Waiver Wire Week 8 Pickups
This past week was another brutal one. Jayden Daniels, Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, DK Metcalf, and Brandon Aiyuk all suffered injuries. Daniels, Evans, and Metcalf should all eventually be fine. Still, Aiyuk is out for the season with a torn ACL and MCL and Godwin (who has been a fantasy star) is out indefinitely with a dislocated ankle. The one silver lining is that there are no teams on bye in Week 8. Still, managing the waiver wire efficiently becomes very important with at least two key starters out for the season and others possibly out for this week. While, at this point in the season, there aren’t many options to be had with league-winning upside, some players could provide some nice depth or consistent production if you’re struggling to make up for what you’re missing from your injured stars. Here are my favorite players to target for Week 8.
Tua Tagovailoa (QB)
Miami Dolphins, 46% Rostered
Tua Tagovailoa is set to return to practice this week and, reportedly, has a decent chance of returning to the field in Week 8. There is more ailing the Dolphins than the lack of consistent quarterback play, but if Tua can go he should do wonders for the fantasy value of his elite pass catchers. Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle have been borderline unusable since Tagovailoa was sidelined due to a concussion. Last season, Tagovailoa averaged 272.0 passing YPG. It’s reasonable to think he could at least duplicate that production the rest of the way. In Week 8, the Dolphins will face off against the struggling 3-4 Cardinals who possess a fantasy-friendly pass defense and will be playing on a short week after battling it out with the Chargers on Monday Night Football. Tagovailoa may not return this week and even if he does it would take some faith to plug him into your lineup. But if he’s on your waiver wire, be sure to grab him even if it’s just to stash him.
Tyler Goodson (RB)
Indianapolis Colts, 14% Rostered
It wasn’t pretty, but the Indianapolis Colts managed to take care of business on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins, crawling to an unexciting 16-10 victory. While many were expecting Trey Sermon to take on lead duties, teammate Tyler Goodson handled the bulk of the backfield work. Goodson out-touched Sermon 14-9 and was much more productive with his opportunities. Against the Dolphins, Goodson ran for 51 yards and a touchdown, managing to crack the top-25 at the position. Jonathan Taylor is expected to return to practice this week, so any value of the backups in Indianapolis might be short-lived. But if Taylor is unable to go then Goodson is the Colts running back I’d target. He simply looked more explosive than Sermon. He is a priority add for anyone who owns Taylor, but worth a pickup even if you don’t. The Houston Texans are not a pushover matchup, but Goodson can still be viewed as a solid flex or decent RB2 if he gets the start this week.
Ray Davis (RB)
Buffalo Bills, 28% Rostered
After a week that saw him get the start and finish as a top-15 running back, Ray Davis showed he could produce even with James Cook on the field. The rookie only touched the ball six times, but those minimal opportunities led to nearly 50 yards and a touchdown. He also had the longest run of any Bills player with a 22-yard scamper. That is now solid back-to-back outings which could lead to the Bills coaching staff continuing to integrate him into the offense more. There are very few workhorse running backs in today’s NFL. Most teams use some form of a committee. This makes sense. Davis and the Bills will now face a Seahawks defense allowing the fifth-most fantasy points to running backs this season. If you have Cook, Davis is a must-roster, but even if you don’t, Davis is beginning to look like a player who might be flex-worthy, especially with all the injuries and several bye weeks yet to come.
Cedric Tillman (WR)
Cleveland Browns, 2% Rostered
It seems like fool’s gold to recommend any Browns pass-catcher not named Njoku. But even though Njoku led the team in targets (14), Cedric Tillman wasn’t far behind with 12, and any player getting double-digit looks needs to be taken seriously, even if they are on a dumpster fire of an offense. Against the Bengals, Tillman turned his 12 targets into eight catches for 81 yards. He also added a two-point conversion late in the game. This was good enough for 14.10 half-PPR fantasy points and a top-15 finish. I know that putting any amount of trust in a Cleveland Browns receiver seems illogical based on the season so far. Still, with Deshaun Watson out for the season with an Achilles injury, all the Cleveland pass-catchers could get an upgrade, especially if Jameis Winston (a true gun-slinger) is under center. If it’s not Winston, Tillman is still worth a stash, but if it is, Tillman could be flex-worthy.
Keon Coleman (WR)
Buffalo Bills, 52% Rostered
When the Bills traded for Amari Cooper, no one was sure how that would impact the other skill position players. While a one-game sample size is not enough to draw any definitive conclusions, it appears it may have been a good thing for rookie Keon Coleman. In his first game sharing the field with Cooper, Coleman caught four of seven targets for 125 yards. This was easily his best performance of the season and could be a sign of things to come if opposing defenses continue to focus on Cooper. Up to this point, Coleman had been underwhelming. It appears that was a product of having no one across from him that teams viewed as a threat. Now he does, which could open things up a lot for Coleman. Coleman’s role should only grow from here, making him a possible second-half breakout candidate. If a disgruntled fantasy manager dropped him then I would be sure to snatch him up.
Cade Otton (TE)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 42% Rostered
Cade Otton had his best game of the season on Monday Night Football against the Baltimore Ravens. Much of this was the product of Mike Evans leaving the game early, but his status for Week 8 is still uncertain, and with Chris Godwin also suffering what appears to be a season-ending injury, Otton could get a lot of work the rest of the way. Against the Ravens, Otton hauled in eight of 10 targets for 100 yards. Their next three matchups are against the Falcons, Chiefs, and 49ers (all teams capable of putting up points), and with no Godwin and possibly no Evans, and a defense that leaves a lot to be desired, Mayfield could be forced to air it out and look Otton’s way early and often. The tight end position has been difficult to stomach this year, but if Otton is the second option in this passing attack (No. 1 if Evans is out) then he should provide some consistency.
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