Monster Match Ups And Misses Week 8

Week 8 has some huge games that offer up some monster match ups for your fantasy week. On the flip side of that, there are some games that offer up bad match ups for both receivers and running backs on your teams. Let's take a look at this weeks monsters and misses.

The Good

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Detroit Lions have a great match up this week against the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons have the 27th ranked run defense in the league allowing 137.7 rushing yards per game and 13 rushing touchdowns so far this season. With Reggie Bush and Theo Riddick both being banged up, it might be a great week for Joique Bell this week in London. Along with the bad run defense the Falcons have the 29th ranked pass defense in the league. Allowing 274.4 yards and 8 touchdowns through the air this year, Golden Tate should find himself some good stats this week. Early rumors say that it is possible that Calvin Johnson will play this week, but keep an eye out for practice report updates this week. Being that this game is in London, the start time is early for both east and west coast fantasy players. If Johnson practices this week, you can expect him to play and plug him in your lineup.

The

In week 8 the Seattle Seahawks face off against the once menacing defense of the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers rank 26th against the run, allowing 137.6 yards per game and 8 touchdowns on the season on the ground. Ranking 22nd against the pass, they allow 250.7 yards per game and 15 touchdowns. I look for the Seahawks to recommit to the run this week with Marshawn Lynch. On top of that, it could be a coming out party for Paul Richardson this week against the porous Carolina secondary. Start your Seahwaks, and don't leave Richardson on your waiver wire for the future.

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The Minnesota Vikings have a great match up against the run defense of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Bucs allow 128.3 yards per game with their 25th ranked run defense. Jerick McKinnon seems to have finally passed Matt Asiata to be the starter and feature back for the Vikings. With 30 rushes for 143 yards the past 2 weeks for the Vikes, McKinnon has had the lions share of the rushes for the Vikings. He is a must start this week against the Bucs.

Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers wide receivers have to be licking their chops with their match up this week at the New Orleans Saints. The Saints have the 28th ranked pass defense, allowing 270.5 yards per game and have given up 11 touchdowns while only having 3 interceptions. Look for the great offense of the Packers to feast on the Saints defense early and often.

The Philadelphia Eagles square off against the 31st ranked pass defense of the Arizona Cardinals. Allowing 284.8 yards per game, the pass heavy offense of the Eagles should be able to find some success against the Cards. Look for Jeremy Maclin to have a good game, but the sleeper to watch is Jordan Matthews. Look for him to have a breakout game this week. I would expect to see Patrick Peterson on Jeremy Maclin a lot, leaving Mathews in a good spot to score for you.

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A team I would never have expected to be writing about hits up the monsters list next. The Oakland Raiders have a great match up against the 32nd ranked defense of the Cleveland Browns. Giving up a league high 155.5 yards per game, and 5 yards per carry, it is a good week ahead for Darren McFadden. As long as the Raiders follow a game plan that includes attacking Cleveland at their weak point, you should get a solid spot start from McFadden this week.

The Bad:

The Cincinnati Bengals had a tough week 7 against the Colts, and it isn't going to get much easier this week against the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens are the 7th ranked run defense in the NFL allowing only 87 yards per game on the ground and only 3 touchdowns on the season. This will make for a hard game for Giovanni Bernard and Jeremy Hill in week 8. The Ravens passing defense is ranked 24th in the league allowing 258 yards a game, but they have not allowed a lot of scoring, only 7 passing touchdowns on the season. The Bengals need AJ Green to play this week, or they will have a hard time finding a way to win this game. If Green sits out again this week, or if he isn't 100 percent, I don't like the fantasy output you will likely see from the Bengals.

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St. Louis Rams played a solid game against the Seahawks in week 7, but their special teams was the

difference maker last week. This week I look for their passing attack to have a difficult time against the leagues number 2 pass defense. The Kansas City Chiefs only allow 209 yards per game on the season. They have allowed 11 passing touchdowns on the season, but a young quarterback, and inconsistent play from the wide receivers of the Rams leads me to the desire to sit my Rams wide outs this week.

The Jacksonville Jaguars earned their first win of the season in week 7, but in week 8 they get to face the defense that just shut down a much better Chicago offense. The Miami Dolphins are the 4th ranked passing defense and 10th ranked run defense. Allowing 213.3 and 100.3 yards a game respectively, it looks to be a bad match up for the Jags this week. Add to that the revolving door at running back, and a rookie signal caller, and it is hard to find a Jaguar I would want to start on my fantasy team this week.

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This week the Atlanta Falcons face off against what has been one of the best defenses in the league in the Detroit Lions. Detroit has the leagues 2nd ranked run defense at 73.4 yards per game and 3 rushing scores allowed on the season. The Falcons have a mess on their offensive line, having lost 5 players for the season already. On top of that, they have a weird 4 headed monster of a running back by committee going on. Steven Jackson is quite obviously past his prime now, and the other three rely on long touchdown catches to do anything at all. There is not a Falcons running back that I would even roster now, let alone think about starting for my fantasy teams the rest of this season.

Another tough running back situation sets up this week for the San Diego Chargers. Facing the 3rd ranked run defense of the Denver Broncos in week 8, who give up only 74.3 yards per game, and 5 scores on the ground so far on the season, Branden Oliver has a mountain to climb this week, pun not intended. Add to that the short week, this is the Thursday night game, and the fact that it is in Denver in the thin air, and Oliver is a sit in my book. The Chargers don't have another viable option at running back, so Oliver will see workload, but I don't expect him to put up huge numbers.

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The Chicago Bears wide receivers and Jay Cutler have their second difficult match up in a row coming in week 8. They face off against the top ranked New England Patriots pass defense. Allowing only 208 yards per game and 11 touchdowns on the season, the Pats have the luxury of having Revis Island. You can basically take one of the Bears receivers out of the picture, but I am not sure which one it will be. In any case, with dissension amongst the ranks in the Bears offense after last weeks abysmal performance at the Dolphins, I don't see relief in their future. 

That brings us to the end of another monster match ups and misses. Hopefully it has helped to shape informed decisions for your week 8 fantasy lineups. Good luck and go get 'em!

Match Up Monsters And Misses

Week 7 in the NFL has some fantastic match ups for individual units on offense, and some match ups that look to be more on the negative side for offenses. Without further ado, your match up monsters and misses.

The Good:

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Baltimore Ravens running backs should be able to put up some numbers this week against the Atlanta Falcons 27th ranked run defense. The trick is to figure out how to rank the Ravens backs. So far it seems that the pecking order is Justin Forsett followed by Bernard Pierce, with Lorenzo Taliaferro third string. If you have him, Forsett is the only one I would be confident playing this week as the role for the other two has been minimal and inconsistent. The Falcons are allowing 140.2 yards per game and have given up 12 touchdowns on the season to opposing running backs. You could gamble on one of the other two as a flex that may get some goal line work, but that would be purely a gamble in my opinion.

Image source usatoday.com

New England Patriots versus the Jets on Thursday night sets up to be a big game for the Pats offense. The run game is an enigma with the injury to Stevan Ridley and the constant shifting by coach Bill Belichick. The Jets allow 92 yards per game and have only given up 2 touchdowns on the ground this year, but in the last 2 weeks they have allowed the opposing number 1 back to gain 100 yards. The passing defense of the Jets does not fare as well, allowing 235 yards per game and having given up 15 touchdowns on the season with only 1 interception. This probably the easiest start of the year if you have Tom Brady. Rob Gronkowski and Brandon LaFell  are also good starts for your fantasy teams. Julian Edelman should be his usual self, a solid flex play in a PPR league.

The Miami Dolphins and the Chicago Bears play each other in week 7, and should be able to put up good passing numbers against each other. The Dolphins give up 221.6 yards per game through the air, and have given up 10 touchdowns versus making 3 interceptions so far this season. This bodes well for Jay Cutler. The Bears have tall wide receivers that could find themselves in mismatch situations against the shorter Dolphins corners. Brandon Marshall, Alshon Jeffery, and Martellus Bennett are all good starts against the undersized Dolphins this week. On the flip side Chicago gives up 246.2 yards per game and also 10 touchdowns on the season, but has made 8 interceptions already. This makes Ryan Tannehill a more risky start, but elevates the value of Mike Wallace. Keep an eye on Jarvis Landry for the Dolphins as well. The rookie has been gaining momentum as of late, catching 6 balls on 8 targets last week for 75 yards and a score.

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A power run game by the Cleveland Browns will look to take it to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Ben Tate is a must start this week against the Jags. Isaiah Crowell is a good flex possibility for a team that ran the ball 36 times against the Steelers last week. Look for that trend to continue for a ball control running team. I would expect the Jags to fall lower than their 19th ranked run defense after the Browns are done with them this week.
week 7. The Jags are giving up 117 yards per game on the ground and have given up 5 rushing touchdowns on the year.

The Houston Texans love them some Arian Foster. After getting routed on the ground by the Browns in week 6, the Pittsburgh Steelers will not be looking forward to the stout Texans running game. The Steelers give up 111.2 yards per game, and have allowed 6 rushing touchdowns on the season. The Texans will feast on the depleted defense of the Steelers Monday night.

The Bad:

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Minnesota Vikings running backs are in for a long week. This week they face the top ranked run defense of the Buffalo Bills. Buffalo is allowing a paltry 67.5 yards per game on the ground, and have not allowed a rushing touchdown on the season. With a rookie quarterback and questionable talent at wide receiver for the Vikings, it seems likely that the Bills will stack the box and dare Teddy Bridgewater to beat them through the air. Sit your Vikings running backs this week.

The Detroit Lions are playing some inspired defense so far this season. Ranked 1 in total defense and 2 against both run and pass, the New Orleans Saints have a monumental task ahead of them. And let us not forget that they will be without the services of Jimmy Graham this week. If you had a good bye week fill in for  Drew Brees last week, you may want to run him out there again this week. Add to that the fact that with the return of Mark Ingram makes the Saints backfield a quagmire once again, I am sitting any of my Saints this week.

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The San Francisco 49ers face off this week against the 4th ranked rush defense of the Denver Broncos in Denver. This is an exceedingly difficult task for the 49ers, who must play in that elevation on a short week. They also have not shown much of a commitment to running with Frank Gore or Carlos Hyde on a consistent basis so far this season. Denver is only allowing 76.5 yards per game on the ground, and has only allowed 5 rushing touchdowns on the season. Sit your 49ers backs this week.

A stout passing defense by the New England Patriots and a lack of talent on the part of the New York Jets on offense makes your Jets players good guys to be on the outside looking in this week. The Pats only allow 208.5 yards per game through the air, and have 7 interceptions on the season so far. They have allowed 10 touchdowns so far, but have stiffened in the last few weeks. If you were playing Geno Smith you are likely in trouble already, but sit him this week. Jace Amaro has been emerging of late, and with some weakness due to injuries in the middle of the Patriots defense may be able to continue his 10 catch for 68 yard and a score performance last week. Eric Decker is your only viable option in the passing game that could have good numbers, but being on Revis island is likely in his future, never a good thing.

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The Carolina Panthers are a mess in the backfield. They have their best match up of the season against the Green Bay Packers 32nd ranked run defense, but who can you trust? They are all hurt. They all get hurt. In my opinion, Cam Newton is the only guy you can trust this week in the run game for the Panthers. And after last week he is seemingly ready to run again. If Kelvin Benjamin is out this week due to his concussion, it's going to be a difficult week for the Panthers. Greg Olsen has been a bright spot this season, and he and Cam are the only ones I would trust this week if Benjamin doesn't play. The Packers are 5th ranked against the pass, possibly because it is so easy to run. This game seems to line up as a bad and banged up run game against a bad run defense, and a bad pass game against a good pass defense. Your guess is as good as mine, but I certainly can't say I like anything in this match up for the Panthers.

Good luck and good decisions this week!

Forgot About Pra(ter)

It may seem odd to find a post about a kicker for fantasy football purposes, but when the kicker is likely not owned in your league, and he is on a good team, has a good home field, is highly accurate, and is past his bye, he is a good target to add.

Matt Prater (DEN) was suspended by the NFL for the first 4 games (5 weeks) of the 2014 season. Assuming that the Broncos retain him after his suspension, Prater is a valuable commodity to your fantasy team. Playing for a team that scored 75 touchdowns and attempted 26 field goals last year means that he is likely to be quite a high scoring player for your team.

His kicking situation is fantastic, playing 6 of his remaining games this year in the thin air of Denver. Prater was a very accurate kicker last season making all 75 of his extra points and 25/26 field goal attempts. He is usually one of the first kickers to come off the board in drafts and is just sitting there for the taking.This season he will be available to cunning fantasy players who pounce on the opportunity to scoop him up.

My suggestion is to wait til late in week 5, Sunday morning is the best time, and drop a player that you either don't play, or is not performing if you don't have a bench spot available. You will have a ready-to-drop player in the kicker you play in week 5 to drop and add a player during waivers in week 6.