(Photo Courtesy Of truthrevolt.com)
week 8 kicks off this Thursday with the 3-3 Miami Dolphins, coming into Foxboro to do battle with the 6-0 New England Patriots.
Fantasy Football:TNF Sit/Start Week 8
Miami Dolphins
The season started off as bad as it possibly could in Miami. When the Dolphins left London with a record of 1-3, many were concerned about the team. They ended up hiring a new coach and have looked like a different team since then. They are hot and on a 2 game winning streak. The only automatic start the Dolphins have is Jarvis Landry. Both of these offenses have looked very good over recent weeks, this should be a high scoring affair.
START
He is coming off his best performance of his career. He was a different player last week. With that said, the Patriots defense will be much more effective than the Houston Texans were last week.
Tanny finished up last week with 282 yards and a whopping 4 TDs. If you’re expecting him to repeat last weeks performance against the Patriots you will be disappointed. On the season he has 1,628 yards, 13 touchdowns and 7 interceptions.
This week the matchup is actually pretty good. The Patriots have allowed the 6th most fantasy points to QBs over the first half of the season. This is a plus matchup for Ryan Tannehill, you have to role him out after last weeks performance.
He has really been hot or cold this year. Having periods of time where he looked really hot, followed by periods of time where he just can’t seem to do anything. Jarvis Landry does so much for this offense, that it creates opportunities for the guys around him, like Rishard Matthews.
The season started off on a good note for Rishard Matthews. It appeared he was going to breakout this year, but, he followed it up by disappearing for multiple week in a row. Last week he caught 3 of 3 targets for 75 yards and a touchdown. On the year he has 26 receptions, 438 yards and 4 touchdowns.
The Patriots have been a good matchup for WRs this year and i’m expecting Matthews solid numbers to continue through week 8. The Patriots have allowed the 7th most fantasy points to WRs this year.
Love our content? Check out the GoingFor2 Live Podcast Network!
SIT
Lamar Miller-RB
Lamar Miller got off to a slow start this season. Some GMs even gave up on him and traded him. Over the last 2 weeks he appears to be back. Putting together back to back games where he has been productive. If you think it was the coaching change, then we agree, he is now being used in a manner more conducive to his skill set.
Last week was by far his best game of the season as he gobbled up 175 yards on the ground and rushed for a TD. He was also productive in the passing game, grabbing 3 receptions for 61 yards and a touchdown. On the year he has totaled 419 yards and 2 touchdowns, adding an additional 15 receptions and a touchdown.
So after last week’s monster game you have to start him this week right? Wrong, the Patriots have been very successful at taking out the opposition’s running game, they rank 10th against the run this year. If you don’t have another RB that’s an acceptable start, then by all means start him, but, if you have a 3rd option, it could be smart to sit Miller this week.
Cameron’s season started exactly as many had expected it would. He was hurt rather quickly and missed some time. He has become very touchdown dependent this season. He hasn’t gained more than 30 yards in his last 4 games.
Last week that trend continued as he caught just 2 balls, for just over 20 yards and failed to hit pay dirt. For a TD dependent TE, he isn’t doing a good job at getting those TDs, he has 1 in his last 6 games.
The Patriots defense has been very good at taking opposing TEs out of the game. What do you expect, when you have to cover Gronk everyday in practice, you become very good against the TE. They rank 11th this year against the TE, after this matchup they are sure to be in the top 10.
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots have dominated the opposition this year and they are currently 6-0. When it comes to the Patriots you are starting Gronk and Brady no matter who they play.
START
He had the been the only consistent option the pats have had in the passing game, outside of Gronk. We saw last week, in the matchup with the Jets, if you can keep Edelman in check you can slow down this passing attack.
Edelman caught 5 of 9 targets for 54 yards last week. It could have been a bigger day, but, he dropped a ball in the end zone. Even though he has been quiet over the last 2 weeks, I’m expecting the Patriots to make it a point to get him back involved in the game plan.
The Dolphins have a middle of the pack pass defense. They rank 13th in the league. Brady should have no problems finding the soft spots in this D.
He hasn’t been the most prosperous back to own in this backfield. Dion Lewis has had the most success of any of the Pats RBs, but, that’s mostly due to his usage in the passing game. When it comes to carrying the rock, Blount is still the guy they look to use.
Last week, Blount, didn’t get many opportunities as the Patriots decided the passing game was their best chance to move the ball on the Jets defense. In fact, Brady dropped back for 50 plus pass attempts.
The Dolphins rush defense ranks in the top half of the league, but, the Patriots are going to look to run the ball more than last week. His yardage should be kept in check, but, I’m expecting him to find pay dirt and salvage the day.
SIT
He started off the season on the Pup list and as expected its gonna take him some time to get back into the flow of things. I like Lafell as a talent and fully expect him to become a big part of this passing game, just like he was last game.
Last week he dropped the ball an astounding 6 times. Now that doesn’t mean he is going to be bad this week. The educated GM will see how my times he was targeted and take that as a positive. The Dolphins are a mid pack pass defense, and there is a chance he could have a big game. Often, with players who miss a lot of time, it’s best to leave them on the bench till they show you they are ready to produce.
Dion Lewis–RB
Dion Lewis has been the back to own in this backfield, since the season has started, in PPR leagues anyway. He has been the 3rd best target in the passing game to this point.
This week, against the Dolphins, I think the Patriots will have more success with the rushing game and that makes this a Blount week. The Dolphins have a lot of speed on the front end of this defense and should close in quickly on the short passes to the RB in this one.
Thank you for reading my Fantasy Football: TNF Sit/Start Week 8 article. Be sure to subscribe to our newsletter below to have our content delivered straight to your inbox. You can find me in Twitter @MBoyne83.
[wysija_form id=”1″]
ATTN Dynasty Commissioners: Do you want to do something cool for your league? How about a 1-hour live show dedicated to YOUR league? Team-by-team breakdowns, rankings, and more. For details and to book a show, visit: GoingFor2.com/plp.
