If you have players from Dallas or Baltimore (bye week) or need to replace injured players on your fantasy team, you’re going to have to reach deep into your roster – maybe even the waiver wire – to fill out your lineup.
With that in mind, here are 11 fantasy football sleepers for Week 8:
11. Seattle Seahawks defense
Keep a close eye on the ankle injury to Atlanta’s Matt Ryan. If he’s going to be out this week, Seattle’s defense suddenly becomes one of the best fantasy defenses in the league. If Ryan can’t play, the Falcons will start Matt Schaub and that’s significant. Schaub has thrown 90 interceptions in his career, including several pick-sixes.
10. Wendell Smallwood, RB, Washington Redskins
This is a move that should only be done out of desperation. In other words, only play Smallwood if your other backs are on bye or injured. The Redskins will be playing a tough Minnesota defense. But someone has to get Washington’s touches out of the backfield. That could be Smallwood, because Adrian Peterson (ankle) and Chris Thompson (turf toe) are dealing with injuries.
9. Mark Walton, RB, Miami Dolphins
Although Kenyon Drake remains the starter, he reportedly is on the trading block. That makes sense because Walton’s number of touches has increased in each of the past three games. Drake could be gone before Monday night’s game with Pittsburgh. On a very bad team, Walton probably won’t put up huge numbers. But somebody has to get the bulk of the carries, and it’s looking like Walton will be that guy.
8. Kyle Rudolph, TE, Minnesota Vikings
Rudolph had just nine catches in the first six games of the season. But he had a solid day against Detroit last week, catching five passes for 58 yards and a touchdown. That happened because the Vikings have some injury problems at wide receiver, which could mean more targets for Rudolph when Minnesota plays Washington on Thursday night.
7. Mohamed Sanu, WR, New England Patriots
The wide receiver was traded from Atlanta to New England Tuesday morning. Don’t worry about the fact that Sanu will only have a few days to digest the playbook before Sunday’s game with Cleveland. Sanu is a savvy veteran, and he’ll pick things up quickly. Plus, the Patriots need receiver help with Julian Edelman, Josh Gordon and Phillip Dorsett all spending time on the injury report in recent weeks. In other words, Sanu is going to get some targets and isn’t a bad choice to have in your lineup. Plus, he should be motivated after going from a one-win team to a squad with a chance to win the Super Bowl.
6. Diontae Johnson, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers
Early indications are that quarterback Mason Rudolph will be back from his concussion and ready to play Monday night against the Dolphins. Prior to the injury, Rudolph seemed to have good chemistry with Johnson. Plus, the Steelers will be playing a bad Miami defense that will devote most of its attention to JuJu Smith-Schuster. That could make for a huge Monday night for Johnson.
5. Adam Humphries, WR, Tennessee Titans
The Titans signed Humphries in the offseason, hoping he could duplicate the success he had in the slot in Tampa Bay. That hasn’t happened so far. Humphries has just 25 catches for 229 yards and zero touchdowns. Now that Ryan Tannehill has replaced Marcus Mariota as the starting quarterback, Humphries could get more targets. Plus, he’s got extra incentive this week. The Titans play the Bucs, who have a weak secondary. Plus, Humphries will be out to prove a point to his previous team, which refused to give him a big contract.
4. Ty Johnson, RB, Detroit Lions
Kerryon Johnson has a knee injury and is expected to miss some time. Ty Johnson is a rookie with only 23 carries on the season. But don’t let that scare you off when the Lions play the Giants, who don’t have a good defense. Ty Johnson can be explosive, evidenced by the fact he averaged 7.6 yards per carry during his college career at Maryland.
3. Sam Darnold, QB, New York Jets
Forget the fact that Darnold threw four interceptions in Monday night’s loss to New England. No quarterback has thrived against the Patriots defense. Instead, think back a week to when Darnold threw two touchdowns against Dallas. That’s more representative of what Darnold should be able to do Sunday against Jacksonville, a team that recently traded away its top cornerback, Jalen Ramsey.
2. Kenny Stills, WR, Houston Texans
Stills missed two games with a hamstring injury before returning last week and posting four catches for 105 yards against Indianapolis. That was his best game since joining the Texans in a preseason trade with Miami. Those numbers could increase this week against Oakland, because Will Fuller is dealing with a hamstring injury. If Fuller is out, Stills will get more looks from quarterback Deshaun Watson.
1. Matt Moore, QB, Kansas City Chiefs
If your quarterback is injured or on bye, don’t hesitate to start Moore on Sunday night against Green Bay. Yes, he’s a 35-year-old journeyman. But he’ll be stepping in for the injured Patrick Mahomes, and that means Moore could put up some big numbers. He is by no means Mahomes. But coach Andy Reid believes in his system, and he’s not going to suddenly switch his offense to run the ball all night. Moore will get a chance to throw the ball and has plenty of talent around him.
Pat Yasinskas has covered the NFL since 1993. He has worked for The Tampa Tribune, The Charlotte Observer and ESPN.com and writes for numerous national magazines and websites. He also has served as a voter for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
