This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Football series.
The Week 8 NFL main slate begins Sunday at 1:00 p.m. EDT and features 12 games. There are only two teams on bye -- the Ravens and Raiders -- to go along with the standard trio of games outside the main slate. The action kicks off Thursday at 8:20 p.m. with Packers-Cardinals, while Cowboys-Vikings (Sunday night) and Giants-Kansas City (Monday night) matchups wrap up the full-week slate. We've seen enough football to start separating the wheat from the chaff, and Week 8 offers some nice opportunities for contenders to beat up on bottom-feeders. Even with a few of the league's most fantasy-friendly offenses playing outside the main slate, there are still plenty of enticing options to choose from, including an elite dual-threat quarterback, a pair of versatile running backs taking on defenses that have struggled on the ground and a trio of wide receivers from across the price spectrum that all have appeal.
TOURNAMENTS (GPP – GUARANTEED PRIZE POOL)
QB: Carson Wentz, IND vs. TEN ($29): Wentz has quietly demonstrated a high floor as the Colts' quarterback, topping 17 fantasy points in six of seven games while totaling an 11:1 TD:INT, including two or more touchdowns in each of his last four games. With his ankle injuries in the rearview mirror, Wentz has also regained some respectable mobility, as evidenced by last week's rushing touchdown. Tennessee's defense is flying high after holding an imploding Kansas City squad to three points, but the Titans have still allowed the fifth-most passing yards (2,037) along with a 12:5 TD:INT and two rushing scores to quarterbacks. Wentz could be in for a big game if Tennessee's previous struggles in the secondary return.
RB: Boston Scott, PHI at DET ($13): Kenneth Gainwell is the obvious candidate to take on a larger role if Miles Sanders (ankle) can't go this week, but don't sleep on Scott. After Sanders got hurt last week, Scott found the end zone and finished with seven carries to Gainwell's five. Gainwell's better in space and as a pass-catcher, but the Eagles don't view the speedy rookie as a between-the-tackles thumper, so the stage is set for the affordable Scott to take on a significant rushing workload against a Detroit defense that has allowed a league-high 12 scrimmage touchdowns to running backs. While the 26-year-old hasn't played much of a role this season, he has demonstrated a high ceiling in the past, notching 138 scrimmage yards and three touchdowns in his only career game with more than 16 touches.
WR: Tyler Lockett, SEA vs. JAX ($21): Nobody has been negatively impacted by Russell Wilson's finger injury more than Lockett, who has caught just four of 10 targets for 47 yards in Geno Smith's two starts under center. Lockett has always been a boom-or-bust performer given his propensity for making plays deep downfield, and while he has yet to demonstrate much chemistry with Smith, a home matchup with a Jaguars defense that has allowed 1,161 yards to wide receivers in just six games could be just what he needs to deliver one of his signature outbursts, as he did in Weeks 1 and 2 (278 yards and three touchdowns combined).
Other Against-the-Grainers
QB: Geno Smith (SEA, $20), Joe Burrow (CIN, $30), Trevor Lawrence (JAX, $24)
RB: Elijah Mitchell (SF, $20), Michael Carter (NYJ, $14), Cordarrelle Patterson (ATL, $17)
WR: Ja'Marr Chase (CIN, $31), Calvin Ridley (ATL, $21), Tre'Quan Smith (NO, $15)
TE: Tommy Sweeney (BUF, $10), Ricky Seals-Jones (WAS, $11)
DST: Atlanta Falcons (vs. CAR, $14), Pittsburgh Steelers (at CLE, $15)
CASH GAMES (H2H, 50/50s and DOUBLE UPS)
QUARTERBACK
Josh Allen, BUF vs. MIA ($39): Despite a slow start, Allen's averaging the most fantasy points per game among all players in action this week (26.55). He threw for a season-low 179 yards against the Dolphins in Week 2 as the Bills dominated 35-0 behind the defense and running game, but Miami will undoubtedly make things at least a little more competitive in the rematch, and Allen has topped 350 passing yards twice in four games since then. With a 15:3 TD:INT in six games, plus four games with over 40 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the ground, Allen's among the most effective quarterbacks, both with his arm and with his legs.
RUNNING BACK
Joe Mixon, CIN at NYJ ($29): The Jets are coming off a debacle in New England which included five scrimmage touchdowns by Patriots running backs and a knee injury to starting quarterback Zach Wilson. The previously ineffective Jets offense will likely be even worse with unproven backup Mike White under center (more on that below), which should lead to a positive game script for Mixon to trample all over an overworked defense that has allowed a league-high 10 rushing touchdowns to running backs. Mixon should extend his four-game touchdown streak with ease, and a multi-score day would hardly come as a surprise.
D'Andre Swift, DET vs. PHI ($22): The Lions are past the point of searching for silver linings as the league's last winless team, but Swift's play has certainly been one. The 35th overall selection in the 2020 draft has posted at least 19.4 fantasy points in four of seven games, having found the end zone in all but two contests. He has been especially effective as a pass-catcher, notching at least four receptions in every game and twice seeing double-digit targets en route to 42 catches for 391 yards on 52 targets. Swift's valued below 17 other running backs in Week 8 but could easily deliver a top-10 performance at the position against an Eagles defense that has allowed the second-most scrimmage yards (1,168) to running backs, trailing only Seattle (1,274).
WIDE RECEIVER
Courtland Sutton, DEN vs. WAS ($21): Sutton has three games with double-digit targets this season, and he's racked up 24 catches for 373 yards and two touchdowns in those games. Denver's top wideout should get a steady diet of passes thrown his way as the Broncos try to snap their four-game slide at home against a Washington defense that's proven incapable of covering wide receivers. Washington has allowed the second-most yards (1,433) and second-most touchdowns (11) to the position, trailing only the Titans and Bears, respectively.
Deebo Samuel, SF at CHI ($28): Speaking of the Bears, they just got burned for a combined 14 catches, 187 yards and four touchdowns by Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. With George Kittle (calf) still out, the 49ers will continue to force feed Samuel against Chicago's reeling secondary. Deebo's 63 targets rank eighth league-wide, and he has already had his bye week, unlike every single player above him. He already has three games with at least 100 yards and a touchdown, and a fourth such performance could be forthcoming here. With six of the 11 receivers priced at $27 or more this week playing outside the main slate, Deebo's one of the few remaining options left to build around at the position, as long as the calf injury that's been bothering him to start the week is indeed minor.
Marvin Jones, JAX at SEA ($16): Even after having the benefit of facing the receiver-challenged Saints in a monsoon Monday, the Seahawks have still allowed the sixth-most yards to wide receivers (1,219). Coming off a bye, Jones should add to Seattle's struggles in the secondary, especially with the Seahawks on a short week. The Jaguars' top wideout racked up 100 yards and a touchdown in his last game, and Jones has at least five catches and eight targets in all but two games this season. With three touchdowns this season and 20 in his last 30 games, Jones is a nice value pick.
TIGHT END
Tyler Higbee, LAR at HOU ($19): "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" applies to many aspects of life, and putting tight ends that are facing the Texans into your lineup is one such example, at least until further notice. Though Higbee has largely been an afterthought up to this point behind the likes of Cooper Kupp, Robert Woods and Darrell Henderson in the explosive Rams offense, he has virtually no competition for snaps at tight end and has been targeted at least five times in five of seven games. Look for Higbee to take on a featured role against a Texans defense that's tied with Philadelphia and idle Baltimore for the most touchdowns allowed to the position (six) and has allowed the opposition's top tight end to find the end zone in each of the last four games, surrendering five combined touchdowns to Dawson Knox, Hunter Henry, Mo Alie-Cox and Zach Ertz over that span.
DEFENSE
Cincinnati Bengals, CIN at NYJ ($18): The Jets were extremely kind to opposing defenses with their starting quarterback in there, so one can only imagine how New York's league-worst offense (13.3 points per game) will look with inexperienced backup Mike White in there. White actually threw a three-yard touchdown on his first NFL pass last week after Zach Wilson hurt his knee, but he added a pair of interceptions and threw almost exclusively check-downs to his running backs. A Bengals defense that has limited its last two opponents to 28 combined points and is coming off a five-sack performance should dominate in this one. Despite already having had their bye, the Jets have thrown the most interceptions (11) and are only six sacks back of Chicago's league-worst 26 allowed.
Honorable Mentions
QB: Jalen Hurts (PHI, $33), Daniel Jones (NYG, $28), Matthew Stafford (LAR, $34)
RB: Darrell Henderson (LAR, $23), James Robinson (JAX, $30), Dalvin Cook (MIN, $32)
WR: Cooper Kupp (LAR, $36), A.J. Brown (TEN, $24), Michael Pittman (IND, $21)
TE: T.J. Hockenson (DET, $20), Noah Fant (DEN, $17)
DST: San Francisco 49ers (at CHI, $14), Los Angeles Rams (at HOU, $18)
