The fantasy football season rolls on into Week 8, featuring a full slate of games following Week 7, which sent six teams on Bye. Now, we have 16 games available, giving us plenty of options to insert into our fantasy football lineups. It’s imperative to dial into the offensive and defensive line matchups that will occur on this NFL Week 8 slate because the battle in the trenches nearly always dictates how effective a team’s offense will be ran.
A few of the highlighted matchups last week proved pivotal, like Philadelphia’s defensive line going up against Miami’s banged up offensive line, as the Dolphins backups were no match for Jalen Carter (DT – Eagles) and Josh Sweat (DE – Eagles) wreaking havoc all night long. The Rams’ defensive line struggles to contain opposing rushing attacks also proved accurate, as Jaylen Warren (RB – Steelers) and Najee Harris (RB – Steelers) both scored their first touchdowns this season in a 24-17 road win over Los Angeles. Atlanta’s defensive front dominated the line of scrimmage against Tampa Bay, allowing them to hold the Bucs to one touchdown and overcome three fumbles from Desmond Ridder (QB – Falcons) to earn a clutch divisional win on the road.
Highlighted matchups that didn’t play out as expected in Week 7 included Detroit’s offensive line unable to handle Baltimore’s defensive front, forcing Jared Goff (QB – Lions) into hurried throws and bad decisions during the Ravens’ 38-6 rout over the Lions. The Raiders’ defensive line got blown off the line of scrimmage by Chicago, allowing D’Onta Foreman (RB – Bears) to rack up three touchdowns as the overall RB1, while Myles Garrett (DE – Browns) continued his dominance despite engaging in a 39-38 shootout win over the Colts, who countered the Browns’ defensive line well for most of the game.
NFL fantasy analyst Matt MacKay is back to share his latest offensive and defensive line unit rankings, plus diving into several key matchups and analyzing them to allow fantasy managers to maximize the amount of points in their fantasy lineups during a jam-packed Week 8 NFL slate.
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Offensive Line Rankings & Matchups
1. Kansas City Chiefs
2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
3. Philadelphia Eagles
4. Minnesota Vikings
5. Jacksonville Jaguars
Key Week 8 Matchups
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Buffalo Bills
Tampa Bay’s offense may be sputtering, but Tristan Wirfs (OT – Buccaneers) and the rest of the Buccaneers offensive line have exceeded expectations, allowing eight total sacks through six games played, the second-lowest mark in the league. Buffalo’s defensive line is stout, ranking first in pressure percentage and second in quarterback knock down percentage, so Baker Mayfield (QB – Buccaneers) and Rachaad White (RB – Buccaneers) could be in for a long night on the road during a short week on Thursday Night Football. Buffalo’s defense did just allow New England to score multiple touchdowns in an outright loss in Week 7, so due to injuries throughout the Bills defense entering this matchup, Tampa Bay could resort to White as a pass catcher out of the backfield to pick up chunk plays, while targeting Mike Evans (WR – Buccaneers) for explosive plays downfield as they’ve done all season.
Tennessee Titans vs. Atlanta Falcons
Tennessee may have the worst offensive line unit in the league this season. They are young and not nearly as talented as the stalwart veterans along Atlanta’s defensive line, like Grady Jarrett (DT – Falcons) and Calais Campbell (DT – Falcons). Derrick Henry (RB – Titans) needs to get going early to give the Titans a chance, but the Falcons’ defensive line is a constant disruptor in opponent backfields this season. The Falcons rank fourth in pressure rate (28.1%) and second in hurry rate (11.6%) this season, while bottling running backs up with a 3.7 YPC average and only one rushing touchdown. Henry and the rest of the Titans’ offense will have a lower floor, while the Falcons’ D/ST is a good streamer on the road in Nashville for Week 8.
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
The Steelers’ offensive line woes are well documented but they managed to play better against the Rams’ porous run defense in Week 7. Now, they face Jacksonville’s defensive line, which is much better at containing the run, allowing 3.6 YPC. Plus, the Steelers are allowing a 7.8 sack percentage, ranked ninth-highest in the league. Kenny Pickett (QB – Steelers) finds ways to move the football, so this matchup should elevate the likes of George Pickens (WR – Steelers), Diontae Johnson (WR – Steelers), and potentially Jaylen Warren in the passing attack.
Defensive Line Rankings & Matchups
1. Philadelphia Eagles
2. Cleveland Browns
3. Atlanta Falcons
4. New York Jets
5. Kansas City Chiefs
Key Week 8 Matchups
New York Jets vs. New York Giants
Quinnen Williams (DT – Jets) leads the New York Jets’ defensive line into a plus-matchup against a worn-down and porous Giants offensive line unit in Week 8. The battle at MetLife should result in a low-scoring game without a ton of fantasy production on either side. Whichever Giants quarterback, Tyrod Taylor (QB – Giants) or Daniel Jones (QB – Giants), won’t have much time to read through their progressions in the pocket. Saquon Barkley (RB – Giants) also has a lower ceiling due to the Jets allowing only two rushing touchdowns this season. This is a favorable matchup for fantasy managers to re-insert the Jets D/ST into lineups against a Giants offense that has scored 26 points combined the last two weeks.
Las Vegas Raiders vs. Detroit Lions
Despite a poor outing against Baltimore in Week 7, Detroit’s offensive line remains one of the best in the league. Now, they get the Raiders’ defensive line, which just surrendered three rushing touchdowns to D’Onta Foreman. Maxx Crosby (DE – Raiders) is a force off the edge but expect a heavy dose of running from Jahmyr Gibbs (RB – Lions) as RB1, setting up play action for Jared Goff to sling the football downfield to his open receivers like we’ve seen during each of the Lions’ five wins this season. All Detroit fantasy players get a boost in this matchup, as the Raiders defense allows 40.6 percent of drives to end in a score, ninth-most in the league.
Philadelphia Eagles vs. Washington Commanders
The Eagles are loaded on both offensive and defensive line, but their defensive line has been dominating in recent matchups. Insert Washington, which is allowing the second highest sack rate (13.5%) in the league, and this game could get ugly quick. Yes, the Commanders and Eagles first game was a high-scoring affair that went well over the point total line, but Sam Howell (QB – Commanders) has already been sacked 40 times and is on track to break David Carr’s record. Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis (DT – Eagles), Fletcher Cox (DT – Eagles), and Josh Sweat should have zero issues disrupting Washington’s backfield, bumping all Washington skilled players, especially Brian Robinson Jr. (RB – Commanders) and Antonio Gibson (RB – Commanders), to a low floor that should be avoided as much as possible in Week 8.
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Matthew MacKay is a featured writer for FantasyPros. For more from Matthew, check out his archive and follow him @Matt_MacKay_.
