserves exposure in tournament lineups.

• Detroit Lions, (vs. PIT) (Contrarian):The Lions defense has a matchup this week against a very hit or miss offense. Big Ben’s road troubles are well-known, so picking the home defense against the Steelers is generally a solid plan, especially when the defense is this good. The worrisome part is that the Steelers offense looks to be hitting a groove now that Le’Veon has shaken off the rust, and is getting the ball at a crazy rate with 30+ carries in 3 of his past 4 games. This week, however, the Steelers have demoted Martavis Bryant to the scout team, and Juju Smith-Schuster is in concussion protocol. I’ll take the Lions defense in this one coming off of a bye, and having scored double digits in all but one game this year.

Other DEF to consider:

• Cincinnati Bengals, vs. IND: At home against an offense that has allowed opposing fantasy defenses to go off several times already this year.

• New England Patriots, vs. LAC: This one is definitely a risk, but they’re cheap, at home, against a west-coast team in the morning, and they have a brand new fog machine.

INJURIES TO WATCH:

• Stefon Diggs, MIN - Probable, Made the trip to London.

• Mike Wallace, BAL - Concussion, game time call.

• Jeremy Maclin, BAL - Questionable with a shoulder injury.

• Devin Funchess, CAR - Questionable, Hamstring.

• Benny Cunningham, CHI - Questionable, Hamstring.

• John Ross, CIN - Questionable, Knee.

• Dan Bailey, DAL - Out

• Emmanuel Sanders, DEN - Questionable, Ankle

• Willie Snead, NO - Questionable, Hamstring.

• Michael Floyd, MIN - Questionable, Calf

• Kenny Golladay, DET - Questionable, Hamstring

• Golden Tate, DET - OUT Shoulder

• Charcandrick West, KC - Probable, Concussion

• DeVante Parker, MIA - Questionable, Ankle

• Jay Cutler, MIA - OUT

• Marshawn Lynch, OAK - OUT Suspended

• JuJu Smith-Schuster, PIT - Questionable, Concussion

• Martavis Bryant, PIT - OUT, demoted to practice squad

• C.J. Prosise, SEA - Questionable, Ankle

• Jameis Winston, QB - Probable, shoulder

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