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Rival Fantasy NFL: Week 8

Challenges

A.J. Brown was the better man in our Week 7 challenge, winning the battle of the alpha receivers against Tyreek Hill. For this week’s challenge, I will be doing a head-to-head battle between Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers. What once would have been considered free money for the Davante side is now a legitimate challenge. I won’t go on a rant about Josh McDaniels failing again as both a coach and leader of men, but what is happening with Davante is appalling. One can only hope that he quietly asks for a trade and removes himself from that toxic situation.

Davante Adams, one of the best receivers in football, has struggled this season with the change to Jimmy Garoppolo. Not only that, but Davante has had to catch passes from Brian Hoyer and Aidan O’Connell because, surprise, surprise, Jimmy G got hurt again. Davante has seen targets this year but has recorded more than 75 receiving yards just three times all season. He has three touchdowns but has found the end zone in just two of seven games. He saw his volume go up in Week 7 back to a healthy 12 targets but managed just 57 yards off of seven receptions. Held under 60 receiving yards in three straight games with five or fewer targets in two of those three, things are reaching a boiling point. Things can get better if Jimmy G is able to make it back for this weekend, but if he cannot, it will be a below replacement level veteran or a below replacement level rookie.

Jakobi Meyers has been impressive this season. He is sporting a number one level 26.5 percent target share and has more touchdowns through six games than he had in his first three seasons with New England. The more stunning part of his Raiders tenure is his numbers vs. those of Adams. Davante sees 10.1 targets, 6.6 receptions, 75 receiving yards, and 104 air yards per game, while Jakobi sees 9.3 targets, 6.2 receptions, 64 receiving yards, and 95 air yards per game. Jakobi has five touchdowns to Davante’s three despite playing in one less game. Davante has more total fantasy points, but Jakobi has the edge in per-game average. All in all, it makes for an interesting Week 8 challenge.

Fantasy Bingo

What a doozy Week 7 was. I had my worst week by far, with multiple cards with just one achievement. I did notice an odd proliferation of quarter-specific achievements last week, so perhaps this is the unfortunate result. This week, there is a new achievement to discuss, but first, we will discuss potential squares. I have one card with a potential corner square, with it arguably having two. On the card, I have more than 225 total yards (RB), one rushing touchdown plus two receiving touchdowns (RB), more than 15 rushing attempts, and three total TDs (WR). The running back touchdown one is the most difficult of this grouping. My other potential corner on this card is six to nine receptions (RB), more than 100 total yards (WR), three field goals made (K), and three receiving TDs (WR). The three field goals made will be more of a challenge as it has to land on that number exactly and also due to the fact that I picked a struggling kicker on purpose.

Difficult achievements included on my cards this week include two TDs rushing + one receiving TD + one passing TD (RB), three passing TDs in the second quarter (QB), one rushing TD in the second quarter (WR), 25 rushing yards (TE), 90 receiving yards (RB), zero field goals made (K), more than 50 rushing yards (WR), one rushing TD and two receiving TDs (RB), 500 total yards (QB), 100 rushing yards (QB), five field goals made (K), two receiving TDs in the fourth quarter (RB), one rushing TD in the fourth quarter (WR), three field goals missed (K), more than three sacks (QB), more than four passing TDs in the third quarter (QB), and more than four passing TDs in the fourth quarter (QB). These, of course, are not the only challenging achievements, as there are oddly specific achievements like the three passing TDs in the second quarter littered across the skill positions. There are also more doable but far from a sure thing achievements like 125 receiving yards (TE), 150 receiving yards (WR), and two TDs rushing plus one receiving (RB). These all seem to be common achievements that have shown up each week.

The new achievement I saw pop up this week was zero rushing attempts (RB). This is a wild one, but it is one I will have to watch out for in the future, as it is a potential card breaker that can force dead spots without fail. The corners are definitely becoming a more challenging proposition, but I seem to have lucked out this week with one card with two corners worth monitoring.

My roster for this week saw a complete overhaul due to six teams coming off of a bye. This week, I will be rolling with Lamar Jackson, Christian McCaffrey, Raheem Mostert, Breece Hall, Tyreek Hill, Keenan Allen, Travis Kelce, and Tyler Bass. Lamar finally looks comfortable enough in the new offense to trust week to week. He has blossomed as a passer, going through his progressions before deciding to run, even leaving rushing yards on the field as he transitions to a true all-around threat. Breece has a terrific matchup, and Kelce is the safest bet for the tight end achievements. Good luck to all on your Fantasy Bingo cards this week!

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Raju Byfield is a featured writer for FantasyPros. For more from Raju, check out his profile and follow him @FantasyContext.