For additional Week 8 pickups, check out ASL Founder, Leonard LaPadula's, Streamers For The Desperate - Week 10, or ASL's Colton Peter's Fantasy Football Adds - Week 10.
Quarterback
Injury – Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders (O – Elbow)
Opportunity – Marcus Mariota
Daniels finds himself back on this report, but this time it’s more severe. His dislocated elbow will most likely end his season. Mariota will step in and, although he has filled in admirably at times, this team is very hurt and lacks weapons—making Mariota a QB3 with low-end QB2 upside due to his rushing. This injury hurts all weapons on the Commanders’ offense and makes most of this team avoidable in fantasy.
Injury – C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans (D – Concussion)
Opportunity – Davis Mills
Stroud exited the loss against Denver with a rough concussion and can expect to miss at least one week under the NFL’s strict five-step concussion protocol. This puts Mills in line to start against the Jaguars. Mills’ presence mostly hurts the offense as a whole, and I’d expect them to run more than usual to keep the pressure off. Against the Jags, both Chubb and Marks could be flex flyers. Collins you have to start, but it’s been a down year for him, and I don’t anticipate it will get better with Mills at the helm. The interesting player who may see the biggest bump is Dalton Schultz, who had one of his best games of the season. In deep leagues or best-ball formats, he’s a long shot to perform well against the team that just allowed a 40-point performance to Bowers.
Running Back
Injury – Aaron Jones, Minnesota Vikings (Q – Shoulder)
Opportunity – Jordan Mason
Jones, in his second week returning from a previous injury, is back on the report. Latest is an AC joint sprain which, with some shots, could have him out there next week. Regardless of whether he plays or not, I would not trust him in lineups—he’s in a timeshare with an injury that typically results in a production dip. If he can’t play, Mason can be upgraded to a safe RB2.
Wide Receiver
Injury – Puka Nacua, Los Angeles Rams (Q – Chest)
Opportunity – Davante Adams, Kyren Williams
Nacua, like many of the names on this list, is back on the injury report. HC Sean McVay said he could have come back in the third quarter after the chest injury but opted to rest their star receiver. His practice participation this week should be monitored; expect multiple limited listings. If he can’t go, Adams becomes a set-it-and-forget-it WR1 (like he isn’t already…) and Williams gets a slight upgrade, as he typically sees a small bump in receiving usage when Nacua misses time.
Injury – Brian Thomas Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars (Q – Ankle)
Opportunity – Parker Washington, Travis Etienne
The sophomore slump continues for Brian Thomas Jr., who was unable to finish the Jaguars’ overtime win against the Raiders. It appears to be a moderate ankle injury that likely takes him out at least one week. And with Travis Hunter also out and on IR, we’re seeing one sole beneficiary—Parker Washington. He has always shown flashes of excellence, but I don’t see him as a WR1 in this league, and facing Stingley is scary. Still, for teams needing flex options due to injuries and byes, Washington should perform as a WR3 on sheer volume. Also expect Etienne to see more work in the passing game due to the absence of double-digit targets via Thomas Jr. and Hunter.
Injury – Kayshon Boutte, New England Patriots (Q – Hamstring)
Opportunity – Stefon Diggs, Demario Douglas
Boutte has been enjoying a breakout year. However, fantasy managers felt the zero-burger from him this past week and should expect more 0-point weeks—at least for a week or two—with the hamstring injury. Hamstrings linger, especially for speedy wide receivers, so I’d guess Boutte misses a minimum of two weeks. Diggs becomes very necessary to this passing offense and can be upgraded to a safe, low-end WR2. Douglas caught a TD last week (which I wouldn’t expect again) but will be a fine flex play in PPR leagues, as his specialty in this offense is dump-offs and underneath routes. Kyle Williams, the offseason hype man, will seemingly fill in for Boutte. Although it remains to be seen, he’s a talented player and a good, cheap dart throw in DFS.
Injury – Cooper Kupp, Seattle Seahawks (Q – Hamstring)
Opportunity – Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Kupp was added to the Seahawks’ injury report late last week and ended up missing Sunday night’s blowout win against the Commanders. Due to his age and injury history, I would expect him to miss at least one more week, leaving JSN on an island yet again in the Seahawks’ passing attack. JSN never leaves lineups and will face a weak Cardinals secondary. He’s a top-10 receiver this week.
Injury – Matthew Golden, Green Bay Packers (Q – Shoulder)
Opportunity – Romeo Doubs
Golden left the Packers’ loss against Carolina with a shoulder injury. We’re still waiting for details to emerge, as these injuries have a wide range of outcomes. I do expect, no matter the news, that he misses next week. And with the Kraft injury—covered next—Doubs seems like the best asset for fantasy managers to target. I presume he sees most of the targets. With Jayden Reed not expected back, I like Christian Watson as an add to rosters. He has big-play ability and has shown flashes in his short return from the ACL injury he suffered late last year. This team is desperate for targets with Golden and Kraft out, so Watson could deliver for fantasy managers.
Tight End
Injury – Tucker Kraft, Green Bay Packers (IR – Knee)
Opportunity – Luke Musgrave
Kraft was having an exceptional year and was on his way to a top-three fantasy finish among tight ends. Unfortunately, that was derailed by a devastating ACL injury that will take him out for the remainder of the year. Outside of the wide receivers outlined above, Musgrave did see valuable work when replacing Kraft, and I think he will be a fine replacement—high-end TE2 who can squeeze into weekly top-10 TE finishes in the right matchup. He’s a good add for TE-needy teams.
Injury – Cole Kmet, Chicago Bears (D – Concussion)
Opportunity – Coleston Loveland
I always list concussion-protocol players as doubtful—the data shows missing one week is almost guaranteed. Kmet is no exception. This could leave the door open for Loveland to make his case to become the TE in Chicago and carve out a meaningful weekly role. He did as much last week, and doing it again without Kmet could be the decider. Loveland is a great add for this week and potentially weeks to come.
