Answering Week 8's biggest fantasy football questions with 7 predictions

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Answering Week 8's biggest fantasy football questions with 7 predictions

Tom Vecchio, USA TODAY

Wed, October 28, 2026 at 4:05 PM UTC ·

4 min read

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We are in the thick of the fantasy football schedule, with Week 8 on tap to potentially give us some of the best action all season.

With players and teams hitting their stride, who's primed for a big performance? Who's set to disappoint despite good recent results? There's a ton to discuss, so let's jump in!

WEEK 8 RANKINGS: QB | RB | WR | TE | K | DST | FLEX

Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars get back on track

The Jaguars are off their bye week and back from London, and they're set up to boat race the Colts . It's clear the fire sale has begun in Indianapolis, and with the power on the Jags' offense, Lawrence is set up for another huge game. To this point in the season, the Colts' defense is at 0.032 EPA/play, which is 21st in the NFL. They're allowing 19.1 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks, and with Lawrence coming in with 300+ yards and multiple touchdowns in each of his last two games, he's primed to push to 250+ and 2+ touchdowns against this flailing defense.

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Meet every NFL referee crew chief making the official calls in 2026

Meet the 17 NFL referee crew chiefs for the 2026 season, the officials responsible for making key calls and enforcing NFL rules.
Detroit Lions defensive end Isaiah Buggs (96) signals safety as the referee Adrian Hill calls an intentional grounding penalty on Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) (not pictured) near the goal line in the third quarter at Ford Field on Oct. 8, 2023

(Lon Horwedel, Imagn Images)

Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys speaks with referee Alan Eck prior to a game against the Los Angeles Chargers at AT&T Stadium on Dec. 21, 2025 in Arlington, Texas.
(Stacy Revere, Getty Images)

NFL referee Alex Kemp during the Seattle Seahawks game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Sept. 25, 2025.
(Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images)

NFL referee Alex Moore during the Arizona Cardinals game against the Green Bay Packers at State Farm Stadium on Oct. 19, 2025.
(Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images)

Referee Bill Vinovich reviews a play during the fourth quarter between the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers at Soldier Field on Nov. 17, 2024 in Chicago, Ill.
(Michael Reaves, Getty Images)

Referee Brad Allen looks on during the first quarter of the game between the Atlanta Falcons and the Baltimore Ravens at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Oct. 11, 2026 in Atlanta, Ga.
(Kevin C. Cox, Getty Images)

Referee Carl Cheffers makes a call in the game between the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants during the second quarter at MetLife Stadium on Sept. 13, 2026 in East Rutherford, NJ.
(Elsa, Getty Images)

Referee Clay Martin talks with Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter (98) and Tennessee Titans offensive tackle JC Latham (55) during a time out during the second half at Nissan Stadium on Sept. 20, 2026.
(Steve Roberts, Imagn Images)

NFL referee Clete Blakeman during the Arizona Cardinals game against the Los Angeles Chargers at State Farm Stadium on Oct. 21, 2024.
(Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images)

Head coach Brian Schottenheimer of the Dallas Cowboys speaks to referee Craig Wrolstad #4 during the fourth quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on Oct. 18, 2026 in Green Bay, Wisc.
(Michael Reaves, Getty Images)

Aaron Rodgers of the Pittsburgh Steelers reacts beside referee John Hussey after the Cleveland Browns won the game at Huntington Bank Field on Dec. 28, 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio.
(Nick Cammett, Getty Images)

Referee Land Clark in action during the NFL 2025 game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium on Sept. 21, 2025 in East Rutherford, NJ.
(Sarah Stier, Getty Images)

Philadelphia Eagles' and Kansas City Chiefs' players watch Referee Ron Torbert perform the coin toss ahead of Super Bowl LIX between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La. on Feb. 9, 2025.
(CHANDAN KHANNA, AFP via Getty Images)

NFL referee Scott Novak during the Las Vegas Raiders preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Aug. 23, 2025.
(Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images)

NFL referee Shawn Hochuli acknowledges the crowd during the third quarter of the game between the Cleveland Browns and the Miami Dolphins at Huntington Bank Field on Oct. 19, 2025.
(Scott Galvin, Imagn Images)

NFL referee Shawn Smith during the Los Angeles Rams game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Nov. 26, 2023.
(Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images)

Drake Maye finishes as QB1 this week

This might not be a super bold prediction in the grand scheme of things, but Maye will continue his hot stretch in Week 8 en route to the weekly QB1 finish. After a tough first three games of the season, Maye has finished as QB1, QB1, QB4 and QB2 in the last four weeks. The Miami defense sits at 0.298 EPA/dropback, which is 32nd in the NFL. With Maye's dual-threat ability, he'll account for 3+ total touchdowns as the Patriots trounce the Dolphins .

Bucky Irving stays hot with 100+ yards and a touchdown

Irving has been hot in two of the last three weeks, and it continues in Week 8 against the Atlanta Falcons. With injury issues around the Buccaneers ' offense, Irving is still the best option they have, and getting him the ball should be their priority. The matchup is a good one against the Falcons, who have allowed the third-most rushing touchdowns to running backs (seven), the sixth-most (272) receiving yards to running backs and the second-most receiving touchdowns to running backs (three). Irving has 20+ total touch upside, and that will help put him over 100 total yards.

Jordan Mason pushes past 15 fantasy points

Aaron Jones Sr. is slightly banged up, and it puts Jordan Mason in a great spot to be a solid fantasy option in Week 8. Simply put, the Vikings trust Mason. In his first game off of IR last week, he saw 15 carries, while Jones had 8 and left early with a knee injury. Given the matchup against the Lions ' defense – which allows over 20 PPR points per game to running backs – Mason could see 18+total touches, enabling him to get past 15 PPR points.

Bo Nix falls back to earth and struggles against the Chiefs

After finishing as QB3 last week, Nix returns to his (bad) form against the Kansas City Chiefs. Finishing as QB3 in Week 7 is great, but it needs to be put in the proper context, since it was against the lowly Arizona Cardinals and that's what's supposed to happen in those matchups. Before that, Nix's average weekly finish was QB21. The Chiefs allow the fourth-fewest (13.9) points per game to quarterbacks, which they will put on full display against Nix.

More: Fantasy football Week 8: Trade value chart and rest-of-season rankings

Zay Flowers shreds the Bills' defense, with or without Lamar Jackson

Flowers has a 25% target share in all six games this season, a truly elite mark. With Lamar Jackson or Tyler Huntley, the Ravens know who their best option on offense is, and it's clearly Flowers. Coming off his third 20+ PPR performance last week, Flowers will add his fourth this week against a dreadful Bills ' defense. Allowing a staggering 43.3 PPR points per game to wide receivers – which is 32nd in the NFL – Flowers will torch them for 100+ yards and a touchdown.

Tony Pollard falls flat after a massive week

Pollard is coming off a week where he was the overall RB1 in PPR formats, but that won't continue vs. the Bengals. Surprisingly, the Bengals have only allowed 18.5 PPR points per game to running backs, which is the third-fewest in the NFL. Before last week, Pollard's highest weekly finish was RB16, and his average over the first six games was RB31; call me crazy, but finishing as RB1 is the clear outlier here. He has a very limited role in the passing game, which limits his upside, and it will put him back in the RB20 range this week.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Answering Week 8's biggest fantasy football questions with 7 predictions

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